NBA Finals The Miami Heat Vs Dallas Mavericks : Two Teams Hungry To Succeed

LeBron James blocked Derrick Rose’s desperate attempt for a game tying three at the buzzer and Miami sealed a berth in the 2011 NBA finals after a wild comeback in the last three minutes of the final quarter of Game 5. The Heat will now face the Dallas Mavericks in what is assured to be a tough, hard fought best-of-seven series.

Last July, Miami came up with a stroke of genius when they successfully persuaded LeBron James and Chris Bosh to join Dwyane Wade at the franchise. The goal was to win another NBA title and the Big three didn’t disappoint, putting Heat on the verge of their first title since Wade and Shaquille O’Neal erased a 2-0 series deficit to claim the crown in 2006. Their opponents then were Dallas Mavericks, who had never made it to the finals before and never made it again, until they ripped apart the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday.

Enthralling final on the cards

Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Taylor, the only two surviving members of the Mavs side that went down to Heat in 2006, came up with gigantic efforts in the playoffs and now will be hungry to avenge the series defeat suffered in the last final. But, the road ahead is rocky as their mercurial opponents are fired up to win the title.

Both the teams have built a reputation of coming from behind in the final quarter. While, the Mavs rallied against Thunder in Game 4 and Game 5 to win the series and the Western Conference finals 4-1, Heat came up with big 4^th quarters in Games 2, 3, 4 and 5 to easily win the Eastern title 4-1. The last game saw the Heat trailing by 12 with just over 3 minutes to go. They recovered with the Big three living up to their reputation in a magical finish where they outscored the Bulls 18-3 in that period.

Chicago’s remarkable season ended in an embarrassment. They didn’t know what struck them Thursday night. It was unbelievable stuff from King James, an injured D-Wade and Bosh. Chicago had the best regular season record; they had the youngest league MVP in Rose and the manager of the season Tom Thibodeau but they had no answers to the Big three. The Bulls did win Game 1 but failed to match the class of Heat in the next four.

The Heat came into the Eastern finals with a 4-1 thrashing of the Boston Celtics in the second round of the playoffs, after winning the first round of the playoffs with the same score (4-1) against Philadelphia 76ers. James with 390 points, Wade with 356 points and Bosh with 279 points in the postseason have proved their worth. Heat’s success must be attributed to the contributions from their superstars but the three were well supported by Mario Chamlers, Joel Anthony, James Jones, Udonis Haslem and Mike Bibby who stepped up whenever required. But, the job is not yet done. Seven more games stand between them and the title and Mavs will make every possible effort to spoil the party.

The Mavericks, a side full of ageing stars, didn’t get bogged down by the exuberant Thunder led by Kevin Durant, but used their experience to have a second crack at the NBA title. They had made the Conference finals after a resounding series win over Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. They blanked the Lakers 4-0 ending the long and decorated career of Lakers coach Phil Jackson in disappointment.

Nowitzki with 426 points did bulk of the scoring in the postseason, while Taylor supported him with 260 points. Shawn Marion, Jason Kidd, Peja Stojakovic, Jose Barrea and Tyson Chandler all came up with vital contributions to assure coach Rick Carlisle’s team a berth in the finals. This is the Dallas coach’s first appearance in a NBA final as a manager. As a player he won the championship with the Celtics in 1986. His counterpart in the finals, Eric Spoelstra, is just into his third year as coach, who tasted first-round exits with Miami in the first two seasons, and will look to turn things around this time.

The Big three have class and determination to succeed. For LeBron, who has been rated amongst the all-team greats, there is a point to prove. He has never won a championship before and this is his second chance to capture the ultimate pize. In 2007 he squandered an opportunity when his former side Cleveland Cavaliers went down to the San Antonio Spurs. Now, it’s an opportunity for him to make amends and add a title to his glittering career.

The finals begin on Tuesday in Miami, when the two teams with huge aspirations square off in Game 1 of the much-awaited series.