Mavs vs Heat 2011 Finals

Trophy and Garden

Maximized picture of the Larry O'Brien outside the stadium of the last team to come out of the Eastern Conference to win the NBA Finals.

In 2006, Dirk Nowitzski and Jason Terry were apart of a Dallas Mavericks team that went to the NBA Finals. There opponent was led by Dwayne Wade, Shaquille O’Neal, Jason Williams, and Udonis Haslem. The Mavs were up 2-0 in that series before suffering from a mental collapse the rest of the series which allowed the Miami Heat to win their first NBA Championship. Now we fast forward to today where each team has two holdovers from the 2006 Finals. For Dallas, it’s Nowitzki  and Terry, and for the Heat it’s Wade and Haslem. It is all about redemption for the Dallas teammates, and on the other side it’s about bringing home another Championship to South Beach. This time around Dirk has a point guard in future Hall of Famer Jason Kidd. He has more veterans such as Shawn Marion, Tyson Chandler, and a guy who is top 5 all-time in three point goals made in NBA history with Peja Stojakovic. Do not also count out the young J.J Barea who at times will probably outscore the entire Miami Heat bench. On the other hand, we have the Heat who have now added Lebron James and Chris Bosh. The new big three garnered so much hate throughout the summer of 2010 and much for the whole season. The expectations were very high and they could be on their way to fulfilling them. The Heat’s bench includes Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem, and Mike Miller. The Mavs are the more well-rounded team but a team with Lebron, Wade, and Bosh is expected to win it all as they have all put franchises on their back before coming together before this season started. Will Dirk finally get a ring to minimize his previous playoff failures and push his legacy, or will the trio in Miami reign supreme? Lebron’s decision made headlines last July. In just under five weeks, many analysts and fans will mark the one-year anniversary of “The Decision”. On that day, will fans that hated Lebron rejoice or will they have to come to terms that Lebron is now a winner, a winner of the most coveted prize in basketball?