DALLAS - Dwyane Wade dazzled Dallas one last time - and
with a sizzling four-game comeback, the Miami Heat are NBA
champions for the first time.
Just as Shaquille O'Neal and coach Pat Riley predicted nine
years apart, there will be a parade in South Florida.
Wade will lead it.
"It's one of the best feelings, next to my wife and my son,
that I've ever had in my life," Wade said. "I'm going to live it
up!"
The man they call "Flash" had 36 points and 10 rebounds in the
teeth of a hostile Dallas crowd, capping his magnificent playoffs
by leading Miami past the Mavericks 95-92 Tuesday night as the Heat
roared back from a two-game deficit to win the NBA finals in six
games.
Wade, the obvious finals MVP, cemented his superstardom with a
dominant four-game performance capped by four pressure-packed,
final-minute free throws in the same building where Miami lost the
first two games of the series.
He missed a pair in the waning seconds, giving Dallas a final
shot to tie. But Jason Terry missed an open look for 3, Wade
grabbed the rebound and flung it into the stands as time expired.
Where there's a Wade, there's a will. His grace added a fifth
ring to Riley's finger - third-most among NBA coaches - and a
fourth to O'Neal's big hand.
"The great Pat Riley told me we were going to win today,"
O'Neal said. "I didn't have the best game. But D-Wade's been doing
it all year. He's the best player ever."
Dirk Nowitzki had 29 points and 15 rebounds for the Mavs, but
Dallas couldn't manage the last basket it needed to topple Wade's
tenacity.
The Heat finished their franchise's 18th season with one of the
league's greatest rallies in a finals, and the last period of Game
6 was appropriately gritty.
Miami nursed a narrow lead, taking an 89-85 advantage with 2:36
left on two jumpers by James Posey. Jerry Stackhouse cut it to a
point with a 3-pointer in his first game back from suspension, but
after Udonis Haslem and Josh Howard traded jumpers, Wade hit two
free throws with 26 seconds left.
Erick Dampier then fumbled a pass on Dallas' next possession,
and Wade fought to get the loose ball. He hit two more free throws
with 17.7 seconds to play, but after Howard hit a pair, Wade missed
two with 10.3 seconds left.
But Terry missed an open 3-pointer - the last of 11 straight
misses.
Miami hung onto the clincher in front of more than 20,000 Dallas
fans still furious at every NBA official and commissioner David
Stern for the Mavs' three losses in Miami last week. Owner Mark
Cuban stoked the furor with his antics after Game 5, which resulted
in a $250,000 fine earlier Tuesday.
But while the Mavs worried about every perceived slight, the
Heat focused on fulfilling the promises of Riley and O'Neal. The
veteran coach promised a championship 11 years ago before his first
stint on the Miami bench, while Shaq also guaranteed a trophy when
the Los Angeles Lakers traded him to South Beach two summers ago.
"I came to Miami because of this young fella right here,"
O'Neal said, indicating Wade. "I knew I wanted to make him
better."
Dallas' fans both booed and cheered the trophy presentation, and
commissioner David Stern was booed repeatedly.
Cuban stole the finals spotlight earlier in the day, getting
socked with the fine for his complaints about the officials and
general conspiracy theory. All of Dallas caught the Mavs'
us-against-the-world vibe: Signs supporting Cuban and suggesting a
league conspiracy against the Mavs dotted the stands for Game 6,
and fans screamed at Stern in his courtside seat.
But the series actually was controlled by Wade, who ascended to
the most elite tier of NBA stars with commanding performances in
each of the final four games. He scored 121 points in three
victories in Miami before capping it with one more tenacious win.
Riley wiped away tears while hugging his players, and Miami
crowded onto the hastily assembled podium with the excitement of a
high-school graduation.
Riley, who won his first ring since 1988, claimed he never
considered the possibility Miami wouldn't finish with four straight
wins.
"I packed one suit, one shirt and one tie," he said before the
game. "That's it."
O'Neal, who had nine points and 12 rebounds while fighting foul
trouble, was held to two of his worst career playoff games in the
earlier Dallas debacles, and he endured another extraordinary
struggle at the free-throw line in the series. None of it will
matter to the Big Champ: He'll take a special pride in winning his
first ring without Kobe Bryant.
Their partnership resulted in three titles and four finals trips
for the Los Angeles Lakers, but their clashing egos caused a power
struggle that led to Shaq's trade.
O'Neal has no such problems with Wade, and their cohesion peaked
in Miami's four finals wins.
Riley, the slick-haired strategist who led the Lakers to four
titles in the 1980s, now has vindication from those who criticized
his decision to take over the club from coach Stan Van Gundy early
in the season.
Leaning on Riley's savvy in coaching veterans and defense, the
Heat rolled through the postseason with surprising force - never
even facing a seventh game. Riley now has seven rings, counting his
single championships as a player and an assistant coach.
And the Heat's roster is studded with stars who never won a
title. Point guard Gary Payton reached the finals with three teams
before finally grabbing the ring, while Alonzo Mourning played
through 13 seasons, two retirements and a serious kidney ailment
for a championship.
Antoine Walker, Jason Williams, James Posey, Udonis Haslem - all
endured serious career troubles, and now they're all champions,
too.