The Dallas Mavericks:
The Mavericks barely snuck into the post-season, beating out the looming Los Angeles Clippers by 1 game. Part of this heated race for 8 was due to health reasons. Marcus Camby missed the last half of March, endangering his chances at a run in the playoffs. Fortunately, with a recovered Camby, the Mavs hit stride to close out their regular season, winning 7 of their last 9 and fending off the Clippers (and preventing the post-season battle for Staples). There path to the finals was not an easy one. They took the Pacific Champion, Los Angeles Lakers (and top record in the West), to 7 games, squashed the defending Western Conference Champion Golden State Warriors (and OG OP Shawn Kemp) in 6 games, and took the West's other Cinderella story San Antonio Spurs to a thrilling game 7. Each series wasn't pretty, but it got them where they needed to go: the top of the Western Conference mountain.The Atlanta Hawks:
No team has been on cruise control more than the Atlanta Hawks. The defending champs have not changed a single thing (to this point) since the All-Star break, riding the wave of Penny, Spree, Hill, McDyess, and Reigning Defensive Player of the Year Ben Wallace to a spectacular 72-10 regular season record. That trajectory has not changed at all, as the Hawks have steamrolled their way through the Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, and Toronto Raptors. They suffered 2 losses along the way (including one against the Hornets, of which GM Nick Malone will not shy away from reminding you), but look healthy and poised to defend their NBA Championship reign going into Thursday's Game 1. The Storylines:
Penny Hardaway
You'd be lying if you said this wasn't the first storyline that came to your mind. Penny Hardaway started his career and won multiple championships in Dallas before new ownership decided they wanted to rebrand the franchise and start a-new. GM FearTheBrow came into Dallas and inherited a world-class, first ballot future Hall of Famer in Penny Hardaway. Soon after taking Penny for a test ride, he decided to make one of the biggest, league-impacting trades this league has seen: Penny Hardaway to the Hawks. As compensation for Hardaway, the Mavericks received young point guard Andre Miller, a rising star in Donyell Marshall, and a pick that would surely become hot doodoo butter in due time (Hawks 2003 1st). Despite this haul (Sidenote: 2 pieces of this trade netted the Mavericks Marcus Camby), many debate this trade as a trade rape just due to the fact that the Mavericks PAID 10 POINTS to the Hawks for the inconvenience of moving Penny to him. This began one of many deals where the Hawks would get others to help pay his eventually overwhelming tax bill (but I digress). However, moving Penny set the Mavericks back a season (yes), but one can also argue that this move also got him right back into Championship contention only a year later. Penny Hardaway
David vs. Goliath
It's quite often expected that a #1 seed, especially one as dominating and healthy as the Hawks, to waltz into the NBA Finals as their conference's representative. But how often does an 8th seed get to the NBA finals? In the history of this league, an 8th seed has made the NBA Finals a whopping ZERO times (7th seed, 3 times). So what the Mavericks have done is unprecedented. And the underdog 8th seed will be taking on the giant beast incarnate in the Atlanta Hawks (not Brock Lesnar). Hope he brought his lucky slingshot.Legs
*whistle* Hoooooooo baby! Look at dem legs!, said GM Wig Nosy after looking at his upcoming opponent. The Hawks have been well rested this post-season. With 1 sweep and 2 5-game series, the players on the Hawks have well-rested legs. The Mavericks, on the other hand, are coming in from an exhausting 7-game series agains the Spurs and two other 6+ game series earlier this post-season. Will these tired Maverick legs impact the results any? The Mavericks fans out there are hoping that isn't the case.The match up is intriguing, as the Mavericks do have an interesting line-up that could give the Hawks fits. Only time will tell which of these two conference representatives will be the one to hoist up the Larry O'Brien Trophy and have their name forever chiseled in the annals of #SLOE NBA history. We'll find out later today....
