The Mavs, Really?

If last night was the last NBA game for an extended period, "showmanship" is the word I would use to describe the finish. The Mavs were more than just an afterthought at the beginning of the playoffs; other Western conference playoff teams were openly discussing tanking games to draw them in the first round. Dallas was the only favorite multiple experts predicted against in the first round, only New Orleans had less support in the entire west bracket. Dirk was expected to be their only offensive threat and the Mavs were dismissed as having missed their title window.

When the playoffs began 6 weeks ago we expected to see something remarkable along the lines of the Lakers 3 peating, Boston's redemption, OKC and Chicago's breakthroughs, and the first of multiple Heat titles. What we didn't expect was Dallas to re-write their team legacy and in the process vault Dirk, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, and Tyson Chandler into historically perspectives that would have been laughed about on Easter. During an offseason/season when the Heat remade their franchise with the additions of Lebron and Bosh, the Knicks and Nets acquiring Carmelo and D-Will respectively, and the Celts added Shaq, only your most shrewd defensive metric analysts would have pegged Tyson Chandler as the biggest acquisition of the year. Chandler played the kind of the defense that was envisioned when he was the second overall pick of the draft out of high school; his athleticism transformed the Mavs front line from a weakness to strength as his focus on defense and rebounding rubbed off on everyone and allowed the Mavs to bury Brendan Haywood on the bench. His ability to protect the rim, clean up the garbage offensively and defend with a passion while staying out of foul trouble changed the demeanor of the Mavs in the Finals.

Jason Terry being labeled as Dallas' second best player during his tenure with the Mavs was not a compliment, it was the reason usually given to why Dallas would never win a title and as support for Dirk's MVP case. When Lebron and the Heat defense bottled Terry up during the first three games of the Finals it was about as surprising as a "Real Housewives" divorce. When Terry expressed his doubt to the press that Lebron could hold him down for the entire series it felt like an African dictator telling the public there was no unrest in his country as protests were being staged behind him. Taking a page out of the Vinny Johnson and Vernon Maxwell playbook, Terry went on to dominant the series and his team high 27 points in Game 6 kept the Mavs ahead while Dirk struggled and tied the most ever for a bench player in a Finals clinching game. Maxwell, the Microwave, and Manu make room for the Jet on the list of bench guys who became stars during their teams title runs.

Chandler and Terry were revelations this postseason, but other than John Lackey living up to his contract nothing has been more surprising in the world of sports than watching Jason Kidd during this postseason. When he ably defended Kobe Bryant in clutch time during the Lakers series it seemed more an indication of how close father time was to catching Kobe, then he backed that up by alternating defensively on Westbrook/Durant and Wade/Lebron in the Finals. He is a decade past the days when he could defend the others team's best for the entire game, but the ability to play them tough in the clutch was the difference for this Mavs team that was just as comfortable with a game in the 80's as they were with a game in triple digits. Kidd became the second oldest starter behind Kareem to win a title and he was running the team from the point as opposed to posting up with the sky hook. Keeping with the theme for the Mavs, Kidd made himself a good spot up shooter and filled his role as distributor, defender, and team leader. He was commonly dismissed in the Payton/Nash/Kidd all time discussion, but after this postseason and his career crunch time (+/-) stats he is building a case for himself as one of the greats at the position.

Dirk has always been a fascinating study historically; his overwhelming steadiness without a second option has been admired along with his array of offensive moves. The '06 Finals haunted his legacy like Mitch Williams' slider to Joe Carter and it seemed he was on pace to be remembered as a great offensive player who let a 2-0 Finals lead get away. It is funny what happens when your teammates make a few jump shots and start to play better defensively. Dirk has improved his offensive game every season; his numbers this postseason were right on par with his career playoff numbers, but dominating the fourth quarter and outperforming Wade and Lebron in the most watched Finals since MJ will do wonders for a legacy. Dirk lifting the Finals MVP award had a bit of a John Elway feel to it and it was hard not to feel like it was sweet justice after the '06 series, the not tough enough labels, and the in series mocking from two Heat stars. As for legacies the best Euro player ever and top 20 overall isn't too bad for a guy traded for Tractor Traylor on draft night.

Miami is in for a long summer as Lebron has once again come up short, the most interesting questions will be if Chris Bosh and Coach Spo are around for the second season of the "superfriends". Bosh seems out of place and a rugged big man and serviceable point guard in exchange for him seems more than reasonable. Hopefully, Lebron and Wade stick up for Coach Spo, who is a bright young coach, but it doesn't always work like that in the NBA and his inability to develop an offense against a zone and find a steady rotation are issues. If this is truly a long term plan the Heat would be smart to surround the two stars with young players who are athletic and have room to improve, rather than sign every bought out free agent during the season.

As the NFL has shown at least we have the draft, but after that and while we are waiting on David Stern and Billy Hunter at least we have ESPN classic and NBA TV and the '11 Finals.