NBA Finals

So I've been hesitant to write about the NBA lately just because my dislike for the Heat has really made it difficult to enjoy the postseason. I thought the Celtics would give them a run, but they showed their age and were limited by injuries. Then after Game 1 of the Bulls series I thought Chicago looked primed for the upset, only a scary thing happened. The Heat started playing with confidence. Now, up a game to none in the Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, the Heat look to be in great shape to bring home another championship. How did we get here? The return of Udonis Haslem and the reemergence of Mike Miller have been huge, but more than that it's been the play of the 'Big Three', LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. The trio that at one time struggled to get it done in clutch situations is now clicking on all cylinders. Bosh is playing aggressively and no longer looks like the guy who hit 1 out of 18 or 19 shots against the Bulls earlier in the year. Wade and James suddenly appear to be able to coexist on the basketball court and suddenly everyone is hitting big shots when they're needed most. Despite having Mike Bibby playing brutally at the point and getting virtually no offense from their centers, the Heat are winning games. Five in a row to be exact, and they've yet to lose at home in the playoffs. And now, you've got Dirk Nowitzki tearing tendons in his finger or something crazy like that. As if Miami needed more help to win the title. So is all lost? Am I doomed to live in a world where LeBron James gets rewarded for leaving Cleveland and join forces with superstars by winning a title in his first season in Miami? It doesn't look good. But all might not be lost. Lost in the shuffle of everything else that transpired in Game 1, the Mavericks showed they could hold their own with Miami. The zone scheme they used help Miami's high powered offense at bay, and if not for some surprisingly good long range shooting from James and Wade, maybe things go differently. Not to mention the fact that Dallas didn't shoot the ball particularly well with a number of misses not due to any amazing Miami defense. And Dallas's bench that had been so good was outscored 27-17 by Miami's bench which has not been good at all. It seems unlikely that that trend continues. So maybe Dallas can make it a series. A lot of that really depends on what happens tonight. If the Mavs somehow steal a game and can go back to Dallas tied vice down 2-0, that's huge. Plus, the Heat are becoming an unstoppable juggernaut and if they aren't taken down a peg soon, they're just going to roll right on through this series in my opinion. Dallas's best chance is to put pressure on Miami creating a sense of doubt amongst the Heat players forcing them to play nervous. That's what caused them problems all year long and without that, I fear the worst. We'll see what happens tonight. Hopefully this time tomorrow we'll be looking at a tied up series.