Watching the NBA finals could be painful. Seeing Lebron and Wade hug after every single win is getting so old. I've never been so grossed out about anything in my entire life. Joakim Noah summed it up pretty good when he said, "They're Hollywood as hell, but they're good." Truer statement has never been made. It would be great if at least one member of the Big 2.5 could try to act like they've been there, especially since D-Wade actually has been. But instead they're constantly over-acting and over-dramatizing the situation. My advice? Act cool, calm, and collected. Sure, by the time the post-game press conference has rolled around Lebrons gotten himself together enough to spin some complimentary sentences about how great a team their opponent was and how tough it is to win in a "hostile environment." But they need to remember that they're exactly where they're supposed to be. They aren't surprising anyone. They can't play the underdog. They have the best player in the world on their team, and together they're probably three of the top ten players in basketball. These guys need to remember they took the easy way out by joining forces. Don't act like world conquerors.
I could rant all day about how I hate every single thing the Heat stand for, but I'd like to talk a little bit about the Finals matchup here. I'd love to say that the Mavs are on a great roll and that Dirk alone is the driving force they need to push them past the Heat, but I'm just not so sure. The Heat have sort of figured out that they can beat the best teams in the NBA, by just playing all out for the past 5 minutes or so, which is scary. They really are a juggernaut, offensively and defensively. I can't lie, the way the Heat have been able to close games on 14-0, 17-2, runs, whatever it may be, that is very impressive. Lebron is finally figuring out how to effectively close out a playoff game in the fourth quarter, and he has D-Wade as his Pippen in those last few minutes.
The other day Rick Carlisle mentioned in his comparison of Dirk and Larry Bird that Larry had several Hall of Fame players at his side. His point was not to dis-credit Bird but to note that Dirk has had to shoulder more of a load throughout his career. He's responsible for orchestrating, pulling in double digit rebounds, and of course scoring the ball. He'll need to go into Superman mode, and he'll need to do it about four times if he wants to win a ring. As good as JJ Barea, Jason Terry, Marion, Kidd, Chandler can be they just don't measure up to the firepower that Wade and James alone can create. Dirk will have to do a lot of damage on his own.
It's gotten to the point where no lead is safe from the Miami Heat. In my opinion you're better off being in a close game with them that comes down to the wire. That way there's always a chance Lebron's late game demons could come back to haunt him. If you can get him down to that one do or die game winning shot, that one opportunity to seize everything he ever wanted, that's when you have the best chance of beating him. Of course he could just dump it over to that Dwyane Wade guy who's capable of hitting that pressure shot. Annoying right?
Either way it'll be a fun series. I'll definitely be pulling hard for the Mavs. I really want to see Dirk get his ring. He's led his team to like 30 straight 50 win seasons or something. Once he gets that elusive championship he'll definitely deserve to be mentioned with the greatest big men of all time. Should be fun to see how it plays out.
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