Texas Toast

Jason Terry of the Dallas Mavericks got a tattoo of the Larry O' Brien trophy on his right bicep at the beginning of the NBA season. The ink was a motivational tool used to motivate a locker room full of guys who had never won. Guys who were all tired of being written off as a team that could not perform under pressure. A team that many across the league in the beginning of the year called soft and not good enough to win it all. Now, after a memorable NBA Finals series, the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat and proved to everyone that, like the cowardly lion from the Wizard of OZ, their heart was inside of them all along. 

The Dallas Mavericks were a veteran team full of players who were so close to achieving championship glory, but yet so far at the same time. As everyone expected, they took care of business in the first round by beating the youthful Portland Trailblazers in six games. Up next came one of the most lopsided series in recent memory, as the Mavericks shocked the NBA world by steamrolling the favored Los Angeles Lakers in four games. As the spotlight got brighter and brighter, the Mavericks grew hotter and dispatched the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games. Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Jason Kid, Tyson Chandler and JJ Barea could see their best shot at a title appear before their eyes. And the only thing standing in their way of their goal was the most talented team in the NBA.

But like every NBA championship prior to this year, the Larry O' Brien trophy was given out in June after the playoffs ended; not July of last year at the team's first press conference.

But the Dallas Mavericks won the NBA title was not because Dirk Nowitzki averaged  48 points per game on 12-15 shooting from the field and 100% shooting from the charity stripe; although Dallas' favorite German player did take home the Final's MVP honor. The reason that the Mavericks were able to play through the scorching Heat index was because the Heat may have had better stars, but the Mavericks had a better team.

Coming into the series, the Dallas Maverick had the best bench in the entire NBA. And in the Finals, the bench dominance was no different. The Mavs bench averaged 28 points per game in the title series while the Heat's bench had only 22 points per game.Jason Terry and JJ Barea seemed to score at will, while DeShawn Stevenson and the custodian Brian Cardinal were able to frustrate Wade and James defensively. In contrast, the only one off of Miami's bench who was a constant threat in this series was Mario Chalmers. And while the Heat had Wade, Bosh, and James starting, the big two and a half were responsible for scoring 68% of their team's points in the series. And as this series proved, it takes more than just three of the league's 15 best players on one team to win an NBA title. And the Mavericks simply had more depth to their team than the Miami Heat did.

As great as it was to see so many almost champions finally complete their quests for the one ring to rule them all, don't expect a repeat performance next season. The key players on the Dallas Mavericks, Dirk, Terry, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, are all over the age of 33. Plus, there is always the Boston Celtics title syndrome. A bunch of players who had never won an NBA title finally win, and don't play with the same hunger as they did the year before.And although there is some young talent in Caron Butler and Barea, that is not enough to build a team around in the distant future. But don't expect the Mavs draft class this year to help, for the NBA Draft class of 2011 is looking pretty weak as a whole.

And although the Miami Heat took the loss in this series, they will be back and most likely better. James, Wade and Bosh are all locked up long term, but the Heat need better support around their core. The plan should include dumping everyone on that bench not named Chalmers and Udonis Haslem because they were all ineffective throughout the majority of the playoffs. Give the Heat a consistent bench that is about three fifths as good as the Mavs bench, and the Heat are likely the ones hoisting the trophy next season.

But now that the Mavericks have all one their first titles, we all will be forced to remember that it is another year for Lebron James without an NBA title. James received a great deal of criticism for his play in the Finals because of his inability to produce down the stretch. James only scored 18 points in the fourth quarter of six games in the entire series. In contrast, Dirk scored a total of 62 points in the fourth quarter of games during the entire series. In short, James was good in the Finals, but the Miami Heat needed him to be the Lebron James that played for the Heat against the Celtics and Bulls, but he was not.  

After the rings get given out, next will come the questions regarding the legacy that this year's NBA Finals will leave behind. The legacy of this Dallas Mavericks championship run can best be compared to the old children's cartoon Capitan Planet. Owner Mark Cuban being the 'fire' that sparks his team with inflammatory comments regarding the NBA's officiating. While the player who best represents the 'earth', being Tyson Chandler and his physical style of play. The 'water' being Jason Kidd and the calming influence he had over the team. While the 'wind' being Jason Terry's shooting that took the team to new heights. As for the 'heart', that title belongs to the lovable JJ Barea from that basketball factory Northeastern University. And with Dirk Nowitzki as Capitan Planet, the Mavs have delayed the NBA's global warming for another year.