New World Order - Miami Changes the Game

Now that we've all had a couple days to digest Lebron James being an NBA Champion, there's a much bigger issue lingering in the aftermath of his victory: the fact that the "bad guys" won. These NBA Finals were as close as you could come to a battle of Good vs. Evil in the NBA; like the Avengers movie they so relentlessly (and horribly) tried to tie into the early Playoff rounds. And dammit did Captain America ever just get the shit kicked out of him. Regardless of what you want to argue about Lebron, Wade, Bosh, hell even Erik Spoelstra's personal merits, Miami represents a troubling trend...

Small market teams are already at an inherent disadvantage in the NBA; getting the short end of the proverbial stick in a league that's expanded too quickly and diluted its talent pool, doesn't share revenue, and has shown a disturbing lack of initiative in keeping its teams in one place. 

The obvious irony is that the Thunder - the ostensible "good guys" in this case - arrived in Oklahoma City through a sleazy underhanded pillaging that robbed a deserving fanbase in Seattle of its favorite team. But what happened once Clay Bennett brought the Thunder there (except for going with his 2nd-grade son's art project as a logo) almost was good enough to justify it. The Thunder's fans were amazing, and not in a "We're really drunk and pumped for live sports!!" way like Memphis' GrindHouse faithful, but in a "This city badly needs a positive identity to unite around" way, and they cheered relentlessly, every night, showing a bond with their team unseen in pro sports. The only strike against them is that they're SO good, their team often appears a shell of itself on the road.

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, Sam Presti was being the shrewdest GM in the League. Sure, he got handed a once-in-a-generation player, but he also drafted James Harden and Russell Westbrook when they were far from no-brainers. He unearthed Serge Ibaka. He acquired Nick Collison and Thabo Sefolosha, inexpensive pieces that rounded out his lineup nicely. He hired a pretty good coach. He never panicked, let his team develop together,work hard, improve every year, and break through to the Finals on an epic run after mowing down the three teams that had represented the West in every Finals for the last twelve years. The guy who led them was an ideal superstar; humble, unselfish, had devoted his entire career to winning basketball games, and nothing else. Simply put, you couldn't find a more deserving team in the NBA. 

And then there's Miami.

While the Boston Celtics of 2008 (and likely the Spurs before them) birthed this newfound notion of needing three superstars to win an NBA Championship, the Heat took things to a whole new level. What happened in Boston was 85% a shrewd assembly by Danny Ainge, bringing together three aging legends who were hungry for the title that had eluded them...And 15% Kevin McHale gift-wrapping his best player for his former team (#CelticPride). What happened in Miami, well...shit...can YOU ever think of a time when three of the League's best players all "happened" to be free agents together, out of the same Draft no less (not insinuating anything, just calling facts facts), and signed with the same team? No, because it's never happened before. People were justified in calling it a "short cut" out of initial shock because there was no precedent against which to measure it; it just seemed sleazy and unfair, like they were destined to win (only it took them a season to figure it out because these three guys generally complemented each other like a bad hangover, Wild Turkey, and work). The guy who led them was a formerly arrogant young man who'd been gifted with the greatest physical composition and skill set ever for the game of basketball, but became so consumed with the bullshit surrounding it that he - in his own words - had to "hit rock bottom" before he could rediscover his passion for the game. Simply put, you couldn't find a less deserving team in the NBA. 

And even before they won, you could see unhealthy trends developing:

After fanning on Lebron, the Knicks have already fucked themselves trying to form their own Big 3; two-thirds there with the only foundation that could possibly make less sense than the Bosh/Wade/James lineup, and just not that great of a team. 

The Lakers tried to keep pace and land Chris Paul, somehow invoking the intervention of David Stern, who thought he could step in and denounce the trade. This obviously angered the Lakers, and their legions of fans, called some legitimacy to those conspiracy theorists that said the fix was on, and made the NBA's commissioner look  weak and lost.

Meanwhile, there's an absolute spending frenzy running amok while teams prepare to compete with this inevitable shitstorm of talent stockpiling. Nene just got near-max money. Deandre Jordan just got near-max money. People are realistically talking about James Harden getting a Boss Contract out of pure necessity. Already! DIDN'T WE JUST HAVE A FUCKING LOCKOUT BECAUSE OF THIS SHIT?!?!

South Florida is now sure to take on a role in the NBA much like it does in the Real World: a haven for veterans to chase rings and have fun at the end of their careers. Pat Riley will have his pick of quality againg players willing to barter money for glory at the salary table as this apparent dynasty evolves, which is already tilting the scales even further against already-oppressed small-market teams that aren't managed as well as the Thunder, and whose fans just don't care as much. 

Teams like Milwaukee, Charlotte and Portland (despite who owns them...) just don't have the financial firepower to go over the cap and compete with these superstar legions. Hell, even Oklahoma City, for all their tactically sound drafting and spending, faces big questions about how to keep their core intact going forward. It's cute that Miami's trio took pay cuts - you know, because Lebron James is really hard up for money - to play together, but they did the right thing for the wrong reasons; they fucked up the game. Talent like that is supposed to consume your entire roster, and for a team like the Heat - who just sold out an entire playoff run, sold untold fortunes in merchandise, and are on the verge of signing a TV deal in the $80-$100 million range - to absorb more talent will be pennies in couch cushions for the same sums that could bankrupt the Hornets. 

If things continue this way and really get out of hand; if the big markets continue to stockpile the best available talent, leaving the Underlings to gamble on lottery balls and un-trendy free agent signings, then the NBA can only suffer. The regular season will be a wash. The early rounds of the Playoffs will be formalities. Teams will continue to bleed money, move, and fold while fans lose interest and Skip Bayless annoys us. 

I'm not trying to play Nostradamus here. I'm a fan of the game above all else, and want what's best for the NBA. And as such, this trend scares me; a League that so quickly went from talking about overseas expansion to local contraction may have a problem growing beyond their control. There's only so much BRI to go around; and if a shrinking talent pool available to smaller markets continues to go up in price, then it's only a matter of time before the stands start to empty in some arenas.

When the Finals matchup was determined, it was set in stone that either the epitome of building a team the right way or the wrong way was going to be validated with a Championship. "Good vs. Evil". And Evil winning couldn't look much worse. 

Hate Me Now: A Tyrant Becomes a King

Well, it's happened. Lebron James has won an NBA Title.

Thing is, he didn't arrive here the way I'm sure he thought he would when he "took his talents to South Beach".

At first it was all fun & games, sunny with no chance of showers; even as the Haterade hit them from all angles, Lebron and his new team kept being their jovial, juvenile selves, blissfully ignorant to the trials they were facing. But the boisterous welcome party and arrogant comportment eventually gave way to not only to trepidation, but failure. The demon inside the Dallas Mavericks that the Heat awoke with their silly celebrations late in the 4th Quarter of the 2011 Finals' Game 2 had haunted them - particularly James - incessantly. Until last night.

This redemption wasn't just brought about by fluke coincidence or divine intervention; the Heat had to learn some lessons. Chris Bosh had to learn to get physical and body up on the boards. Dwyane Wade had to learn that he's not the man anymore, a tough pill to swallow. Erik Spoelstra had to learn a thing or two about half-court sets and in-game adjustments, and proved his prowess in these Finals. But mostly, Lebron had to learn to develop that killer instinct; that unflappable swagger carried by a guy who knows he's the best basketball player alive and isn't going to let his team lose.

In the second round against Indiana, down 2-1 and facing more of the scrutiny from the unrelenting Haters, Lebron put his team on his back while it was firmly against the ropes, delivered one of the greatest playoff performances ever, and never really looked back. He played out of his mind the past few weeks (remember who we're talking about here, the guy who perpetually bored us w/ 27/7/7 in regular seasons past), and really proved himself to be worthy of the Crown.

It finally fits.

And not just because Lebron was able to exorcise those Dallas Demons and deliver on the biggest stage; he underwent a total emancipation over the past year, one that consumed not only his game, but his entire being. He matured; he humbled; he evolved. Gone was the kid who mocked Dirk's sickness in the Finals, rocked his own "MVP" tees and embarrassed himself on Twitter every week. In his place was a visibly pacified young man, almost stoic in the midst of all the incessant hatred he faced; one that the entire team pointed to as their leader. He corralled them for a memorable statement of support after the Trayvon Martin shooting; one that drew light to a massive social media trend. He punked off his own team's security at an airport after they denied photos and autographs to fans in the US Military, telling them to step aside and making the whole team get up and sign. And he won the Heat a lot of basketball games by himself, unleashing the most multi-faceted dominance in the history of the NBA.

I said this last year about Dirk, and I'll say it again now, if Lebron James didn't impress you over the past few weeks, then Fuck Off - you're too hard to please. This was a transcendent performance on many levels; Lebron's faced ludicrously high expectations since he came into the public eye, and until his enigmatic collapse vs. Boston in 2010, had always managed to somehow exceed them. After pretty much everybody spent the past two seasons directing all their negative energy at him, we've been too blinded by our own biased emotion to remember why we did it. Because Lebron's become someone different; he's become that player that we always expected him to be: a gracious winner who definitively led his team to a Title. It didn't happen the way we thought it would, hell it didn't happen the way Lebron thought it would either. But after a tumultuous detour, he quickly put himself back on course to claim his Crown. It should cover up that hairline nicely.

I wrote this about Lebron almost two years ago; September '10 as the Heat prepared for their first training camp A.D. (Anno Decision):  it's easy and trendy to hate Lebron now, but it was also trendy (and much easier) to hate Kobe Bryant at one point, and ten times less fathomable that he'd bounce back. Let's let the Heat go do their thing for a bit; let this summer's madness subside. Don't forget that underneath this alleged monster is the best basketball player alive. He's got a fresh team - one that's far more talented than any he's been on - and plenty of critics to silence. We can shower Lebron James in Haterade all we want, but when him and D-Wade have their own Court Cuts segment every week, when the Heat win 60+, and when the King can finally hoist the Larry O and rest easy on his throne, it'll be hard for him to feel a single drop.


I'm sure plenty of people don't agree with me; that Lebron's still going to get hated on plenty.


But you could tell this year he was a Man On Fire, consumed with getting his team a Title. And he did.


So rest assured, he doesn't give a fuck. 

Clash of the Titans

So it comes to this.

A seven game bout between the two best teams in NBA, led by its two best players, seeking the ultimate goal.

These two superstars contrast each other as starkly as the teams they lead: a humble, quiet, almost passive-aggressive hipster at the head of a shrewdly-cobbled, well-developed Draft Machine, facing the sleazily concocted South Beach Dark Empire, and the arrogant, dominant Chosen One who despite being one of the most heavily-scrutinized people on the face of the Earth, is still largely an enigma to us.

There's much to be said about this series, and clearly on many levels it promises to be a thrilling conclusion to one of the best NBA postseasons - hell, seasons - ever. Either the epitome of the successful small-market model or trendy superstar-hoarding will be validated with a championship, and Lebron or Durant will win his first ring. While this matchup figures to focus on its two stars, there's much more to it, so let's break it down...

(I'd like to officially note that I'm not buying any "Lebron Choked!" nonsense from last year's finals. I'm writing this under the assumption that he's mentally much stronger - which the only evidence we've seen all year points to - and we're in for a much more standard Lebron showing. Any attempt to dissect this further would be convoluted and unnecessary because nobody else knows what's going on inside Lebron James' head and can aptly assume if he's truly ready.)

The Westbrook Factor - If the WCF proved anything, it's that the Thunder are a much more dangerous team down the stretch of close games when Russ is in Mark Jackson mode and letting Durant handle the scoring. This has been painfully obvious for a couple of years now, but Westbrook finally seems to have gotten the hint himself, and the Thunder are in the Finals because of it. Their chances here hinge slightly on his ability to continue doing this, and to attack an often-exposed rim instead of settling for pullup jumpers. He's the perfect kind of player to put Dwyane Wade in foul trouble, but he's going to have to be selective and keep himself out of overdrive. When Westy dominates the ball and shot chart late, the Thunder suffer, and this series will be too close for them to give that up.


"The Other Guys" - Although what still might be Dwyane Wade's city is now home to Lebron James' basketball team, Wade will have to come up big consistently for Miami to take this home. He's thrown up several offensive disasters already these playoffs, punctuated by his continued facade as a three-point threat. Although this series figures to feature a lot more transition ball than we're used to in the playoffs - which definitely suits Wade and James - close games are sure to slow down in the clutch, and they'll have to be executing well off-the-ball, or else OKC's bigs can easily clog the lane if Miami tries to go 1-on-5, and we all saw how that went last year...

Likewise, this is a crucial series for Chris Bosh, not only in that has to consistently hit shots to keep Ibaka/Collison/whoever honest enough to stay away from Lebron/Wade penetration, but regardless of OKC's lineup, will spend a lot of time fighting against physical off-the-ball play he's been at times reluctant to face head-on. He's developed a "fake tough guy" label, certainly in the seldom-spoken mind of Kevin Durant, and will surely be targeted by the Thunder bigs on the glass.

The Extras from "The Other Guys" - If Miami's supporting cast sucks, they're screwed. It's as simple as that. They went to Game 7 against Boston with sporadic performances, and OKC's just a much better team. Shane Battier will have to be defensively brilliant when matched up with Durant. Joel Anthony will have to battle bigger, better players on the glass, and somehow also protect the rim. Mario Chalmers will have to play his best defense, hit shots when needed and exist within the flow of the offense. Mike Miller will have to channel his 2004 self. All of this will have to occur with relative perpetuity, or this series will not go to a Game 7.

Tempo Control - Obviously both of these teams can score easily and thrive in transition, but the Thunder possess an advantage in that they're also very dangerous in the halfcourt, while Miami's still kinda figuring that one out. If they can keep the pace relatively slow, take care of the ball, and prevent the long rebounds that will let the Heat get out on the break (this means you Russell), the flow should play out in their favor.

Protecting the House - While this is an obvious concern for Miami (no sense in beating a dead horse), it becomes a serious question for the Thunder. Serge Ibaka's proven to be the ultimate help defender when players are slowed down by Kendrick Perkins near the hoop, but without any legitimate post threats on Miami's roster, the temptation may be to go small and play fast, which, tying into the above point, would probably play into Miami's hands. Keeping Perkins in the game not only allows Ibaka to play a more natural role, but keeps the best rim-protection in the series around against Wade and James. This slows things down, forces more Heat jump-shooting, and gives them an indomitable edge on the glass. I hope Scott Brooks sees this.

Clutch City - Perhaps the Thunder's greatest advantage lies in Durant's consistent ability to deliver monster performances down the stretch of big games. He's an ace in the hole, a guy who has never shied away from taking or hitting, not only "the big shot", but many "big shots" in succession against good defenders. People can argue all day about Lebron's clutch ability; allow his past preferences to let an open teammate shoot rather than force up over double-coverage skew them into thinking he isn't very dangerous in the clutch (and much more matured and motivated than he was this time last year), but with Durant, we're seeing the definition of Clutch; potentially one of the best of all time. While Lebron is capable of taking over games in a multitude of ways, Durant's poison has still proven to be more lethal, and after how casually he made his decimation of San Antonio look, I fear for what might be in store for Miami. Regardless of how well they defend the perimeter, this guy can give anybody nightmares, and he doesn't even have to for them to win.

OKC's got depth, homecourt, and a couple matchup options to exploit even if Lebron and Wade come out in "Man On Fire" mode, which is why I see plenty of Seattle basketball fans sending angry Tweets at Clay Bennett while watching a Title Parade on TV in a couple weeks. Thunder in 6.