Game two. Dwayne Wade hits a 3-pointer to put Miami up 15 points, putting them within inches of a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals. And sitting at Trinity Hall in Mockingbird Station, I grabbed my wallet and tried to come up with how much money my tab was. I didn't want to wait for the check. I wanted to leave.
Ashley, someone who regularly calls me out on my over-reacting, asked me if I'd put an entire paycheck on the series. Otherwise, why was I so upset?
I'm passionate about sports. I grew up loving pro sports, and I grew up spoiled.
1993 - Dallas Cowboys win the Super Bowl
1994 - Dallas Cowboys win the Super Bowl
1996 - Dallas Cowboys win the Super Bowl
1999 - Dallas Stars win the Stanley Cup
Four championships before I turned 14. It was almost easy.
Twelve years passed. Eddie Belfour gave up seven goals in game one of the 2000 Stanley Cup Finals. J.S. Giguere stood on his head. Tony Romo dropped the snap. Patrick Crayton dropped that pass. The Stars ran out of mojo against Detroit. Every Minnesota Viking sacked Romo. Tim Lincecum was too much.
And then there was 2006. The Dallas Mavericks slayed San Antonio and got to the NBA Finals. All that stood in front of them was the champion from the Eastern Conference. Two games into the series...it didn't even look close. Then, we all know what happened.
It hurt. Really bad. For years. I told people at work (in complete truth) that the last time I called in sick to work was after game 5 of the NBA Finals in 2006. I couldn't get out of bed. I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything but think about how the Mavericks were about to blow their chance at an NBA title.
And, for years, it stuck with me. Just hearing the words "Miami Heat" bothered me. And with every playoff failure that followed, the pain grew. 2007's 1st round collapse killed me. Then we traded youth for age and were killed by New Orleans. We got crushed by Denver and brushed aside by the Spurs.
I was told the window was closed every year. And every year, the Mavs won 50 games and found a way to lose in the playoffs. Cheering for the Mavericks became a cruel joke.
But that was the norm. Cheering for the Cowboys had become a cruel joke with their own playoff failures. The Stars were moving in the wrong direction. And the 2010 World Series, despite my positive feelings about that season, felt like a missed opportunity. Dallas was snakebit, and I didn't know how they were going to come out of it. Every year, my friends and I would think about what team was going to win the next championship, and there never seemed to be an answer I was comfortable with.
Then LeBron James signed with the Heat. I've always hated LeBron because I really hate when people are handed credit before they've done anything. And for seven years, LeBron seemed like he was working hard to win a championship for his home team. I watched LeBron dominate a game in 2007, and he almost won me over.
But going to the Heat was the last straw for me. Here's a guy who lied about doing whatever it takes to win a championship. Then he dragged the city through the mud, and he did everything he could to glorify himself. And ESPN ate it up. LeBron was everywhere.
Flash forward to game two. Here are the Mavs, fighting their way to the championship series again, and there are the Heat again. There was LeBron.
And that's why this series was so important. My chips were pushed all in to the center of the table. My Mavericks had the opportunity to either crush LeBron James and slay the demons from 2006....or it would get even worse.
And down 15, staring a 2-0 deficit in the face, I felt all the pain come back up. And I did my best to swallow the anger and the sadness, but it was too much. I had to get out of there.
And while they came back and won game two, I didn't feel any better after watching the team lose game three. The Heat had, for the most part, dominated the first three games. How on Earth were they going to win?
And for the first time in a long time, I can think about 2006 and it doesn't hurt. Because I would trade a thousand 2006s for one 2011 championship. To beat that team with those players on that court means everything to me.
Is it too much? Maybe. But I've lived vicariously through athletes my entire life. When they win, I feel like I win. And for twelve years and 48 seasons, I lived and died with my teams. And for twelve years and 48 seasons, it ended in heartbreak. Some got close. A lot didn't. But there was never any gold at the end of the rainbow.
Tonight, there's gold. Tonight, there's a championship. Tonight, there's hope. Tonight, we got a win. I got a win.
And while I didn't win or lose any money, this series meant more than money to me. It's why I spent a bunch of my money to go see game five. Because I needed this. Maybe not as much as Dirk, Kidd, and Carlisle. But I needed it nonetheless.
Tomorrow, the sun will shine a little brighter, and my smile will come out. The curse is over. And maybe more good things can happen in the future.
So proud of this team. So happy to be a citizen of this city. And I'm looking forward to bright days ahead.
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