PARIS (George Eddy's International Show) - Here we go again, the San Antonio Spurs will meet the Miami Heat in a revenge rematch of last season's NBA Finals.

It's the best team of the last 15 years against the best team of the last four years, the most internationalized team against the most Americanized team, the world's best power forward ever against the world's best player today, and Europe's best player against the USA's best player.

There's a lot to like in this Finals match-up starting with how different these two teams and cities are. What two cities could be more different than the small market, central Texas city of San Antonio and the glamorous, south Florida beach community and party heaven of Miami! Of course, speaking Spanish can help you in both places but that's about it for similarities.

The two teams play a radically different style of basketball too. Miami uses the typical NBA American isolationist style where you get the ball to your best player and let him make the key decisions, whereas San Antonio whips the ball from side to side at lightning pace with aggressive drive and kicks for open three-point shots.

Miami plays a lot of one-on-one and San Antonio a lot of five-on-five.

One positive aspect for me is that these two teams respect each other immensely so we will avoid any Lance Stephenson-type antics and buffoonery which do a disservice to the game. The day you see Tim Duncan blow in LeBron James' ear is the same day you will see me walk naked down the Champs Elysees!

One big difference with last season's NBA Finals is that San Antonio has the homecourt advantage this time. The Spurs often say they don't care much about that, but they sure used it to their advantage against Oklahoma City and they sure would rather play an eventual Game 7 in front of their own fans.

The NBA has decided to go to a 2-2-1-1-1 format for the Finals after decades of 2-3-2 which I feel increases the likelihood of having a Game 7.

Adam Silver's new NBA management is on a positive run right now because they have turned the despicable Donald Sterling affair into a new two- billion dollar watermark for the value of an NBA franchise with respected Steve Ballmer in the fold as the new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers. That's what I call a grand slam home run, baby!

Concerning the Finals, Duncan and Boris Diaw guarantee us that the Spurs will win the title this time around. This won't be easy with their top playoff scorer Tony Parker hobbling around on a hurt ankle. Popovich explained that Tony twisted it in Game 4 AND Game 5 against OKC which is why he didn't play in the second half of Game 6.

Luckily for the Spurs, Tony's best buddy Diaw scored 26 and continued to draw Serge Ibaka out of the paint which helped San Antonio win in overtime. Everybody loves the new aggressive Boris starting with coach Gregg Popovich and Duncan who laud his basketball IQ, something the Spurs have plenty of, the proof being their smart adjustments and bench use against the youthful Thunder.

Parker, like Duncan, is gradually moving up the NBA ladder in career playoff performances but they only want one accolade, a new ring.

With a few days rest, Parker will play a role in these NBA Finals even though he is victim to a lot of accumulated fatigue and will get needed rest this summer by foregoing the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain with the benediction of the French Federation (FFBB).

Miami would love to be the first team to three-peat since the Los Angeles Lakers did it from 2000 to 2002. They don't have homecourt advantage but the Heat have won at least one road game in 15 playoff series in a row. This is their fourth consecutive Finals (the first team to achieve this since the Boston Celtics from 1984 to 1987), so they know what it takes and with James and Dwyane Wade looking physically sound, they could probably be considered the favorites. With Chris Bosh's 25 points and eight rebounds in Game 6 against the Indiana Pacers, drawing the Spurs' big men out on the perimeter with his long-range shooting and Rashard Lewis in the Mike Miller role of the X-factor three-point specialist, the Heat are experienced, armed and dangerous.

These NBA finals will hinge on three factors, Diaw and Kawhi Leonard's defense on James, three-point percentage and mental toughness. Often a team that loses the Finals comes back mentally stronger the next season to win, which would be a factor in favor of the Spurs looking for revenge AND a crowning achievement for a whole generation of fabulously faithful stars.

If the Spurs succeed, this would be all the more meaningful because the Heat are truly respectable champions TOO!

George Eddy

FIBA

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