Cuban or LeBron

The NBA finals that most people did not expect and I personally did not want is here. Either LeBron James or Mark Cuban - two of the most polarizing figures in all of sports, will win their first championship. Of course, Nowitzki, Kidd, Marion, Bosh and a bunch of others are also in line for their first ring. But those kids are not as polarizing as the two principals in this contest. In fact, I personally don't mind some of them winning a ring and would actually like them to. Case in point, Kidd and Marion. I would be happy for those 2 if they win. Nowitzki is not too "hatable" either. My only regret about him winning a ring would be that he would have it before his buddy Steve Nash, who the Mavs and the Cubans let go. This ring will never vindicate that stupid move, but some people in the media and Cuban would try to spin it that way. Being a Suns fan, it's really the Nash angle that makes me hate on the Dallas in this context. Otherwise, they are definitely the team to root for in the finals for all of us who didn't appreciate the big-3 coming together and LeBron dumping Cleveland through the "decision".

The Nash-Dallas discussion is very nuanced and I feel compelled to get into before these finals. First and foremost, shame on Robert Sarver and the Suns management that the Suns have still not even made it to the Finals with Nash. It's not Nash's fault that Cuban and Nowitzki have gotten to the finals twice without Nash while the Suns management has just refused to invest and improve the team. In fact, by letting a blue chip talent like Amare walk last off-season, they have made sure Nash will probably not win a championship, at least not with the Suns. When Nash first moved to the Suns, they were better than the Mavs and then the tide turned when the Suns ownership stopped feeding the beast - the core of that great 2004 Suns team. Cuban on the other hand has not showered money like he used to when he originally bought the Mavs, but he has definitely tried to improve the team and has spent the money when and where required. This has kept Nowitzki well-fed with solid talent all around. It's ridiculous how deep this Dallas roster is.

Secondly, when Cuban traded for Kidd, it was an implicit acceptance that the Nash decision was a mistake and that he had to go back to a legitimate assist machine in the form of Jason Kidd. Granted, you could argue that Kidd is a better defender than Nash, but that was not the driver in Cuban getting him. The Dallas system and Nowitzki needed a legitimate point guard and Cuban made a mistake by letting Nash go and he made it right by getting Kidd back. Last but not the least, one could even argue that the Mavs could have done better with Nash and the rest of that roster Cuban has built over the last 6 years. The catch this year was Chandler anyways! So who knows where Cuban and Nowitzki could have been with Nash around them. So given all these dimensions, it would be hard for me to digest a Dallas championship. There is a little sadist in every one of us that doesn't want to see certain teams and athletes win, especially their first championship. I hate the Lakers but I was counting on them to beat the Heat even if the Heat got past everybody else. It was so much more important to stop the first championship for the Heat than to stop the 6-Th for the hated Kobe and the Lakers.

Now that we are stuck with this finals match-up, who do I root for and who do I think will win? After all the drama of the last off-season and the totally unexpected gang-up of 3 of the most sought-after free agents of the 2010 class, I just cannot bring myself to root for the Miami Heat. They signify everything thats bad about the way free agency in the NBA should be managed. Granted, they came together to win, but this is just not the way to do it. And if they win this year in their first season together, it's just too easy! I can't even imagine how arrogant these guys will be next year if they win it this year after all the drama and losing streaks. I still maintain they are not championship material. LeBron is, but the Heat as a team are not. They are just catching the league on a down year when the Celtics and the Lakers have both mysteriously took a step back while the Bulls and the Thunder are on the way up, but not all the way up there yet. So I don't want them to win. Do they have a shot? Of course they do. With LeBron and that defense they play, I can totally see them winning it all. But the Dallas Mavericks are slightly better and Nowitzki is balling out of his mind. So the Mavs will hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy. I also want them to win, I think.

Bad Guys 3, Good Guys 1

The teams that I don't like and don't want to see win the NBA championship are both leading their respective series 3-1. I am part of the group that doesn't want to see the Heat win. It is indeed a "have" versus "have-not" bias plus the whole anti "Decision" sentiment, but the reality is, the Heat are not even that good. I feel like they are catching the NBA during a proverbial "down" year and are doing really well to take advantage of it. At one point, it seemed like they had no shot at winning it all. But then the Celtics self-destructed by trading away Perkins for younger pieces. Great job Danny Ainge! All that KG, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen really needed in their mid 30's is an in-season rebuild of a championship caliber team! Not only did the Celtics give up size and toughness with that trade, it also completely ruined their chemistry and derailed a good looking season. So after Aingle removed the Celtics from the path of the Heat, all that was left was a young and upcoming Bulls team in the East. The Bulls are playing great and Derrick Rose is insanely talented, but that whole operation is inexperienced and immature. Their future looks bright and all they need is another offensive piece, but they clearly can't handle the pressure of an Eastern conference finals yet.

Ironically, this assessment of inexperience should have been true for the Heat themselves - a brand new team with 3 superstar pieces figuring out how to play each other under an young, inexperienced coach. But the Heat have a couple of things the Bulls don't. One, they have 3 stud offensive pieces as opposed to just one for the Bulls. Secondly, LeBron and Wade have experienced this stage and beyond individually, if not as a team. You can clearly see that they are a lot more comfortable than Rose at the end of games. Rose is still learning these playoffs and the rest of the Bulls team is of no help sometimes. They are neither talented nor experienced. The Heat on the other hand are better off on both accounts. The only issue was, they were supposed to take a year or two to build chemistry. But it seems like a championship is within their grasp right here, right now. The only thing worse than these 3 dudes winning a championship is them winning it right now in year 1. That makes LeBron's predication of 6 or 7 championships realistic. Thanks to Ainge and the total collapse of the Fakers, they can smell the trophy. The only thing on their way now are the Dallas Mavericks - the traditionally soft and under-acieving Mavs.

Unlike the Heat, the Mavs are legitimately good, but they are also benefitting from the inexperience of their talented, but young opponent in the Thunder. The Thunder gave the game away yesterday after leading by 15 with 5 minutes to go. It's the type of defeat that can crush a team for a couple of years! Nowitzki has been unbelievable in this series and the playoffs. Durant's game is very similar to his, but Nowitzki's experience is now trumping Durant's youth. The Mavs are a collection of old, talented and decent dudes that we can get behind, but I just can't because of the fact that they are one of Suns' major rivals and I don't want them winning a championship while Nash is languishing at home. It would legitimize Cuban's stupid decision with Nash and thats why me and most Suns fans have a huge problem with the Mavs winning. But they will be the favorites against the Heat and they may be the lesser of the 2 evil. Nowitzki sure is playing like he deserves a championship and those 4-Th quarter shots he made in game 4 against some good defense were unbelievable. We live in a "what have you done for me lately" culture and hence feel like this playoff performance by Nowitzki is one of the best ever. I am sure many legends including MJ and even Kobe and Shaq over the last 10 years have had runs like this that is not fresh in our memory. But I can't remember a stretch where a defender gets appreciated for great D on a superstar like Nick Collison is right now, but still get torched routinely for 40 points on 60% shooting! Thats how good Nowitzki has been this series - unstoppable with or without good defense.

Time to mentally get ready for a Mavs-Heat finals. The Mavs have home court this round and there is no way the Thunder win all 3 remaining games with 2 of them at Dallas. At least the Bulls have 2 of the 3 at home. So I sill have some hopes for Da Bulls.

Roller Coaster

The Eastern conference finals in the NBA is tied at 1-1 while Dallas just went up 2-1 in the West. The road team won the 2-Nd game in both the series to even things up and "steal home court". I didn't think any home court was really stolen since both these series are going to see a few more road wins. The teams are too close and they are not mature or strong enough to take all home games. So the home court in either of these series is going to be helpful only in game 7. Until then, I expect a roller coaster ride in coasts. As if to prove my point, Dallas went into OKC and took game 3 away. Where's the home court now? The experts will now start talking about how pivotal game 4, and then 5, and then 6 are. Of course, game 7 will be in Dallas and I can't see how the young OKC team will win that if it gets that far, which I think it will.

The Durant-Nowitzki matchup is real fun, but the defense in the Bulls-Heat series suggests that one of those 2 teams will hoist the championship trophy when it's all said and done. The Heat do look and feel like a championship caliber team right now. The way they play defense just adds to their 2 great individual talents and makes them very formidable. Bulls play equally good defense, but they don't have a LeBron or Wade to shoulder the offensive load. If the game is close, they need a flawless 4-Th quarter from D-Rose to win the game and thats going to be hard against the Heat defense. They need Boozer to step up to ease some of the pressure on the offense. If Udonis Haslem starts playing like it's 2007 again, the Bulls might be in trouble unless Boozer neutralizes him and then gives them some more. I think the Bulls have decent talent, but not the experience.

In the West, Nowitzki won the first game 48-40 against Durant. These 2 guys are just awesome to watch. Nowitzki's shooting in this series has been amazing so far, except for the first 3 quarters of game 3. And that dunk by Durant in game 2 deserves to be you-tubed if you have not seen it yet. Scott Brooks put Westbrook on the bench and won game 2 with his subs and Durant. Thats a talented bench he got there and my man James Harden is bringing it. That guy can ball and is not intimidated by the setting at all. Brooks needs Westbrook in this series, but Westbrook needs to scale down his shooting, which is easier said than done. He got Durant, he doesn't have to shoot every-time down the floor. The problem with OKC is that they are still young and inexperienced and it shows. There were a couple of 3-point attempts late in game 3 that made you scratch your head. One was by Westbrook and another by Daequan Cook which were both horrible shots to begin with. But they were both not even close and that says a lot about the way these kids are handling this stage. Unfortunately, experience can't be taught and you can only hope these guys will relax, settle down, slow down and make better decisions.

But the story of the series so far has been Nowitzki's shooting. The dude is unbelievable. This year has been a MVP type season for him and the proof was in those games he missed during the regular season. Mavs lost most of those games and looked like the Clippers. Too bad the voters will never give him a MVP ever again because of what happened in 2007 when he won the MVP and the Mavs exited in the first round of the playoffs. Since then, he and the Mavs have never been able to shake the "soft" image. But there is nothing soft about Nowitzki right now. He is dominating and carrying the Mavs all by himself. Even in game 3, when he didn't shoot that well, he made all the clutch shots in the 4-Th quarter just as OKC nudged back within 6. If you are an OKC fan, Nowitzki's jumper is the scariest thing for you in the World right now even after a 7 of 21 shooting night in game 3. Durant didn't shoot any better in game 3 and that has to change if the Thunder wants to win this series. They also need to give the ball to the Sun Devil Harden a little bit more.

New Boyz

The NBA playoffs look and feel different right now. Except for Dallas, the other 3 surviving teams are new and young outfits. Seeing LeBron there seems very familiar, but he is now wearing a new jersey. Thunder and the Bulls are young and these 3 teams are all going to be around for a while. They might have replaced the likes of Spurs, Lakers and the Celtics. It would be great to see a Thunder-Bulls finals signaling a new beginning in the NBA. I am not sure about the TV ratings of such a series, but these 2 teams aint bad at all. I am definitely in the anti-Heat camp and am pulling for the Bulls all the way. I want them to win and I think they will win. They took care of game 1 rather easily, but their maturity will be tested in game 2. The Heat are still a collection of 2 superstars and one star whereas the Bulls are a real team. Whatever it is, I want the Heat to lose. I have always been a Laker-hater and this was the year I thought I would rather have them win instead of the Heat. But just when I needed them, the Lakers let me down and got eliminated a round or 2 earlier than expected.

Phil Jackson and the LA Lakers were swept in shocking fashion by the Dallas Mavericks of all teams. I don’t know how many people picked this upset, but if somebody claims they called this, the odds are, they are probably lying. The Mavericks are perennial softies who do a lot of great things during the NBA regular season, but are usually guaranteed to under-achieve when it matters the most. The Lakers on the other hand are the 2 time defending champions with a lot of skill, size and playoff moxie. They under-achieve during the fall months and are usually unstoppable in the playoffs. They turn on the proverbial switch when they want to and then they turn the lights off on their playoff opponents. This looked like a mismatch on paper, but little did we know it was mismatch going the other way!

These 2 teams have been perennial contenders and playoff regulars, but for some reason, they have never met in the playoffs after 25 long years. The Mavericks slept through the entire 90’s, but I find it hard to believe that they never ran into the Lakers during the Nowitzki era. That’s some strange luck of the draw. The Western conference has featured some heated and stable rivalries over the last 10+ years in this whole Kobe, Duncan, Nash, Nowitzki era – Suns-Spurs, Suns-Lakers, Spurs-Lakers, Spurs-Mavs, Suns-Mavs and even Utah-Lakers. For some reason, the Mavs had never met the Lakers in this era and now I wish they had met them every year. The Mavs ripped the Lakers’ hearts out and stomped on it. The Lakers have way too much talent for then to let this happen to them. You had to wonder sometimes where was Kobe?

Kobe is on the downward slope of the career and this is the year the slide officially starts. He is still awesome, but you can feel a slip. The first stage of the slip manifests itself as follows. The athlete will still dominate with all the talent in the World, but he or she can’t do it as consistently as they used to. Kobe is exactly there now. It’s hard to see him play and pinpoint exactly what he is lacking or what is it that he used to do that he can’t anymore. But he just can’t do all the things he used to (and still can) for 48 minutes on a day-to-day basis. He is Kobe for stretches of the game and Latrell Sprewell for the rest. I was shocked when Steve Kerr casually mentioned in an interview that Kobe is not a superstar anymore, but he is still a star. That’s what a sweep will do to you.

In any case, the playoffs are not about the Lakers anymore. I can only hope the Thunder and the Bulls prevent the Mavs and the Heat from winning