On yesterday’s Daily Dime, ESPN analysts Dr. Jack Ramsay and Chris Ramsay each made an argument for a different team to win the NBA Finals. Here’s the best bit from Chris Ramsay about the Heat:

Shaq dominates the middle. The guy is still more powerful than a locomotive and, having dropped 20-or-so pounds, even looks light on his feet. He’s figured out how to avoid offensive fouls on his post moves. He’s making the smart, patient play on the block — posting, passing, reposting, scoring. He’s getting deep position and making a much more upward offensive move to the basket instead of the inward offensive move that was getting him in trouble earlier in the playoffs. On defense, he shuts down the driveway. There will be no easy stuff at the rim for the Mavs.

Coach Pat Riley has really pulled this team together. I’m sure Shaq has had a big influence here, too. But ever since Miami’s meltdown in Game 4 of the Bulls series, the Heat have looked like a very cohesive unit. Since then, they’ve won 10-of-13 games, and Riley has done an excellent job of building team unity. There have been no knucklehead antics, no bickering and no selfishness. The Heat look very professional and focused on winning a championship.

I picked the Mavs in seven, so these two points are worrisome. I know Dwayne Wade is going to play pretty well, but O’Neal’s effectiveness is a bit more up in the air. Will he dominate? Will he be average? Or will he spend the majority of the series on the bench in foul trouble? His overall performance will likely decide the series. His second point is also valid. With the scent of a title so strong, the Heat are playing as a team, something I wasn’t sure could happen when Pat Riley brought Jason Williams, Antoine Walker and Gary Payton to the team. Can they keep it together for another series – one that will be more pressure-packed than the first three combined?

Likewise, Dr. Jack Ramsay made some good points about the advantages that the Mavs hold:

The Mavs’ trademarks are depth and quickness, two traits the Heat lack. The Mavs’ starting lineup is quicker than Miami’s, and they can bring in a number of talented, athletic players off the bench.

For Dallas, it starts with Dirk Nowitzki, who will be a very tough cover for the Heat. Udonis Haslem will probably need help covering Nowitzki, which will open up the court for the rest of Mavericks. As Chicago showed, a quick, penetrating team can get to the rim and create foul trouble for Shaq. Well, the Mavs are even more talented than the Bulls.

Likewise, the Heat have no natural matchup for Dallas’ secondary offensive stars, Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse. And that’s before you get to Devin Harris and Keith Van Horn, who also will be a handful against the larger, slower Heat.

With this kind of team speed, the Mavs at times will threaten to run the Heat right off the floor.

As I said in my preview, if the Mavs are able to consistently get the Heat into an up-and-down game, they’ll ultimately wear the Heat down. That might be the best defense for Shaq – when the big fella gets tired, he’s more foul-prone. The performance of the Mavs’ bench is also crucial. Guys like Devin Harris, Jerry Stackhouse and Keith Van Horn need to score well in order to counteract the advantage that the Heat has with Wade and O’Neal.

So there you have it – four keys to the series:

1. Shaq’s play inside
2. Miami’s cohesion under pressure
3. Dallas pushing the tempo
4. The Mavs’ bench play

It should be a good one.