Dirk Nowitzki is more wide open than Yellowstone National Park. He has so much room to himself that he could arrange several sublets. It's one of the easiest threes you'll ever see.

And the Dallas Mavericks closer clangs it. With a chance to put the defending paper champions up four points with 75 seconds left.

He misses again with the Mavericks down one. Then, he never works free, never makes sure he touches the ball to shoot another three with Dallas down 102-99 in the closing seconds. Instead Jason Terry misses twice.

This game — and this series — is Dirk Nowitzki's failure though, his inability to follow up on the title run of his dreams. Kevin Durant's zoomed by Nowitzki, left him in his game-changing dust.

Two games into this first round NBA playoff series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks and Durant hasn't had a decent shooting game yet. Yet, he's made the winning, go-ahead plays in both games — that game-winner for the ages in Game One and two free throws after Terry foolishly bumped him on an inbounds pass with less than 2.6 seconds on the Thunder shot clock in Game 2 Monday night.

The 23-year-old grabs every chance he gets, still scores the winning points on a night when he shoots 5-for-17 from the field. The 33-year-old fails thrice, validates the very real idea that the Mavericks were something of a fluke champion last June.

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle — a master of deflection — does his best to shift the focus, barking about how "the dirty bullshit has got to stop" in his postgame press conference, trying to create a controversy about physical play at a time he knows the NBA is obsessed with it. Carlisle will not be able to obscure the truth forever though.

By the end of this series, when The Flukes are bounced in the first round, it will be obvious to all that Nowitzki is no longer in Kevin Durant's league.

"He's a scorer," Thunder guard Russell Westbrook tells the TNT cameras after Durant scores 26 on his 5-for-17 night. "He's the best scorer in the league."

Falling Star

Nowitzki is still capable of seizing a game. He ball fakes Kendrick Perkins into oblivion, drives, banks in the basket and completes the three-point play. Then he does it again a few moments. Back-to-back 3-point plays, the old fashioned way. The hard way.

Of course, Durant counters one with a smooth, rhythm three from the top of the key.

Nowitzki makes everything look hard. Durant makes everything seem easy.

Dirk has 20 poins by halftime — and Dallas is still down by seven. He'll finish with 29 on one of his pretty shooting games. He just won't finish in the game when it counts most. Like Durant will. Again.

Nowitzki would never punch a glass fire extinguisher case like senseless, selfish Knicks forward Amare Stoudemire. He'd never jeopardize his team. But that doesn't mean he's any less frustrated by these relentless Thunder than Stoudemire is by the Heat.

Dirk and the Mavs think they're right there in another fourth quarter, poised to steal one in Oklahoma City. Again.

Durant's game-winner in Game One was more than a thing of beauty — essentially a one-handed, off-balance leaner from the free throw line over the super extended arms of both Shawn Marion and Ian Mahinmi that floated on the rim before bouncing in. It wasn't just a trifecta of immense skill, unbelievable athleticism and clutch composure.

It also signaled the horn on the changing of the guard. Or in this case, the changing of the forwards who play like guards.

Nowitzki's been passed by Durant in such decisive fashion that there's not even room for debate anymore. Durant's next target should be aiming for LeBron James, in trying to pull himself into The King's rarified air.

Nowitzki still puts up numbers (21.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game in the regular season) for a Dallas team that depends on him like a toddler depends on his mother. He lucked into a fluke championship last year, but considering he should have won a title in 2006, it's in many ways a basketball wrong made right.

Dirk deserves that one ring. With the emphasis on one. Now, he can go about fading further and further away from the true superstars' table.

The Present — and Future

It's amazing to realize that Durant is still only 23, still seemingly years away from his peak. You get the sense that even as well as Durant played in his one year at the University of Texas that the Longhorn fans never fully understand just what they had.

They watched Michael Jordan in his freshman year at North Carolina in 1982. Durant's turned out to be what everyone in Austin thought Vince Young was going to be: A transcendent athlete with a chance to change the game.

It's no great stretch to compare Durant's flick from 16-feet over two Mavs to Michael Jordan's turnaround against Craig Ehlo in Game 5 in 1989. The stakes weren't as high (Jordan's shot came in a series decider — back when the NBA let excitement live and didn't force first round series to be best of sevens). But Durant's shot upped the difficulty level.

While still being plenty important.

If the Mavericks manage to steal Game One over Durant's favored Thunder, doubt could have crept in on the NBA's youngest legitimate championship contender. Dallas wasn't likely to play that well again. These are paper defending champs. But Nowitzki and company might not have needed to if enough Oklahoma City players became spooked.

Two games in and Dirk and the Mavs are the only ones shaken though. Durant hasn't even played a good game. He's still decided two games. And Dirk and The Flukes are already all but done.