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| Get ready for an exciting finals! |
Backcourt
Dwyane Wade will demand one of Dallas' larger guards, keeping either the annoyingly speedy Devin Harris or the nut-punchingly feisty Jason Terry glued to the pine. That means going small, like they did against San Antonio, won't be nearly as effective for Dallas. Unfortunately for Miami, Jason Williams needs to stay on a hot streak for seven more games to make up for his Swiss cheese D—which is less likely than someone calling me White Chocolate. (Other than my mother, of course.)
Frontcourt
No, no one can guard Dirk, but if the defensive player of the year couldn't slow down Shaq, what the hell is Erick Dampier going to do? Then again, one look at the rest of the lanky forwards stacked up in Dallas and you see why the Mavs can wear down opponents, whether it's with scoring (Jerry Stackhouse), defense (Marquis Daniels), or ugliness (Keith Van Horn).
Bench
The Heat are stacked full of hungry vets looking for their first rings, so don't expect a major drop-off in productivity, especially if G.P. hassles the Mavs' guards. Dallas has just as much firepower on their side, with a more explosive mix of youth, quickness, and ugliness (see above).
Coach
These two guys will cancel each other out. In Avery Johnson, you have the coach of the year who knows how to adapt over the course of a series. In Pat Riley, you have a guy who's called plays in eight different finals appearances—and this time, he doesn't have to worry about John Starks.
Pick: Despite the fact that everything from depth to match-up problems to regular season records indicates that the Mavericks are going to run away with this thing, they still have to play the games. (Otherwise, all of those luxury suites go to waste.) Miami's got two legitimate superstars who'll make this interesting, but I still see the Mavs outlasting them, 4–3, in a tight and entertaining finals series that brings the NBA back from the dead just in time for LeBron to take the keys.