King for a lifetime, fool for a... lifetime...

Simply put, he's the next legend of the NBA. Congrats to the Heat on winning the title (feels so weird that the Stanley Cup and NBA Finals concluded on back-to-back nights). I'm eating a lot of crow on this one. I said many times since he arrived in Miami that the Heat won't win a title with Shaq. I was convinced of it. And you know? I was almost right. If you watched this series, you have to agree that Miami won the championship in spite of Shaq. He was nowhere. Didn't look, at times, like he even belonged on the court. Meanwhile, Dwyane Wade has officially elevated to that rare class of superstar. But while I eat crow, I'm not at all bitter as I'm still a fan of Shaq and I really dig D-Wade. Pat Riley still has a place in my Lakers heart, too. It's strange that Miami winning a championship is somehow easier for me to digest than if Dallas had won. Even though I picked Dallas, I was never convinced that they were the best team in the league (I just thought they were better than the Heat). I don't know. I still feel like the Spurs should've beaten them and there is no question that if Phoenix had Amare Stoudemire that they would've flattened the Mavs. Now, I suppose Dallas has two items on their off-season shopping list: a big man (still, don't tell me Dampier's the answer) and a defensive STOPPER (what's up Dwyane Wade destroys you at will???).