Two of my all-time favorite TV series growing up were Dallas with J.R. Ewing and Miami Vice with slick Sonny Crockett. You remember how everybody hated J.R.? Well, LeBron James is the J.R. Ewing of these Finals.
If you are a connoisseur of NBA basketball, this 2011 season has kept you full with excitement. The game of NBA basketball improved in 2011, and I think the primary reason has been the development of the game’s younger stars. It all started with the decision last summer when LeBron James left Cleveland after seven years for South Beach to team with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami.
James has been vilified since making up his mind; no longer do the majority of fans pull for him. Bosh was just trying to find the best place to take his talent.
Give Wade much credit: He convinced those guys that if they sacrificed a few million each, they could come together and be potentially lethal. Obviously Pat Riley deserves some credit; as Miami’s president, he knew he had a leader and winner in Wade and allowed him to work his magic.
San Antonio had a heck of a season, winning 61 games. The back-to-back champion Los Angeles Lakers had three-peat on their minds, and Dallas was saying it’s about time we finish the deal.
Then there was the young and gifted Oklahoma City with Kevin Durant and Russel Westbrook. Out of nowhere Memphis popped up, an eighth seed in a rugged conference pulling off the upset of the playoffs by beating the number-one-seeded Spurs.
Dallas is tired of hearing the whispers that, of the three San Antonio-Houston-Dallas teams in the Lone Star State, they are the only one to never win an NBA Championship. They tied the Lakers with 57 regular season wins, but during the regular season they showed signs they had staying power.
They have peaked in the playoffs, taking out Portland, sweeping away the Lakers, and finishing off talented Oklahoma City. They stand at 12-3, potentially the deepest and most talented team left.
Miami started 9-8 but still won 58 games to grab the number-two seed in the East. The Big Three have definitely come together: James and Wade are so explosive in the open court, and Bosh just keeps dropping 20 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and allowing James or Wade get most of the headlines.
They took out an improved Philadelphia team 4-1 and also wore Boston down 4-1 as age and injuries appeared. The last two hurdles have been impressive. After losing three straight to Chicago, they finally imposed their will on the young Bulls and cut them out also 4-1. They stand where they were expected to be in the finals at 12-3.
These finals are not about revenge for Dallas. They lost to the Heat in 2006 after holding a commanding 2-0 series lead. Dallas beat the Heat 2-0 in the regular season, but the playoffs are a totally different game. The tempo changes, and certain match-ups can be exploited.
Some players you have counted on all year disappear, and so far in these playoffs nobody has had an answer defensively for Dirk Nowitzki or LeBron James. Nowitzki has been compared by some to Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics. There are similarities in there games: Both are big and blond and great players, but Bird won three NBA titles. Nowitzki is 0 in 1 in the finals.
Miami does have an experienced veteran in Udonis Haslem — he has always played big when it counts. That makes these NBA Finals must-see TV. The contrasting styles of both teams promise to make this a potential seven-game thriller of a series.
Miami has the home court, and they are 8-0 in the playoffs in this best-of-seven. That is a huge advantage. Dallas shoots the three better than Miami, and they are deadly at the free-throw line.
Other than Hakeem Olajuwon, no great player not born in the USA has ever led his team and imposed his will on a great American stars team in the finals. Olajuwon dominated both Patrick Ewing and the Knicks and Shaquille O’Neal and Orlando in the finals.
I picked Miami in 2006 and sweated it out. I’m taking the Heat again.
Larry Fitzgerald can be heard weekday mornings on KMOJ Radio 89.9 FM at 8:25 am, and on WDGY-AM 740 Monday-Friday at 12:17 pm and 4:17 pm; he also commentates on sports 7-8 pm on Almanac (TPT channel 2). Larry welcomes reader responses to info@larry-fitzgerald.com, or visit www.Larry-Fitzgerald.com.
Support Black local news
Help amplify Black voices by donating to the MSR. Your contribution enables critical coverage of issues affecting the community and empowers authentic storytelling.