The Dallas Mavericks may be up 3-2 over LeBron James and the Miami Heat, but they have much to overcome, Bud Shaw writes in his Sunday Spin.
View full sizeCould Dwyane Wade and LeBron James have the last laugh in the NBA Finals? Well, this is Cleveland, right? That's all that Bud Shaw is saying.CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The surgeon general warns rooting for anything in Cleveland, even if it's a team from somewhere else, could be hazardous to your health and theirs...
If any sports town should know the danger of wanting something too desperately, it's this one. For that reason and others, hold off on the official adoption of the Dallas Mavaliers.
In fact, the last thing you should want to do this close to their first NBA championship is give the Mavericks two-thirds of a franchise name that has never appeared on the Larry O'Brien Trophy or a connection to a city in a title drought since 1964.
It's like naming a new investment company after Bernie Madoff.
There are other factors:
1) The rest of the series is in Miami, where the Heat has lost once this postseason. Granted, that was to Dallas, but it required a Miami stumble down the stretch that was highlighted by head coach Erik Spoelstra asking Chris Bosh to guard Dirk Nowitzki in the open floor on the last possession.
Pay no mind to Spoelstra and Bosh signing off on that decision. You might as well ask Chuck Norris to play Hamlet.
2) The Mavs won Game 4 by three points with LeBron James disappearing. They won Game 5 with their role players shooting the lights out, with Dwyane Wade getting injured, and with LeBron James disappearing. (A theme.)
The chances of James showing up in Miami seem better than the chances of J.J. Barea showing up in Miami. More frequently, role players star at home in the NBA playoffs, then remember who they are on the road. Sidekicks such as LeRobin fare even better at home.
3) They're still the Mavs. I won't go as far as to say Dirk Nowitzki is still Dirk Nowitzki. He's shed his paper tiger reputation in these playoffs, controlling the big moments by making sure he either gets fouled or hits the basket.
Hack-a-Dirk isn't a strategy. It's suicide. He wants you to put him on the line whereas James apparently wants to shoot from the other foul line.
Still, look around. If Jason Terry doesn't rise up -- hey now, there's a slogan -- the Mavs struggle.
4) The 3-2 Dallas edge isn't what it seems. Miami has outplayed the Mavericks, except for late in games. I realize that's no small disclaimer. But home teams win Game 7 about 80 percent of the time, so the Mavs face almost as much pressure to win Game 6 as Miami does.
5) Maybe the biggest reason to doubt the Mavs' chances is that Cleveland Fan wants them to win so badly.
So stop it. Act cool. Disinterested even.
View full sizeHe has "Dallas" across his chest, but we all know who Dirk Nowitzki is really playing for, right?Don't watch Game 6 Sunday night. Rent a movie instead. I suggest The Wizard of Oz, especially the scene where the house falls on the wicked witch and all you can see under it is the No. 6, I mean, her legs.
Just in case you were looking for a reason to dislike the Heat and couldn't find one...
Wade and James joked about being sick on their way to the bus after the shootaround for Game 5 in Dallas. Two days before, Nowitzki had played through a sinus infection and high fever in Dallas' Game 4 victory.
"Did y'all hear me cough?" Wade asked the surrounding media. "Do you think I'm sick?"
They both faked coughing.
"I'm not going to get into the fun-loving story of [Nowitzki] being sick, either," Wade said earlier. "Once you show up on the court, you show up on the court."
Not surprisingly, Nowitzki took offense. "I just thought it was a little childish, a little ignorant," he told ESPNDallas before Saturday's practice at AmericanAirlines Arena. "I've been in this league for 13 years. I've never faked an injury or illness."
If Wade and James were making fun of the media's obsession with Nowitzki's illness, well, that got lost in translation. The media does tend to over-dramatize the perseverance of athletes, treating guys playing hurt or sick like they're as brave and determined as Seal Team 6. But just the same, it came off as a shot at Nowitzki for what, I'm not sure.
I mean, subtle isn't what James and Wade do best by any stretch. When you predict six, seven, eight championships before the season begins, you don't get the benefit of "hidden message."
Wade especially should be careful about poking fun. He thinks that's funny? He's got a teammate who dramatically called attention to a sore right elbow by shooting a playoff free throw left-handed.
Now that's hilarious.
SPINOFFS
Another reason to believe in alternate universes in addition to Maurice Clarett of all people blaming players for having their hands out for improper benefits at OSU? Quiet, reserved wall flower Mark Cuban...
View full sizeThis Red is typically one of the bright spots in the Cincinnati rotation.Come to think of it, two more: Cleveland's current affection for Charles Barkley and DeShawn Stevenson...
USA Today reminds us the Heat shouldn't whine about Barkley's criticism. Most recently he said there's something about Miami he just can't embrace. Could be worse.
In 2008, Barkley called the Washington Wizards "the dumbest team in the history of civilization." And that includes an army that tried to conquer the Soviet Union in the winter...
SEPARATED AT BIRTH
Christian Bale and Reds' pitcher Homer Bailey -- Jeff Kooyman
Tom Heckert and actor Joel McCrary -- Randy Verner
View full sizeThis Dark Knight keeps Gotham safe, no matter what evildoer lurks in the shadows.YOU SAID IT
(The Greatly Expanded Sunday Edition)
"Bud:
"When the Mavaliers, I mean Mavericks, win the title on Sunday evening, do you know what day we are hosting a victory party down Euclid Ave?" -- Dave Fazekas, Westlake
Is this a trick question? Every day.
"Bud:
"Who are the big three at the PD?" -- Joe S
That's hard for me to say. But for reasons I don't exactly understand, they call me Juwan Howard.
"Bud:
"If the Heat loses, what excuse will LeBron use for not shaking hands with Dirk Nowitzki? 1) My elbow is still tender. 2) I didn't want to catch his cold." -- Edward Aube.
I'd go with 3) I thought that was Sig Hansen of "Deadliest Catch."
"Bud:
"I hear the Big Ten Conference ADs are going to change the division names from Legends and Leaders to Buyers and Sellers. Any truth to that?" -- Kevin O
I've heard Loaners and Lenders.
"Hey Bud:
"Expanding instant replay in baseball is [under discussion] in their effort to get it right. Does the PD use this technology in the sports department when they review your stuff prior to printing?" -- Dr. Grinder
The only technology they use when reviewing my stuff -- in the absence of the real thing -- is a laugh track.
"Bud:
"I see where Manny Acta claims Fausto Carmona is 'divorced from the strike zone' this year. Keeping in step with that analogy, can't it also be said that Indians batters are 'legally separated' from reaching first base?" -- Jeff, Westlake
Maybe. I do know as the aggrieved party, Orlando Cabrera is seeking joint custody of second base.
"Bud:
"Because of his recent struggles, Shin-Soo Choo said that he was going to close his ears and his eyes. Do you think this will improve his hitting?" -- Harvey
First-time "You Said It" winners receive a T-shirt from the Mental Floss collection.
"Bud:
"Compared to earlier this season, what are the Indians missing more of lately: smoke, or mirrors?" -- Ron
Repeat winners get pulled out of a hat.
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/budshaw/index.ssf/2011/06/reports_of_the_miami_heats_and.html
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