NBA Finals 2011: What Went Wrong for the Miami Heat Against the Dallas Mavericks

Last night, many NBA fans rejoiced.  In Game 6 of the NBA Finals, the Dallas Mavericks made LeBron James and the Miami Heat look foolish in a 105-95 victory that brought the former team its first NBA Championship.  As many hoped would occur, the Big Three's promise of one of many championships did not come true.

I'm going to cut right to the chase here, folks.  The Miami Heat may look like a better team on paper, but they have nobody to blame but themselves for this collapse.  Never before have I seen a team look so lost and desperate on its home court.

Seriously, how does a team with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh not just blow the competition out of the water?  The 2007-2008 Boston Celtics were able to win 66 games their first season with their Big Three, so what's Miami's excuse?  That Celtics squad basically had the same style bench players of this year's Heat roster, so that card can't be played either.

The fact is that the Miami Heat lost to the Dallas Mavericks for one reason: They are not a definitive team.  Basketball is a sport that requires equal contribution from all players, and Miami constantly relied on one of the Big Three either sinking a long three-point shot or making an electrifying dunk.  Then, the Dallas Mavericks chose to play zone defense, and Miami's house of cards fell.  Last I checked, a real basketball team knew how to play against the zone.

Also, in watching the NBA Finals, I noticed that it was the same story in each of Miami's losses.  In the fourth quarter, instead of driving to the basket and drawing fouls, the team would just throw up ridiculous three-pointers.  The fact that LeBron James just hung out in the background and indirectly took himself out of the game rather than demanding the ball and contributing when the game was on the line.  Considering how he chose to play for Miami to win championships, he didn't do a good job in terms of helping them achieve that goal.

That all being said, it's easy to see what went wrong for the Miami Heat against the Dallas Mavericks.  Long story short, they got taken to school by a real team.  The fact that Dallas was able to win Game 6 on the road without Dirk Nowitzki at his best is telling.  Had that happened to Miami, the team would have crumbled.

If the Big Three want to end their tenure in Miami with at least one championship, they need to realize that unlike Dwight Howard, not one of them is Superman.  They are just like any other NBA players, good or bad.  The sooner that they realize that, then the sooner they will win a title.

Given their performances in Game 6, however, I'm not optimistic