...As tonight marks Game 5 of the NBA Finals, which I'm sure many of you probably may know due to the insane amount of coverage the Finals have gotten this year. I can't turn on ESPN Radio on my way to work or flip on ESPN without some sort of analysis of LeBron James' performance, whether good or bad, or something of the sort. And let me preface my article by letting you know that I do not particularly like the Heat, or LeBron James for the matter. I find LeBron passive aggressive and his remarks rub me the wrong way. I think he secretly thinks he's the best who's ever laced up a pair of Nikes and stepped onto the court. And although I give him credit for never explicitly coming out and saying it, since many athletes today can't keep their mouths shut, that is neither here nor there. Just wanted to put that out there so my column has an element of transparency, which I like to have.
Now, I can say that I do partially blame ESPN for their part in why I don't like Miami, from airing "The Decision", which don't give me the whole spiel that it was for a good cause and all because that is the cop out and the only they could get away with giving one athlete so much airtime and attention, to that "Heat Index" poppycock (yes, I just used poppycock in a sentence) they put online to follow the Heat's progress, as if they were God's gift to professional basketball. Although I do like Dwyane Wade, I think he plays his heart out on every play, and if he hadn't already won a title, I would be partially pulling for him too. But now that I got my little rant out of the way, back to the topic at hand.
Dirk Nowitzki, for all intents and purposes, is what LeBron could have been had he stayed in Cleveland. Now I can imagine anyone in Cleveland who could possibly read this getting a chill up their spine because they have to relive this whole saga again, but other than a friend at school from originally from Cleveland, I can't imagine anyone from Cleveland actually getting to read this. Anywho, the obvious similarity between the LeBron in Cleveland and the current Dirk is that they have both been to the finals once before, as the star player and face of the franchise, and lost. Now here they both are again, Dirk STILL in Dallas blue and LeBron this time in Heat red (did I mention Dirk is still in Dallas?).
Now, until Game 4, what I was all ready to praise James for was his defense. He all but made Jason Terry disappear in Games 1 and 3 especially, and he was supposed to be Dallas' X-factor coming off the bench. We all knew LeBron could score and his athleticism and body type, at 6'8" 250 lbs and 4% body fat, is something I'm not sure we've ever seen in the NBA and may never be paralleled ever again. Let's face it, he's a genetic freak, and yes, I'm sure he's put in his fair share of hard work to get where he is, sure. But I'm not too sure anyone, even those who followed LeBron the closest really knew how good his defense was until this year's Eastern Conference Finals against Chicago or, at the latest, the beginning of these NBA Finals. It appears as though he can shut down any team's best player at will, something I'm not even sure the great Michael Jordan could do (and don't let that give you the inclination that I think LeBron is better than MJ, because I think at this point in his career I think it is dubious to even put James at the same level as Jordan, no matter how good his game may be in all facets right now).
The reason I say that I was ready to praise LeBron before Game 4 is because aside from the stat sheet saying he had 8 pts, 9 rbs and 7 assists, I'm not convinced he was even on the court. In a normal game that LeBron plays, you know where he is on every play, and some people may even be watching him away from the ball, but in Game 4, it was almost as if he stepped aside and let Dwayne Wade carry the team to victory, something he nearly did although I'm sure his back hurt after the game from carrying LeBron on his back for the 39 minutes he was on the floor. But after his remarks in the Game 3's post-game interview, which for all of you unfamiliar with the comment went a little something like a CBS Sports reporter basically telling LeBron he shrinks in crunch-time and asking what is up with that, which led to James responding with a smart little comment (passive aggressively!!!) telling him to go back and watch him play both ends of the court and ask him a better question after Game 4, I was expecting him to put on a defensive showcase, especially at the end of the game, to send a message, and what we got was jack squat. He didn't make a notable play on defense all game, as Wade was springing up to block shots I didn't know were possible for him to block given his 6'4" frame and basically showing LeBron up on both ends of the court, and Jason Terry came back to life.
But on the other hand, we have Dirk Nowitzki, the lovable German who didn't bolt his team to play with other stars and coast to a championship. Dirk stayed in Dallas, trusted the organization (and I'm going to credit Mark Cuban because seeing him, the owner, shooting around with the team before a game in warm-up sweats and how passionate he is on the sidelines makes me all warm and fuzzy and gung-ho about the Mavs, just for his sake because I think he is great for the sport) and his teammates and stuck it out because he was confident in himself and the pieces around him, regardless of who they were, that they would eventually be able to piece it together and get to the promised land. And you know what? They are two wins away from doing just that. And side note: you didn't see MJ bolting the Bulls or demanding they sign others because he didn't want to have to do it himself. Granted he had Pippen and Rodman, but they traded for Pippen before he was Scottie Pippen and they went out and got Rodman, Jordan didn't go align himself with other stars just to make it easier on himself.
Now Dirk himself is a type of player we have never seen before. When before have we seen a seven-footer shoot as well as he can from all spots on the floor and take it to the rim with such ease and dexterity? Hint: never. I mean Larry Bird was only 6'9" and Rasheed Wallace couldn't post up or take it to the rim even half as well as Dirk. And who's to say we'll ever see it again? I mean Dirk is averaging 28 points per game in the playoffs this year and is the one with the ball in his hands every single time with the game on the line, a la the Game 2 win, the end of Game 3, and the basket to put them up 3 with 14 seconds left in Game 4. Dirk is even proving to everyone that he as well is more than everyone originally thought, showing true grit and desire that not too many knew he had in him (the knock on Dirk has always been that he's soft).
But all in all, what we have is the guy who is trying to take the easy road to a championship, who is being overshadowed by a guy in Wade, who, surprisingly, looks like he wants it more than James does, while Dirk is stealing the show for Big D. The result: 64% of those who voted in today's ESPN SportsNation Poll as of 4:30 PM ET on 6/9/11 (that including myself) want to see Nowitzki win his first championship over the 36% who would rather see LeBron James win his first title. What is most personally gratifying for me though, is that Dirk, the guy who stayed loyal to his team, and his Mavs are all notched up at 2 games apiece, with the team heavily favored with "The Big 3", and have a chance tonight, at home, to put the "self-proclaimed 'King'", as Cleveland Cavaliers' owner Dan Gilbert vehemently called his former star player after he bolted Cleveland for Miami, in a position with his back against the wall to win the last two games at home in order to win his first title. I know one thing for sure though, it will be very, very interesting.
Enjoy game 5 and the rest of the series, everyone, I'll be watching with my imaginary Dirk jersey on, that's for sure. And don't forget the NHL Stanley Cup Finals! It's been a great series too between Boston and Vancouver as those of you who have been watching already know. Turn it on and watch, it's great hockey! And as always, thanks for reading guys.
For those of you who sat and read through and were left disappointed by the lack of pretty pictures throughout.
**Special shout out to Mike Krewina, the first known "fan" of the blog. Thanks for reading Mike, and all your kind words of encouragement, they mean a lot.
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