Another great game last night, and I was happy to see Miami pull it out. Aside from the poor officiating throughout the playoffs this year (and in the past several years), I think this is the most I've enjoyed a championship series since the 90s Bulls teams. I really enjoy watching Dwyane Wade play, and its nice to see he has a humility to him as well. Outstanding in these finals. I never would have guessed that they would win four straight against Dallas. Officiating or not - you have to blame yourselves somewhat when you lose four games in a row to any team.
I kind of enjoyed seeing Shaq get another title as well (for the Kobe factor), but especially liked seeing Alonzo Mourning get one. With what that man has been through, and for being pretty close before, its got to be a nice capper to his career - whether he continues playing or not. Pretty much everyone on that team were first time champs, aside from Shaq and Riles.
I like what Brent mentioned as well. I don't really follow hockey that much to be honest, but I like the fact that there is more sportsmanship shown in the example he mentioned. I lost some respect for the Mavs with a lot of the whining, kicking/throwing of basketballs, bikes, etc. after games. Sure, I know it can be frustrating, but these guys are all adults. It isn't just the Mavericks either, but an overall theme with the NBA in years past - lots of whining, rarely taking the blame. I can't believe how many times players will talk/act like they didn't foul a guy, and the replay makes it painfully obvious that they murdered them. Anyways - off topic at this point, but good points made about fouls/sportsmanship in general. One of the reasons I really started to wanted the Heat to win (aside from Wade) was that I thought they handled things very well. When they got whooped in the first couple games, they took the blame themselves - said they needed to play better, be more aggressive, etc. You didn't hear a lot of talk about the refs, just about themselves as players and a team. Congratulations to the Miami Heat. It was a great ride, and a pretty exciting playoffs overall. Now...predictions for next year?
I think Dallas has a great chance of being back. Miami might too, depending on its aging players. If Wade keeps playing the way he has, he might be able to carry them pretty well himself.
