Moments after defeating the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA finals, Dallas Mavericks shooting guard DeShawn Stevenson took a shot at LeBron James and company, calling them out for their behavior throughout the season.
"It makes me feel good, man, to beat him, to beat that Miami team," said Stevenson. "The way they act, the way they treated Dirk [Nowitzki], all the things that they said were very classless. To win on their court the way we did it, it was wonderful."
Stevenson was obviously offended by LeBron and Dwyane Wade, who made fun of Dirk Nowitzki's cough prior to Game 5 of the NBA finals. Personally, I felt the whole thing was blow out of proportion, given the severity of Nowitzki's illness. A sinus infection is never fun, but mocking someone with a cold doesn't make you the worst person on the planet.
Stevenson actually played pretty well in the NBA finals, averaging 7 points per game and converting on 13 out of 23 threes during the series. However, Stevenson was the classless one during the 2011 NBA Finals, almost starting a brawl in the second quarter of Game 6, and then taking a cheap shot at the Heat after the game.
LeBron James, who many claim is the most egotistical player on the planet, had nothing but respect for Nowitzki and the Mavericks after the game.
"They did a great job defensively," James told reporters. "Very underrated defensive team. They took me out of a lot of things that I'm capable of doing or used to doing. ... Much respect to them."
It's disappointing to see that even with the incredible NBA Finals that we all just witnessed, people would rather talk about LeBron and the decision, instead of celebrating the Mavericks and their accomplishment. The reality is the Miami Heat are here to stay, and they will be a top contenders in the NBA for quite some time.
David is a Miami Heat fan that has followed the team for 15 years. Follow him on twitter @davidkingwriter .
Sources:
Tim MacMahon, "DeShawn Stevenson: Heat 'classless'" ESPN
Player and game information from espn.com
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