Random thoughts on one of the momentous events of my life

• I haven’t written until now about the Dallas Mavericks’ playoff run because (1) I didn’t want to jinx them like I usually do when I open my yap too early and (2) immediately after Sunday night’s finals-clinching game I was too overwhelmed by the emotion winning the title stirred in me. Translated: I wept unabashedly for about 10 minutes after the game was over and my stomach was still churning until around midday Monday.
• I can now also say I unashamedly wept. The great Chuck Cooperstein said Monday that with about a minute left to play in Sunday’s game, Dirk (the greatest Maverick ever) Nowitzki looked at Tyson Chandler and, in realization of what they had accomplished, their eyes watered up. That’s all I’ll ever have in common with Nowitzki and Chandler, but now I do have that.
• Before the finals began, my son, his best friend and I were having a discussion in my kitchen about (1) whether Labron James is as great as Michael Jordan (My answer: “Absolutely not. Not even close. In fact, the subject should not even be broached until Labron has led a team to seven NBA titles.”) and (2) whether the Mavs had a chance against the Heat and, if so, what miracles must they perform to win it all. I finally said: “Look. The Mavericks, like it or not — and I don’t — have conditioned us with years and years of disappointments. Now we are programed that they will disappoint us again. Because of this, we may not truly realize just how super this team is. The Mavs swept the defending champions. They beat really good Portland and Oklahoma City teams in five games. Any one of those three teams could give the Heat a run for their money. I say the Mavericks in 6, if, for no other reason, they beat us in six last time. It’s revenge time.”
• Chuck Carlisle was the best coach in the entire NBA playoffs.
• Labron didn’t fade away in the finals — to be honest, he had a couple of fairly good games. But, overall, the Mavericks simply shut him down.
• Think of all the other teams in these playoffs and then think of them playing without their second best player — the Lakers without Gasol or Bynum, the Thunder without Westbrook, the Celtics without Allen or Garnett, the Heat without Bosh (sorry, couldn’t help myself), etc. — and imagine how they might have fared without those players. Then remember the Mavs played the entire NBA playoffs without Caron Butler.
• Was the Mavericks coming back from 15 points down in Game 2 the turning point of the finals? Perhaps. But I just think that comeback proved once and for all — especially to the Heat — who was the superior team in this series.
• Another shout-out to the aforementioned Cooperstein. He also revealed Monday that after a particularly Heat-centered interview Sports Center had with him on Friday, he called the show’s producer and basically had a word or two or three or four to say about how ESPN has been drinking at the Heat’s trough all season long. Why, he wondered to this executive, couldn’t he have been asked some questions about the Mavericks. I have found ESPN’s coverage of this NBA season embarrassing and a major blemish on this once-respected network. Of course, that’s easy for me to say. Not so easy for Cooperstein because he works for ESPN. He was honestly and deservingly criticizing the very folks who sign his paychecks. Perhaps the only person showing more courage in this series was Jason Terry when he shot that three over the outstretched arms of Labron in the closing moments of Game 5.
• Coop also said the reality of the Dallas Mavericks winning the NBA title hit him in the locker room after the game when he saw what he described as the happiest group of men he had ever seen. That comment filled me with unadulterated joy.
• People can say all they want about the Heat’s stifling D, but it was the Mavs’ zone that totally confused the Heat and was a major contributing factor to the victory.
• Wear this with pride MFFLs: For the next year (perhaps longer, depending on the upcoming labor negotiations) the words “Dallas Mavericks” should be preceded by “defending NBA Champions.”
• Owner Mark Cuban handled the trophy presentation with the utmost in class. Having Donald Carter be the first person to place his hands on the Larry O’Brien Trophy was a masterstroke.
• Can anyone, in their wildest imagination, ever conceive of Jerry Jones saying on national television immediately after his team won a world title: “Don’t interview me. Interview the coach.”? This Manhattan’s for you, Mark.
• The only sports events in my lifetime that rivals this one are three football victories by my Texas Longhorns: 15-13 over Texas A&M in 1963, 15-14 over Arkansas in 1969 and 41-28 over USC in 2006.
• I have a son, of whom I am immensely proud, about to become a doctor; a beautiful, talented, smart and creative granddaughter who lights up my life; an extremely loyal and loveable 8-month-old Golden Retriever puppy that has filled my household with joy; and a girlfriend of almost nine years who is My Hero, my muse, my partner, my best friend, my inspiration and simply so much fun to spend time with, as well as being the most intelligent and the most gorgeous creature on this planet. Now, add to all that, the Dallas Mavericks are the Champions of the National Basketball Association. Life doesn’t get any better than this.