Dirk Nowitzki is trying his hardest to make the torn tendon in the middle finger of his left hand a non-issue before Thursday's Game 2 of the 2011 NBA Finals. But no matter what he says, that injury is turning into one of the biggest storylines of the Finals. Dirk isn't worried about how the finger will feel when he is shooting, but he is a little concerned about some "incidental contact" from the Miami Heat defenders; according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.
"This is not the first injury I've played through in my career," Nowitzki said Wednesday. "I'm not really worried about it. I think once the game starts, the adrenaline starts flowing, I don't think it will really slow me down much. I'm really more worried about the ball-handling with the left and finishing on some layups with the left than about them swiping down, going for the finger."
Well, Nowitzki won't have to worry about that when he is being guarded by Udonis Haslem at least, as we mentioned earlier, so that might not be too much of a problem for him. The best thing about the injury is that it is on Dirk's left, or non-shooting, hand. He might not even need a splint. So even if there is some stiffness, it won't necessarily affect his shot. If Kobe was able to play a full season with a busted up pinkie on his shooting hand, Dirk should be OK with an injury on his left hand.
We'll be following this injury and Game 2 of the NBA Finals in this StoryStream, but check out Mavs Money Ball for more on the Mavericks.