The Sports Headquarters

Bibby! Stevenson! It’s the NBA Finals on ABC! I just wrote the first words of Bill Simmons’ next article!

Thankfully, I’m not Bill Simmons. I’m K.M. Venne. And I predicted this very Finals on this very site in the preseason. That means I get to preview it. And joining me is my main man Bryan. Why? Because we are the best this site has to offer. Also, I’m the resident Knicks fan and Mavs apologist. He’s the resident Suns fan and Heat apologist. We both spent considerable time this season defending one of the teams in this year’s NBA Finals. So we know better then you do what is up. In the end, one of us will know better then the other, because spoiler alert, we aren’t going to predict the same result.

But before we predict, how about we have a nice little back and forth? Here’s how it’s gonna work. We are gonna discuss the various aspects of the game. Heat with the ball, Mavs with the ball, rebounding, coaching, tempo, late game, X-factor, whatever we think of. We’ll just do it whenever we want to, comment on each others thoughts, and give you an idea of what we are thinking. Then we both will write our conclusions as to how this series plays out.

If you are looking for “Well, Dirk is good, but Miami’s got a lot of star power and athleticism” or “Well, the Heat may be a team of stars, but Dallas has more depth and knows this is their last chance”, then I strongly suggest you go read something else. Perhaps that Simmons article that should be up any minute now. We are going to go a bit deeper then that, if it’s all right with you. So without further delay…

Heat on offense:

Bryan: Miami has quietly gone about being one of the best offensive teams this postseason, and amazingly they are the 2nd-best offensive team in this series. No, not PPG or FG%. Those are silly stats that paint a broad picture. PPS is a favorite of mine and these two teams have been phenominal in that regard. Miami, despite being one of the slower-paced teams in the playoffs has mowed over Philly, Boston, and Chicago because of their efficiency. They use 72 shots per game to score 93 points. Basically 1.3 points per shot. A TERRIFIC figure for a team as a whole. Want a better understanding of why they just steamrolled Chicago. Chicago averaging about the same # of points this postseason and only playing ONE extra game has taken about 200 more shots. Dallas isn’t a defensive juggernaut by any stretch. They’re susceptible to bad defense. In the playoffs they’ve given up about 1.20 points per shot, right above where I like to judge teams and players at 1.15. The key for Miami this series is if their big 3 score 80 points on 50 shots or 80 points on 62 shots. I could give you smaller figures like their role player’s 3 point shooting, or their AST/TO needing to be at a certain spot, but Miami’s key to this series is continuing their efficiency offensively among the Big 3. They’re going to get probably 60-70% minimal of the team shots. So they have to maximize their possessions because Dallas has been unconscious efficiently this postseason.

K.M.: I actually think both these units, Miami’s O and Dallas’ D, are pretty equal. The Heat have been shooting an eFG% of .479 this postseason. Dallas has let up .495. Miami is turning it over 13.7% of the time. Dallas is turning teams over 13.1% of the time. Dallas is allowing 106.1 points per 100 possessions, Miami scoring 106.3.

Clearly, Miami can’t shoot with Dallas, but Miami lives at the line, having shot a total of +143 more free throws then their opponents, against the Mavericks +14. With an average of about 10 more FT’s a game, that’s 8 more points for Miami. Miami gets a lot of points per shot, as Bryan said, much aided by the large FT disparity they are accustom to.

As Bryan said, one way for the Heat to pick up their offense is to get solid efficient production out of the 3 Kings. But should Dallas force one of them to struggle with an increase in turnovers due to unconventional defenses or force lower percentage shots, the Heat must find a way to get to the free throw line to counteract this. Against Chicago, every point was vital for Miami because Chicago could only score so much. Against Dallas, Dallas will only miss so often, so again, points are vital, because Miami cannot afford the kind of offensive droughts they had for periods vs. the Bulls and expect to be in the game. When Miami is going poorly, they must force whistles and hang on, if they can, they will likely prevail.

Mavs on offense:

K.M.: The simple thing is to say that the Mavericks offense is all about Dirk and the 3 ball, but that’s hardly fair. The Mavs are not a team that just goes down the court, isos Dirk, and spaces around him for 48 minutes. The majority of the Mavs offense for the first 3 quarters of the game is a perimeter based drive and cause havoc offense, with some Dirk touches thrown in, and also some off ball movement to free shooters. The Mavs will present a challenge to the Heat that the Bulls couldn’t dream of, and that is defending the width of the court. Chicago with Rose is a straight line drive, one pass team. The Mavs will find the open man for much of the game, and will cause Miami to defend in a way Chicago did not, by scrambling. Dirk is going to be unstoppable at times, but players like Kidd and Barea can really cause havoc both off the dribble and off the screen and roll game by penetrating with options to kick the ball to NUMEROUS players. Rose would penetrate with a single safety valve at times, meaning the Heat were only defending 2, maybe 3 options at most. Dallas is much more complex, and I personally don’t think the Heat are going to be prepared to defend a multi-dimensional attack. After seeing the Bulls offense, this will be like the Heat dominating at checkers, but now stepping up to chess.

Bryan: Dallas has been silly efficient this postseason, and the main reason for that is Dirk who is shooting a video game-like 1.57 PPS from the floor. He’s getting over 75% value on his shots over the course of the game, a ridiculous figure. But Miami is a different beast. Of Dallas’ playoff opponents thus far, none have been ranked as high as Miami who was 4th this year in eFG% defense. Portland and OKC were only slightly above average in D rating this year as well. In fact, LA is really the only team who came close to what Miami’s defense has done, and well, lets call a spade a spade, LA quit. Game 4 where they made no attempt to play defense was an offensive clinic. One thing Dallas loves to run is the high PNR with Dirk and try to force a switch. Miami is coming off 2 series where that was just about the preferred play of both opponents, each with superior PG’s to any PG running Dallas’ PNR. The difference in this series is Dirk working the switch isn’t looking to get it on the block. He wants it out high which could spell trouble if he gets Wade or Bibby on him off the switch. Otherwise what Dallas is going to look to do is spread the floor. This isn’t news to anyone as it has been their bread and butter for years. They live or die with it. Driving to get to the hoop will just play into the Miami defense that swarms. Miami if they play it right will live with Barea finishing over their bigs than collapsing and giving up kickouts. Miami has the better defense in this series and needs to create the turnovers to open their fastbreak.

Rebounding:

Bryan: Honestly, this stat doesn’t matter to Dallas. They were just out-rebounded in every game vs. Oklahoma City, by over 20 in Game 4 and they coasted to victory. As I said, their offense has been so efficient they don’t need the extra boards. Miami does. The playoffs have shown that getting stops against Dallas is brutal. Getting multiple shots on the same possession is a recipe for disaster. Despite the Heat’s reputation of a soft front court, they have outrebounded opponents by 40 in the post-season, basically just under a 3 per game margin. Chicago outrebounded Miami 4 of the 5 games as well. But again, Miami’s offensive efficiency overcame it. The difference in this series is the ball is going to seem like a pinball flying around with the way Dallas moves the ball in comparison to Chicago and Boston. Rose made it look like there was glue on the ball at times and when Rondo went down, so did any formidable Boston halfcourt offense. Tyson Chandler is a problem. Its not even the rebounds he grabs as much as the swat-out rebounds. He really kills teams with that and the Heat don’t have the size down low to defend against that. The Heat defense likes to swarm and trap, but they’ve yet to play a team with the plethora of shooters Dallas possesses. While Miami is running out at shooters, guys like Marion, Kidd, and Chandler are crashing. They’re all fairly strong offensive rebounders with Marion and Chandler each averaging over 2 per game this year. As a whole Miami did a fairly decent job against Chicago. It could have been much worse on the boards against one of the league’s best rebounding teams but Miami minimized the damage. Has to be the same this series. I don’t anticipate them winning too many rebounding battles in games so they just have to stay afloat in that category.

K.M.: Just like Bryan said, rebounding matters to Miami, not Dallas. But I think it’s the other side that matters the most to Miami, the Dallas D glass. Miami has been getting about 1 out of every 4 O rebound chances. But Dallas has been weak on the D glass, only grabbing a bit more then 7 out of every 10 chances on that side of the ball. Again, Miami isn’t going to shoot like Dallas does in this series. Dallas has hit about 100 more 3′s then Miami and shoots 20 points higher from the field, and is better at the line as well. Miami can only hope to contain the Mavericks offense, then match the level the bring it down to. Miami’s ability to get second chances at scoring will be vital in their quest to overcome 43 points of eFG% on the offensive end so far in the playoffs. If Miami is kept off the O glass, then that +10 in free throws that Miami will expect to have on average will be partially negated by Dallas having the advantage in total shots, and we know if Dallas has more shots, they are very likely to hit more of them, and that should make the difference. However, if Miami gets enough second chances to keep the shots even, they have a chance to overcome the shooting percentage difference with foul shots, and if Miami can manage to get more shots up, they should cruise. The easiest way for Miami to get more shots is on the O glass, and the easiest way for Dallas to get more shots is to hold Miami to one shot. Whoever controls this side of the boards, to me, has a big edge, and Dallas in my opinion will be best served to often send 4 to the D glass to ensure Miami doesn’t get extra cracks at scoring.

Tempo:

K.M.: Tempo will play a big part in this series, and tempo is going to come down to the Heat’s defense. The Mavs are not so old and slow that they can’t get back off of makes. The Heat are going to have to force turnovers and misses (that they rebound) to get out and run. The easier time the Heat have getting on the D glass, and the easier time they have forcing turnovers, mostly on turnovers on Dallas smalls driving inside, the easier time the Heat will have getting easy buckets. The better Dallas does at just scoring the basketball and taking care of it, that will help them control the pace, not that Dallas wants to play really slow, they just want to play half court in equal measure. Dallas is going to get some easy baskets due to the Big 3′s enjoyment of the turnover and the occasional dead stretch of Heat offense, and if Dallas can limit how often the Heat run that gorgeous fast break of theirs, that’s a big plus. Experience for Dallas has to matter for Dallas to win this series, and the place experience will show the most is in how well Dallas can limit the Heat from playing with tempo. This is a huge battle I think the Mavs are up to, but God help Dallas if I’m wrong on this one, it could be the biggest factor of the series. COCK! (This is funny if you clicked over from the NBA board, I swear. If not, assume I am crazy.)

Bryan: Neither team particularly likes to sprint up and down. In fact both teams have played at a slower pace than the playoff average. Both teams are deadly out on the break. Miami because they just get layups. Their open court speed is frightening to defend. Dallas because they run the “Suns” fastbreak with the shooters drifting as oppose to attacking the hoop and they end up with their shooters getting good looks. I expect 75-80% of the offensive possessions to be halfcourt. If you’re a fan of back and forth basketball, this isn’t your series. I think you’ll see slightly higher scoring than the Chicago-Miami series. Look for games in the mid-high 80′s, maybe low 90′s. If the shots start falling from outside, Dallas may elect to speed it up. Miami isn’t worried about any halfcourt offense so unless it’s a fastbreak that will lead to a high quality shot, they’re going to walk it up. The fact they looked so comfortable and efficient in the halfcourt against both Chicago and Boston was remarkable. They basically said “O you’re an elite halfcourt defense? We don’t give a $&%^.” Dallas hasn’t played a defense this strong all postseason so I’ll be interested to see if they go faster this series. LA’s defense was atrocious and basically quit. Oklahoma City’s defense offered little resistence as well. Dallas should dictate tempo in this series IMO, because they’ll be the ones to try and make it a quicker game before Miami does. Miami is content playing slug it out basketball.

Late Game:

Bryan: Ironically this is actually my X-Factor for the whole series so I’ll have to give my #2′s next topic. Both teams this postseason have closed exceptionally well. To give you an idea this postseason, Dallas has won every game this postseason that it won the 4th quarter. Any game they won without winning the 4th quarter, they entered the period with a double-digit lead. And in the close games where they didn’t have a double-digit lead and didn’t win the 4th quarter…..they lost. Everything I just said about Dallas applies to Miami. Against Philly they won every game they won the 4th quarter and the one close game they lost the 4th quarter, they lost. Twice they had double digit leads entering the 3rd when they entered the 4th and still won. Miami with the exception of Games 1 and 3 vs. Boston (the two semi-blowouts) dominated Boston in the 4th and we all just saw the ECF. We all know how those 4th quarters played out. Miami and Dallas have had a knack for clamping down late in games and getting multiple stops in a row. The two best closers in the playoffs this year are going at one another. And in LeBron’s case, he’ll probably guard Dirk late too. It will be up to guys like Terry, Barea, Wade, Miller, and yes, even Bosh Spice to hit when the star isn’t allowed to score. This stat won’t be as important as the efficiency stat, but will go a long way. Obviously something has to give. One of these teams won’t be able to get the late stops they’ve used to spearhead big comebacks in the playoffs to this point. So which team holds that trend?

K.M.: Dirk has been an absolute assassin in the clutch, if you don’t know that, then you probably are reading the wrong post here. But equally impressive on the Dallas side has been their late game defense. Think about the LA series, Kidd forcing Kobe into multiple late game turnovers that swung entire contests to Dallas. And in the OKC series, it’s Kidd and Marion forcing Westbrook and Durant into turnovers that have been huge factors in Dallas comebacks. Dallas can hang it’s hat on having shut down 3 highly regarded players in late game situations to secure wins. On the Miami side, outside the destruction of Rose by LeBron, Miami’s offensive success in the 4th quarter is what has carried the day, not really much to say about their defensive success. LeBron is perfectly designed to destroy Rose, as evident by the fact Rose only shot 6.3% when LeBron guarded him, but Dirk is an different animal who has shots that even LeBron can only hope to bother, not block or alter. Both LeBron and Dirk are great closers, two of the best, and it’s nice to see LeBron finally get the credit for his late game talents he deserves. But I think in the end the ball is going to be in the hands of the biggest stars. And I see two things playing out here. Firstly, I like Dallas’ chances of defending LeBron for 1 possession better then I like Miami’s chances of defending Dirk. And secondly, it would be huge for Dallas if Miami missed a late game shot in the clutch early in the series. Dallas really needs to steal a game in Miami to send a message, but if Dallas can do it by LeBron or Wade missing a huge shot, and the media starts to talk more about who needs to close for Miami on the biggest stage, it could really do a number on Wade and LeBron’s head. Both are young, and LeBron for all his talents still hasn’t produced in a Finals. If either are forced to answer questions regarding the other one being more fit to close, Dallas may gain a mental edge.

X factor:

K.M.: For Miami, believe it or not, to me it’s Wade. I’m not going to insult you guys and pretend that Chalmers or Bibby or Anthony matter. I’m not going to over-inflate the roles of Miller and Haslem, who have yet to prove they can hang with an actual offense. Wade is the key for Miami. Wade is down 40 points shooting and over 60 points from deep in the playoffs. If Wade can’t score the ball well, then LeBron has to do that much more. And Wade is, unlike LeBron, able to be defended. The matchup zone of Dallas can keep Wade out of the paint with some decent success, and if you turn Wade into a jump shooter, you can limit Wade, turn Wade over, and even at times make Wade a liability. Dallas has to figure out how to stop Wade, and then pull it off. I don’t see any way LeBron doesn’t tear it up, LeBron is a beast. But Wade has to give LeBron help in this series. Let’s be honest, from day one, Wade’s job was to help LeBron win a ring, not the other way around. It’s time for Wade to do the job he offered to do for LeBron when the Heat came together.

For Dallas, it’s very simple, it’s Jason Terry. Kidd is going to do what he does on both ends. Barea is far too fast to be contained. Dirk is unstoppable. But if LeBron can do to Terry what he did to Rose, make it too damn hard to get a good shot up against, then the Heat have a huge win on their hands on that matchup. Coach Spo has to be able to figure out that LeBron belongs on the JET, and LeBron has to show the defensive skills off the ball he showed on the ball in the Eastern Conference Finals. The JET has to get his in this series, and that may mean testing every aspect of LeBron’s defense to get production. Terry’s point totals may well indicate a Dallas win or loss most games in the Finals.

Bryan: The #2 X-Factor for Miami is Chris Bosh. Listen, we can’t avoid the obvious on every category. You’re getting Grade A material in every other subtopic so bare with me here. K.M brings up valid points on Wade. He needs to be better. In fact if you had told me his numbers would be what they are at this point, I’d have asked if they had lost to Boston or Chicago. But Dwayne Wade doesn’t disappear, he struggles. Chris Bosh can disappear. And to this point in the playoffs he hasn’t. He’s been the best PF in each of the last two series, two matchups many thought he would lose. This round he gets Dirk or MAYBE Chandler. His matchup won’t be as cut and dry as it has been so I can’t pinpoint who he has to “be better than.” What I can say is Miami will struggle to win this series if Chris Bosh doesn’t continue his strong play. Miami’s bench is garbage. Dallas’ bench has pretty much dominated all 3 series and they’ll likely dominate this one. So Miami can’t start losing the positions it is strong at.

Dallas’ 2nd X-Factor to me is Shawn Marion. Miami is not stupid like Oklahoma City, Los Angeles, and to a lesser extent Portland. They are not going to try and single cover Dirk. Because they know they have nobody to stop him. They are an exceptionally strong rotating defense and can close on shooters quick. Chicago just shot 35% from 3 against them. Boston’s ridiculous 3pt shooting is what throws off their number. Miami defended the 3 well. They will stay home on Kidd and Terry. They did a pretty solid all around job on Korver who was shooting just under 50% from 3 entering that series. Marion is likely the one who will see help coming off him. I anticipate LeBron will check Marion and Spo will use him to help off on Dirk and play passing lanes. Marion is hit or miss. He’s had a history of putting up duds but has played fairly well this postseason. Add in Deshawn Stevenson’s disgustingly bad FG% in the WCF, an offensive role that is essentially 3 point shot or bust, and Miami will make Marion and Stevenson beat them I believe. It’s a matter of whether good Marion or Phoenix Suns Marion shows up.

Series Format:

Bryan: The one key to the homecourt advantage that is brought up every year is it’s very difficult to win 3 straight given the usual competitiveness of the two Finals teams. That’s the only benefit to Miami. People like to mock Heat fans and say they’re all bandwagoners. You know what? You’re probably right. But IT DOESN’T MATTER. Homecourt isn’t about which fans are loyal. It’s about which make noise and get behind the team. An outgoing bandwagoner is much better at that than an introverted die-hard. Miami can put a stranglehold on this series if they can grab the first two. I don’t think any team could beat Miami 3 straight right now. Nor do I think Miami can win 3 straight vs. Dallas either which is why having the 2 home at the front and back is huge. Miami can come back down 3-2 and know that Dallas has to close them out in Miami. That will be a tough, tough task to do. So essentially, unless Dallas can win in 5, I like Miami’s chances given the setup of the homecourt in this series. K.M is right. You really think Dirk or LeBron are intimidated of the other’s homecourt? Would either be considered a Top 5 venue for road teams to overcome? Both teams have been able to steal a road game in every round thus far. No team has been able to push them the distance by protecting homecourt. I think the magic number for Miami is 3. They have potentially 4 home games. Win 3 of those 4 (if 7 games is needed) and you’ll be the champs. Because I’m confident as can be they’ll get at least one in Dallas.

K.M: If you ask me, the 2-3-2 series format hardly favors anyone in this series. Both teams have exception road resumes. Dallas is the winner of 5 straight playoff road games, and the only 2 road games Dallas has lost this postseason was an epic collapse in Portland where the Mavericks blew a monster lead, and a game where Tyson Chandler managed to foul out in 15 minutes, Portland shot over 57% from deep, and the Mavs lost by 5. Meanwhile, Miami just two two games in Chicago, the toughest regular season home court in the NBA, and is 4-3 on the road. And both teams are lights out at home. Miami is undefeated at home in the playoffs, honestly not even really tested, winning by at least 8 points in every game (although one went to overtime). Meanwhile Dallas has been fairly convincing at home as well, with one loss to the Thunder, but also most all comfortable wins, just one late game comeback vs. OKC required. Dallas isn’t going to sweat going on the road one bit. Miami isn’t going to sweat going on the road one bit. Forget home court. LeBron can drive into the lane and create on Mars. Dirk could drill one legged faders at the North Pole. Neither team is a team you would put in the upper half of best fanbases in the NBA. Both teams had exceptional road records all season. This series is all about who’s the best, I don’t see home court giving an even series a Heat edge, I really don’t.

Bryan’s Final Thoughts: This is Miami’s series to lose. Any series that you enter with the best player and have another who when he is right is the 2nd best player in the series, you are in control of whether or not you win that series. That’s what we’re looking at here. Preseason when I predicted the Heat to win the title (before my partial-homerism changed that pick in the playoffs) I said their talent would overwhelm teams and that beating them 4 times in 7 games was too tall a task for any team. I still firmly believe that. No team has even been able to get 2 games from them yet, and that includes the team who won the most games in basketball with homecourt, and a proven core who had been to 2 of the past 3 Finals. Miami is playing dominant team basketball right now.

Miami lost 3 of 4 games to Boston. They dismissed them in 5. They lost all 3 games to Chicago. They steamrolled Chicago even more dominantly. Now it’s Dallas. A team who beat them both times during the season. The Heat are on a mission of payback. They are embracing the fact that everyone in America whose not named Bryan Doherty or a Heat fan is pulling against them. They are inspired by the negativity. They made a proclamation preseason. “Not one, not two, not three, not four….”. I thought it was moronic, not because of cockiness or anything, because I love cockiness, but because of pressure. I thought LeBron got caught up in the moment.

But low and behold, Miami is so dumb they believe they are going to win 7-8 titles. There’s two main points I’ve stated that will play the biggest role in this series and that’s offensive efficiency and late game situations. To me, Miami will get easier offense, and they have the best player in the NBA at the end of games. Two factors I like to have on my side. Quite simply Dallas is about to see defense that they have not seen all postseason. They are going to throw some overmatched, outdated defender on LeBron, be it Marion, Stevenson, or Kidd even and it will fail. LeBron is playing at a level that ironically only Dirk can top. But LeBron knows what is at stake this series.

I expect LeBron to have a monster series and start building the foundation for what will be a Top 10 player all-time when it is all said and done. When the games are tight late, what team is going to freeze up? The one who has a Finals MVP and another player who knows this is his stage, or the team who has a core of players who know nothing but crushing defeats. Most of the Heat’s players haven’t had chances to fail. Kidd, Marion, Terry, Dirk, Chandler, Peja, they’ve all been deep in the playoffs before and have only known failure.

The Miami Heat will win the NBA Finals in 6 games in large part because of the heroics of LeBron James, but also because when the game gets tight late and teams need a stop, the looks Dirk gets, no matter how easy he makes them look, won’t be as high quality as what LeBron will get. In the case late game calls come into the equation, you can bet the Heat will benefit from them if there’s any doubt. The NBA is about to witness the start of a team that will continue to be hated for years to come. After this year however, the saying will start with “not two, not three…”.

K.M.’s Final Thoughts:

Both teams are exceptional, of that let there be no question. Miami was pretty much the best team in the league all year. Sure, they didn’t win the most games, but they lost a ton of close games and destroyed teams like nobody else. Believe it or not, it’s a much better predictor of success in the NBA to destroy teams then to win close games. Close games even out, but destroying teams show you have that level that only another elite team could dare touch. Meanwhile Dallas was a juggernaut this season when Dirk was healthy. Dallas is now 69-21 with a healthy Dirk. That’s nearly 77%.

This series really is going to come down to the words of Lemmy. It’s all about the game, and how you play it. It’s all about control, and if you can take it. It’s all about your debt, and if you can pay it. It’s all about pain and who’s gonna make it.

Before the season, I predicted Dallas in 6 over Miami. Most everybody in Bryan’s postseason contest is taking Dallas in 6. I’d love to lie right here and say Dallas in 6 just like I did in the preseason. But Dallas in 6 is a TERRIBLE pick. It really is.

Like Bryan said in the format section, Miami will come back down 3-2 with a world of confidence. I think Miami is really set up to win game 6 if that happens. But a game 7? All the pressure in the world on the Heat? Dallas can win that game with their vets, that I truly believe.

However, I’m going Dallas in 5. Because here is the secret nobody is talking about: Dallas can take the first two games. Dallas is going to have an excellent gameplan for game 1, and game 1 has not been kind to the Heat this postseason. Philly was within 1 point with 2:30 to play in the first round. The Celtics played pretty bad game 1, but the Heat did not exactly light the world on fire either. But the Bulls blew the Heat out game 1. It’s fair to say Miami has not looked very prepared to start any series so far this playoffs, only they were too talented for Philly and Boston just didn’t bring it to open that series.

If the Mavericks take game 1, Miami faces a ton of pressure to take game 2, and this series can be all but decided before we even really get going. Miami may fall into the trap LA did after dropping game 1 and preparing to go to Dallas and regain home court, only to find themselves not tied at 1-1, but down a couple games before they knew what hit them. It’s probably the one situation that people are not considering right now, but to me, it’s a very real possibility. And honestly, if the Mavs walk into Dallas up 2-0, the rest of this story is elementary from here to end up at Dallas in 5. You can figure it out.

Carlisle is the game, Spo doesn’t want to play it. Kidd is control, and Bibby can’t change it. Dirk is heavy debt, the Heat bigs can’t pay it, the Mavs are pain, and the Heat can’t take it. For Miami, I got some bad news. It’s time to play the game.