2011 NBA Finals: What the Mavericks Need to Do to Contain Dwyane Wade

Dan Patrick's famous tag-line is true about what the Dallas Mavericks face in this 2011 NBA Finals series with Dwyane Wade: "You can't stop him; you can only hope to contain him."

The Dallas Mavericks aren't going to "stop" Dwyane Wade (if stopping him means keeping him from scoring, rebounding, getting steals, etc.)

But they can work really hard at containing him better than they have done so far in the first three games.

Wade's stellar performance is one of the primary reasons that the Heat are up 2-1.

While Dirk Nowitzki's performance in the rest of the series is critical to the Mavericks success, here are five things that Dallas needs to do in Game 4 to limit Wade's impact on the outcome of this absolutely essential game for the Mavs.

Deny Him the Ball

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MIAMI, FL - JUNE 02: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat looks to pass against DeShawn Stevenson #92 of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Two of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena on June 2, 2011 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknow

Here's a great revelation: If Dwyane Wade doesn't get the ball, he can't score.

Denying him the ball, even for short stretches of time during the game, will be difficult but is absolutely necessary.

Someone (most likely DeShawn Stevenson) will have to have that as a single focus while on the court: make sure that DWade can't get the ball passed to him.

Stevenson can't be relied on while doing this, to help out with anyone else.

He probably isn't going to be much help on the boards either.

But for two or three minutes at a time (a couple of times during the game), Wade's touches need to be eliminated...easier said than done.

Make Him Give Up the Ball Inside 15 Seconds of a Possession

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MIAMI, FL - JUNE 02: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat drives against Tyson Chandler #6 of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Two of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena on June 2, 2011 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and

For a number of consecutive possessions at different points during the game, the Mavs need to make Wade give up the ball inside of 15 seconds.

This will require effectively running a second player (Tyson Chandler) at him in a way that doesn't lead to an easy bucket underneath the basket.

By doing so, the Heat would have to work to get Wade the ball back.

By the time they work it back to him, it would be with less time on the shot clock, limiting his options.

Wade, like almost every player, is much more effective if he has the ball in his hands with plenty of time left on the shot clock.

Keep Him off the Offensive Glass

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DALLAS, TX - JUNE 05: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat goes up for the ball against Dirk Nowitzki #41 of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Three of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center on June 5, 2011 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly

Dwyane Wade is one of the best guards in the league in terms of offensive rebounding.

Because of this, he gets about three baskets per game on put-backs.

Whoever is guarding him needs to do a better job of putting a body on him and keeping him off the O-glass.

When Wade does get an offensive rebound, he's pretty much "money."

He doesn't look to kick it out; he's putting the ball in the basket. 

Keep Him Off the Free-Throw Line

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MIAMI, FL - MAY 31: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat shoots a free throw while taking on the Dallas Mavericks in Game One of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena on May 31, 2011 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and a

Dallas has actually done a good job of keeping Wade off of the free-throw line thus far in the Finals.

He is only averaging seven FT attempts per game which is infinitely better than the 16 FTs he was shooting in the 2006 NBA Finals.

Some might suggest that, because of how he is shooting from the line during the series, you could actually do better by putting him there and "make him earn his points."

In the first three games, Wade is shooting a tepid 61 percent from the line.

My fear would be that if you send him to the line more, he might find his rhythm and dominate the game from the charity stripe.

I say keep him off the line.

Take Care of the Ball on Offense

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DALLAS, TX - JUNE 05: Jason Kidd #2 of the Dallas Mavericks moves the ball while taking on the Miami Heat in Game Three of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center on June 5, 2011 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and ag

The Miami Heat are REALLY effective at turning their opponents careless ball-handling and bad passes into dunks at the other end.

The Mavericks need to reduce the number of times they are basically giving Wade and his teammates points by turning the ball over.

Dallas has committed 43 turnovers in the first three games of the series.

Jason Kidd is responsible for a dozen of those, which is almost double his regular season average (2.2)

Game 4's outcome may hinge on whether or not the Mavs do a better job of taking care of the ball.

Conclusion

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DALLAS, TX - JUNE 05: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat dunks against Jason Terry #31 of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Three of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center on June 5, 2011 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and

The Mavs must find ways to contain Dwyane Wade better than they have in the first three games.

Reducing the number of quality touches he has would be a good start.

Forcing him into some bad shots would help.

Wade is playing at an MVP level.

Dallas needs to find ways to keep him in check...or else "this thing" could be over without having to go back to South Beach.