Nowitzki and the Mavericks Are Distracted

DALLAS -- The biggest controversy surrounding the Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki was in the playoffs a few years ago when he yelled at teammate Jason Terry for missing a defensive assignment that cost his team a series.

But with the Mavericks down 0-2 to the Nuggets in the Western Conference semifinals Nowitzki has moved into T.O. type territory. According to the Dallas Morning News and television station KTVT, Nowitzki kicked his girlfriend, Cristal Taylor, out his home on Wednesday morning and Dallas police arrested her on warrants accusing her of a probation violation and a theft charge.

KTVT reports that a friend of Taylor's said she was Nowitzki's fiancee. When Taylor was at a Dallas County jail, she took a urine test that determined she was pregnant.

Following Mavericks practice on Thursday, Nowitzki admitted he was going through something, yet said he's a warrior and that this drama won't distract him from Game 3 on Saturday.

"It's pretty obvious I'm going though a tough time in my personal life right now," Nowitzki said. "But like I've always had, I like to keep my private life private. I'm not at a stage to talk about [it] and I'm not comfortable talking about it."

The Mavericks don't need this right now. They have been outplayed the first two games of this series and the fourth quarter was a topic of discussion on Thursday. In Game 2, Denver went on a 16-2 run to turn a close game into a blowout in the fourth quarter.

If the Mavericks are going to do anything in this series, it starts Saturday afternoon and Nowitzki has to lead this team. Terry, who is now close with Nowitzki, believes in him.

"No concern at all," Terry said of Nowitzki's focus. "Everybody's focus is here on Game 3 and getting that first W. We got to get this win, whatever else is going on, don't matter."

Jason Kidd, a man who knows something about distractions, said being down 0-2 is a distraction enough. But can Nowitzki block everything out and get his team back into this series?

Nowitzki, according to KTVT, hired a private investigator to check into Taylor's background where it was discovered she had multiple alias.

"I think I'm looking forward to Game 3," Nowitzki said. "We're down 0-2 and I'm trying to focus on basketball as much as I can. We had tough losses down [in Denver]."

At the end of his news briefing a television reporter asked him if he was engaged.

"No comment," he said.

"Why wouldn't you bail Taylor out of jail?" was another question.

"No comment," he said.

And with that Nowitzki and his thoughts left. It now leaves Mavericks fans wondering if Nowitzki will be focus with his team desperate for a win.