It is a habit in the universe of sports observers to cast competitions, particularly the major ones, in the mold of a classic battle between good vs. evil. That s usually too simplistic an outlook, but it is not a giant leap to say that many will see this year s NBA Finals through that prism the Heat are the big bullies of this series, and the Mavericks are the mild-mannered good guys.
There is any number of reasons for the average fan to get behind the Mavericks in this matchup. They have a likable veteran star, Dirk Nowitzki, who is playing on a different plane in the postseason, putting together one of the greatest individual playoff runs in recent memory. Nowitzki is 32 and running out of championship chances, and he s surrounded by a bunch of easily recognizable, and equally championship-free, veterans Jason Terry, Peja Stojakovic, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion . The Mavs are the fundamentally sound, disciplined old guys at the Y, trying to take down a team of flashy young hotshots.
And the Heat? Well, they re the Heat, and there remains a legion of fans who just won t forgive this team. They won t forgive LeBron James for the obnoxious, The Decision, television program in which he announced he was taking his talents to South Beach. They won t forgive Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh for conspiring with James to join forces in Miami. They won t forgive James for abandoning Cleveland, or Bosh for abandoning Toronto. They won t forgive the organization as a whole for last summer s post-signing celebration that had the feel of a championship parade.
Wade won a championship with the Heat in 2006, defeating Nowitzki s Mavericks. The teams are very different now, and one thing that has surely changed is that, back then, Wade became one of the most well-liked players in the league based on what he accomplished in that series. Now, he is lustily booed even in his hometown of Chicago.
Asked why the Mavs are the popular favorite now, Wade said, Because they re playing the Miami Heat. There you go. You know, we re not going to be the favorites from that standpoint. Dirk is a great player, he is going to go down as one of the all-time best players, and he has expressed his disappointment from 06 and how much he s wanted to get back to this position. . Obviously, because they are playing the Miami Heat, they are going to get the sentimental (vote). We re not going to get it.
True, the popularity of Heat players remains low, and there will be fans pulling for the Mavs simply because they want to see the Heat fail. In some quarters, though, it does seem that the public is warming up to the Heat, if only slightly. Part of that has to do with the fact that the Heat set out to win, dealt with enormous pressure and scrutiny all season, and still managed to get to the brink of a championship.
To me the bottom line is when you win, all of a sudden people embrace you, ABC analyst and NBA veteran Mark Jackson said. Those guys have done a great job of sustaining. They had a tough period during the course of the season, sticking with the game plan, and finally executing, and they find themselves with a legitimate chance to fulfill their initial dream, which was to win a championship. I think people embrace hard workers and the way that they have answered and responded to the critics and to the pressure.
Finishing the job here in the Finals will do even more toward rehabbing the image of the Heat and re-establishing players like Wade and James among the most popular in the league. But for now, James isn t kidding himself about which team is playing what role.
We know, James said. We know we are the bad guys that everyone perceives us to be.
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