Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Heat in 6!
On June 4, I wrote: "Despite being the away team, I'll go out on a limb and predict Miami will win the NBA finals. Shaquille O'Neal will neutralize Nowitski inside [though they'll have to figure out how to stop him from beyond the 3-point line] and Dwyane Wade is better than the Dallas backcourt combined. Plus, Miami coach Pat Riley has been there 8 times more than Dallas rookie Avery Johnson. The Heat in 6."
How right I was. Wade dominated the series - which the Heat won in six games, as I predicted - and was named the NBA Finals MVP. He scorched the Mavs from Game 3 on, and averaged 34 points in the series. In last night's 95-92 finale, Wade's 36 points were the difference. It was truly Wade's World, as espn.com reported.
I knew Wade was good, but not necessarily this good. His dominating finals performance rivals Michael Jordan's heroics in the '90s. Even with Shaquille O'Neal in a lesser role, his huge body in the middle was enough to thwart Mavs' 7-footer Dirk Nowitski. And, of course, Pat Riley was the series' x-factor. When you've won the NBA title as many times as he had (4 times in LA), you have to give his team the edge.
How right I was. Wade dominated the series - which the Heat won in six games, as I predicted - and was named the NBA Finals MVP. He scorched the Mavs from Game 3 on, and averaged 34 points in the series. In last night's 95-92 finale, Wade's 36 points were the difference. It was truly Wade's World, as espn.com reported.I knew Wade was good, but not necessarily this good. His dominating finals performance rivals Michael Jordan's heroics in the '90s. Even with Shaquille O'Neal in a lesser role, his huge body in the middle was enough to thwart Mavs' 7-footer Dirk Nowitski. And, of course, Pat Riley was the series' x-factor. When you've won the NBA title as many times as he had (4 times in LA), you have to give his team the edge.
