Already playing with a torn tendon in his left middle finger, Dirk Nowitzki is coming off his second game-winning shot of the series -- a driving layup with 14.9 seconds left in Game 4 to even the best-of-7 series with the Heat at two games apiece.
"You don't want to give them two chances to close it out at home, so this is our Game 7 and the last home game for this year in this building," Nowitzki said. "It should be a great atmosphere and hopefully we can pull it out."
The 7-foot forward exerted little energy on the day off prior to Game 5, having watched film and doing a brief walkthrough during the Mavs' light workout.
"The main thing is the fever is gone," Nowitzki said. "There's nothing to ever worry about other than that. The cough, the sniffles or whatever, all of that doesn't matter. That's something you just play through."