We Live in a World Where Dallas Has Won an NBA Title: Five Things to Consider

Old school Mavs

The Dallas Morning News' offices were a block or two from Reunion Arena, and Mark Aguirre and Roy Tarpley were there to be enjoyed.

The Mavs never made it over the top....until now.

Now the Mavs are NBA champs. Sure, that is 50 percent of the NBA titles that the Rockets have, but it's still an NBA title.

So let's salute Dallas's win...kinda. Five things to consider:

5. At least it's not the freakin' Cowboys
We couldn't take that. As far as we know -- so far -- the Mavs don't feature coke-snorting, mink-wearing, overhyped players picked by an owner who thinks he knows much more about the sport than he actually does.

4. Mark Cuban -- classy
The outspoken Mavs owner kept quiet throughout the finals, and invited the Mavs' original owner, Donald Carter, to accept the trophy after the game. At one point Cuban was rumored to be in the hunt to buy the Astros, and all we can say is we wish he had succeeded.

3. Dirk Nowitzki: The Good German
Nowitzki was classy and contained in the spotlight of the finals, even as a silly blow-up occurred over D-Wade and LeBron making fun of his flu. Here in Houston we prefer our furriners on the NBA court to be Chinese rather than German, but props to Dirk for getting the "can't win the big games" monkey off his back.

2. Well, the Dallas fans
Front-runners as always for any team that isn't the Cowboys, we're not inclined to cut them much slack. The team had to produce a pathetic video telling fans to cheer. So, you know, Dallasites.

1. Still, they beat LeBron
Has there ever been a championship series where "the next Michael Jordan/Joe Montana/Nolan Ryan" underperformed when the spotlight was so solidly on him? We fully expected LeBron James to come out and dominate in Game Six...his reputation is cemented now, until he wins a championship. Will he ever? NOT AS LONG AS JASON KIDD IS IN THE LEAGUE, which, as far as we can tell, is forever.