April 14, 2014

Mavs not sure if they rather play the Spurs or Thunder

DALLAS --Players and coaches know they have to be careful when reporters ask them if they would rather play one team over another.

And Dirk Nowitzki is no different.

When the Dallas Mavericks' superstar forward was asked Monday if he would rather play the San Antonio Spurs on Oklahoma City Thunder in the first roiund of the playoffs, Nowitzki took the diplomatic route with his answer.

"I’m not sure,'' he said. "Both are great teams. Both shoot the ball well.

"I see OKC has a little more athletic and San Antonio does the same thing with smarts and shooting. I’m not really sure.''

The Mavs were 1-2 against the Thunder this season and have lost nine straight to the Spurs, including all four games this year.

Because Memphis beat Phoenix on Monday night, thus eliminating the Suns from the playoffs, the winner of Wednesday's game in Memphis between the Mavs (49-32) and Grizzlies (49-32) will receive the 7th seed and face Oklahoma City in the first round of the playoffs. The loser will get the Spurs in the first round.

Nowitzki said: "We’re always going to try to get the highest seed we can and that’s what we’re going for on Wednesday and we’ll go from there.''