This NBA Finals has, by far, been the most compelling and entertaining Finals matchup of the past decade to this point. The total points margin between the two teams over 4 games is 15. Games 2, 3 & 4 have all been decided by 3 points or less, and have come down to the final minute/last play of the game. The series has had everything so far; tenacious defenses, clutch performances from star players, constant comebacks from huge deficits, physical play, you name it we've seen it. And there's no indication that any of it is going to stop now that the series has come down to a best of 3 games. But despite Dirk Nowitzki's heroics and Jason Terry's 4th quarter performance in response to being "called out" by Dirk, I still gotta go with Miami on this one. And Lebron James' game 5 performance will be the beginning of the end for Dallas.
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When you're one of the best players on the planet, you can't afford to have an off night. Now Lebron's Game 4 performance was more than off, it was downright putrid. He played 46 minutes, yet he shot 3-11 from the field against 4 personal fouls and 4 turnovers. During the 4th quarter, he took only one shot, a missed 3 pointer, and allowed Jason Terry to make plays in the paint time and again. But one game does not a series make for Lebron. In the previous three games, he has averaged 20.3 PPG, 6 APG, and 7 RPG, hardly pedestrian numbers on a team that has Dwyane Wade playing out of his mind. But the stats aren't the real reason why Lebron will go nuts in game 5........we are! Everyone on the internet, social media, sports media, everyone who has stated that he is a non factor will end up eating crow after game 5. All that the ESPN writers, or Dallas forward Desean Stevenson are going to accomplish by calling James out after his game 4 performance will be one of the biggest bounce back games in NBA Finals history. Lebron has that ability, to just elevate his game on any given night, and given the amount of motivation he's been receiving from friend and foe alike, I think we're all in for a treat tonight.
Look, to this point Dwyane Wade has been Miami's best player throughout the series, bar none. If the Heat walk away with the title, then it's almost impossible to see how Wade wouldn't be collecting his second Finals MVP award at the end of it. But Lebron has been a factor in every single game, save the 4th quarter of game 4. But that's the curse of being one of the best players on the planet; the media and everyone else in the basketball universe will be on your case, calling you out or calling you "soft" if you have an off night. So, look for Lebron to explode in game 5, silencing everyone - his critics, the Mavs, even his teammates. He will blow up big in game 5 and be the reason they'll take the lead back to South Beach.
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