That's how it was and that's how it is

The Miami Heat are NBA Champions.

I repeat, the Miami Heat are NBA Champions.

Sorry Dallas, you're going to have to postpone that ticker-tape parade indefinitely. The Larry O'Brien trophy resides in South Beach.

What a season.

I repeat, what a season.

Never in a million years did I imagine this scenario. When the Heat were down 2 games to none, I and everybody else thought the sweep was on. Everybody still believed that until the stunning comeback of game 3, unequivocally the greatest 4th-quarter comeback in Finals history (yes, it beats the Bulls coming from behind in game 6 of the 1992 Finals against Portland).

That was the night everything changed.

The Heat went on to beat the Mavs 4 games in a row, something that never happened to Dallas all season. And they closed out on the road in a surprisingly non-hostile American Airlines Center.

So for any bitter Mavs fans still harboring a grudge after the Heat's game-5 victory, let the record show that now there can be no doubt: Miami was the better team.

Down by as many as 14 early in the game, they fought back. Because that's what champions do. When Miami took the upper hand and stretched the lead to 11 in the 3rd, Dallas fought back as well, but they would only see the score tied briefly; the Heat never let them retake the lead.

The Mavs defended Dwyane Wade as hard as they have all series, closing up the lane and forcing him to shoot in traffic or take outside jumps shots, but it didn't matter: Wade gets his a number of ways, and no team can shut him down. He finished with 36 points (to go with 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks; whoa!) and was the unanimous choice for Finals MVP (in only his 3rd season!).

His teammates stepped up, too, on a night when Shaq was far from his dominant self. Udonis Haslem had probably his best game of the year, hitting wide-open 15 foot jumpers when the Heat needed them badly. It was great to see after watching him struggle offensively through most of the series.

It was also Antoine Walker's night. He almost singlehandedly out-rebounded the Mavs in the 3rd, and he made a bunch of smart plays. You read that correct: 'Toine played a smart game, with very few errors and no blunders.

Then there's 'Zo. O'Neal wasn't feeling it, and Mourning stepped up, particularly on the defensive end. Down the stretch he had a number of key blocks that helped close the door when the Mavs were trying to push their way in. Very cool to see him rise to the occasion like that.

How about James Posey's 3? Both teams shot terribly from beyond the arc, but that late 3 on a pass from Dwyane Wade was clutch, pushing the Heat's lead to 6.

Jason Williams did some stuff too, I guess. OK, he played like a sack of manure, but he helped get them this far; as did his teammates, and they all deserve a lot of credit (well, except for Wayne Simien, Michael Doleac, Derrek Anderson and Jason Kapono, who did nothing but sit around and cheer: nothing I didn't do*).

So there you have it. I'm not sure there's much more to be said. A memorable season and playoffs have been capped off with my favorite team winning a title.

This is the best NBA season I have ever witnessed.

Here's hoping we see a repeat next year.

Way to Go Heat!

PS - Kudos to Mark Cuban for applauding Miami at the end of the game, even though I think it was contrived.

PPS - Save for perhaps a quick shot later tonight, this is my final basketball-related post until October (I think; there's still the World Championship, right?). Thank you all for reading. In case you missed something or wanted to go back and reminisce on the season, here are most of my b-ball posts, from last November until May:

Random B-ball Thoughts

Very Inaccurate Predictions

Quick-E-Mart

Premature All-Star Picks

I Hate Antoine Walker

Shorts Controversy

Welcome Back, Riles

More Quickies

Crazy Predictions (peep the last one)

Peja's a Pussy

Picks for the 2008 Olympic Team

Some love for 'Melo

Kobe's 81-point Performance

Back to Back Rhymin' I (denz)

B2BR II (me)

B2BR III (denz)

Nuggets vs. Suns

All-Star Saturday

Game Log: 2006 All-Star Game

Late-Season Predictions

Game Log: Heat vs. Knicks

Game Log: Heat vs. Pistons

Tights Controversy

Game Log: Heat vs. Nets

More B2BR (denz)

More B2BR (me)

Game Log: Rockets vs. Blazers

2006 Playoffs Preview (tee hee!)

Game Log: Bucks vs. Pistons

TMH Doesn't Like Ron Artest

Game Logs: Mavs vs. Grizzlies and Suns vs. Lakers

Even More B2BR (denz)

Even More B2BR (me)

By the way, Kobe's apparently changing his jersey number to 24 next season because adidas, like a vindictive girlfriend, is re-releasing the original Kobe sneakers under the new name Crazy 8s.

Round 2 Predictions

Tough B-day

Click!

* In fact, as I mentioned a few days ago, I watched the last three games -- and half of the 4th quarter of game 3 -- while standing. Where's my ring?