Well, Well...

I can't believe it. The Miami Heat. World Champions. I guess I should say it. I was wrong in my game 6 prediction...Or was I? Sure the Mavericks lost like I said they wouldn't, however that's not what I'm talking about. As most of you could have figured out by the title of this Blog, I'm a die hard Dallas Mavericks fan. With that said let me say that I'm not a prick either. I like the game of basketball with a passion. When I say I'm not a prick I mean that I care about the way that the game is played. I'm upset, not that the Mavericks lost. Honestly. What bothers me the most about this years NBA finals...That would be...hmmm, well I guess several things.

First of all I guess that the overdoing of foul calls. This is, or was, the Finals. The Officials should expect some intense playing from both sides. Was it me or was there a whistle on every other play? Calm down DeRosa. Don't be so whistle happy Crawford. I mean, come on. Enough is enough. Let people earn the title not shoot for it.

The Suspensions that the Mavericks took this post season were just plain outrageous. Jason Terry's suspension was weird. Not because he didn't punch Michael Finley, but the fact that he wasn't ejected from the game right then and there. Under the Official NBA Rulebook, Section 9:b says and I quote, "Any player who throws a punch, whether it connects or not, has committed an unsportsmanlike act. He will be ejected immediately and be suspended for a minimum of one game." Now Jason Terry was suspended for the one game but never ejected from the game that this happened. Michael Finley was almost screaming at the officials that Terry had punched him but apparently that didn't think that the throw was a punch. Later it was ruled that it was a punch and he was suspended. How does that work? I don't like it when things are ruled one way and then changed the next. The final decision made at the game should be the one that stands. You can compare this situation with Indian giving.

DJ Mbenga went into the stands during Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals against the Phoenix Suns and was suspended 6 games. If you saw the video, DJ was just standing there not saying a word. Mark Cuban was doing all the talking. I know that The Rulebook says in Section 5:l that a player must be ejected for entering the stands. But not suspended. But so what. So he was suspended. But 6 games. Come on. Not even New Your Knicks Center Antonio Davis got that much and when he went into the stands to confront someone that he claims was swinging at his wife and grabbing her. When you look at the Antonio Davis Video vs. The DJ Mbenga video, you tell me which one is worse and who should have been suspended more games. All I want is a level of consistency among all of these "punishments".

The most recent for the Mavericks was Jerry Stackhouse. Suspended for a hard foul on Shaq, Stackhouse got suspended one game. Stackhouse was called for a flagrant foul(1) when his elbow collided with Shaq's face during a shot block attempt. This is going to sound like the Terry suspension but it's just my own opinion. Like I said, this was only a flagrant foul(1), not a flagrant foul(2) which earns you the right to be ejected from the game. My view is if it's not bad enough to be ejected right then and there, then it doesn't warrant a suspension. I'm tired of this, "It's ok now, but tomorrow it will become unacceptable and we'll suspend you for it" type of attitude. That's a bunch of (fill in the blank). If you turn back time and go to game one you'll notice that the Stack/Shaq foul happened in that game also only Stackhouse took the elbow in the face. Right in the nose rather. Shaq fouled Stackhouse so hard that it literally looked as if Stackhouse had hit a brick wall running as fast as he could. Shaq elbowed Stackhouse so hard that he busted open his nose. Not just a bloody nose, but an open nose that required stiches to repair. What did Shaq get for that. A personal foul. No flagrant. Just a personal. Figure that one out.

In the end I guess that I should just stop complaining about what could have been or what should have been. The Finals are over and Miami is the new Champions. However with that said there is one thing that I NEVER EVER want to hear Shaq say but I'm sure that he will...

Two years ago when Shaq came to Miami he promised that he would bring them a ring. I don't want him to go back to Miami and say, "See Miami, I told you that I would bring you a ring." That's a bunch of bull ca-ca. Shaq's performance in this series was terrible. He never made an impact in any game. Congrats Shaq. You have 4 rings. Without Kobe and Dwyane, you'd have none. Why people think that your one of the best I'll never know. Sorry Tim, same thing goes for you.