"The Miami Heat formed their Big Three last summer, and in their very first season together, they've reached the Finals. They're like the villains in a movie.
"Easy to root against, but incredibly powerful.
"Then you have the Phoenix Suns.
"They've been the biggest dark horse of the season, even more surprising than the Thunder. At the beginning of the year, no one could have imagined that this would be the team representing the West in the Finals.
"Now, after an 18-year absence, the Suns are back on this stage.
"This young team pulled off a miraculous comeback in the first round, recovering from a 0-3 deficit to win four straight. Then, in both the second round and the Western Conference Finals, they advanced 4-1, taking down the defending champions and the Mavericks.
"And against Dallas in particular, they had to deal with 'The German Wunderkind' Nowitzki at the absolute peak of his powers, along with an endless succession of 'X-factors' stepping up around him.
"Phoenix still won the series 4-1.
"At this point, there's no need to explain how strong the Suns are.
"Suns vs. Heat.
"Can 'Captain Canada' Nash and the three rising stars beside him, Blake, Curry, and George, overcome LeBron, Wade, and Bosh, the Heat Big Three in their prime?
"We're about to find out!"
"BOOM!"
Mike Breen's pregame remarks sent another thunderous wave of cheers through an arena that was already electric.
Five minutes before tip-off, Blake and LeBron met near center court.
"This is the Finals. I kept my promise."
Blake smiled faintly.
LeBron smiled back. "I'll be honest. At first, I didn't think you'd make it this far, but I admit I underestimated you.
"Good.
"We both kept our promises.
"So now that we're here, let's settle this series for real.
"And I'll say it again. I'm not going to treat you like a rookie. Not now, not ever. I'm taking you completely seriously."
"Same here."
Blake's expression sharpened. "Now that we've reached this stage, there's no point in being polite.
"I came here for the championship."
"So did I."
The two stared at each other for a moment, then turned and walked back toward their respective teams.
With that, Game 1 of the 2010-11 NBA Finals tipped off on June 1, on the night of Children's Day, at US Airways Center in Phoenix.
Both starting lineups took the floor.
For the Phoenix Suns: 191-centimeter point guard Steve Nash, 188-centimeter shooting guard Stephen Curry, 206-centimeter small forward Paul George, 211-centimeter power forward Channing Frye, and 215-centimeter center Blake Su.
For the Miami Heat: 188-centimeter point guard Mario Chalmers, 193-centimeter shooting guard Dwyane Wade, 203-centimeter small forward LeBron James, 211-centimeter power forward Chris Bosh, and 203-centimeter center Udonis Haslem.
"Jump ball!"
With the Heat's 221-centimeter center Zydrunas Ilgauskas sidelined by injury, Haslem had moved into the starting lineup.
That left Bosh, the tallest remaining Heat player, to take the opening tip against Blake.
Did it matter who Miami sent out there?
Not really.
There was no suspense at all.
"Smack!"
As always, Blake barely seemed to exert himself as he tapped the ball away first. George collected it and handed it off to Nash, who brought the ball into the frontcourt.
The Suns had the first possession of the Finals.
"When it comes to jump balls, Blake really hasn't met anyone he's afraid of."
"If I remember correctly, he hasn't lost a single opening tip since his first NBA game. He's still undefeated."
Even the commentators were amazed by how dominant Blake was at the opening tip.
On the court, Nash controlled the ball at the top of the key with Wade guarding him.
Blake came up to the free-throw line and set a screen.
Nash accelerated toward the right wing, turned the corner around Wade, and drove inside.
At the same time, Blake popped out toward the top of the arc.
Nash appeared to pull the ball back and fire it to him.
But Miami had studied this action extensively. The Suns loved having Blake pop out to the perimeter after setting a screen, and the Heat were ready for it.
LeBron slid over immediately, anticipating the pass and preparing to cut it off.
But Nash was a master passer.
His anticipation was on another level.
Without changing his passing motion, he redirected the ball to Curry on the left side of the arc.
Curry caught it and immediately rose for three.
Chalmers closed out quickly, but he was still half a step late.
"Clang!"
The shot missed.
Haslem boxed out Frye, Bosh kept George away from the ball, and Wade flew in to secure the rebound.
Miami lacked a true imposing presence inside, which meant even the Big Three had to contribute heavily on the glass.
Wade immediately pushed the ball upcourt.
He reached the left side of the arc and found himself one-on-one with Curry.
Wade slowly lowered his stance, looking as though he was about to attack off the dribble.
George shaded over from the wing, ready to help.
Suddenly, Wade released the ball.
A three?
No.
It was a high lob toward the rim.
"What?!"
Curry and George both reacted in surprise and turned toward the basket.
LeBron was already soaring up from the right side like a rocket.
Alley-oop!
"BOOM!"
LeBron threw down a vicious tomahawk slam.
The force of the dunk sent the rim shaking violently.
"Wow! There it is! The LeBron-Wade connection!"
"Unstoppable!"
Suns 0, Heat 2.
Miami opened the game with a LeBron-Wade alley-oop, immediately igniting the Heat's momentum.
Phoenix came right back.
Nash pushed the ball into the frontcourt and drove straight past Chalmers down the middle.
As he penetrated, he slipped a well-hidden pass out to Curry on the left side of the arc.
At the same time, Blake was matched up with Bosh on the right side.
Blake made a quick half-turn, exploded past him in a single step, then pointed toward the sky.
Curry saw it immediately.
He knew exactly what Blake wanted.
Without hesitation, Curry lofted the ball high toward the rim.
Under the basket, Haslem jumped straight up, trying to intercept the lob.
But Curry had put plenty of height on the pass.
The ball sailed just over Haslem's fingertips.
And behind him, Blake took off.
"Smack!"
Blake snatched the ball one-handed above Haslem's head.
The next instant...
"BOOM!"
From directly behind Haslem, Blake hammered the ball through the rim right over him.
"Holy shit!"
Van Gundy grabbed his head and shouted in disbelief. "Blake came from behind Haslem and just caught that lob over his head before dunking all over him!"
"WOW!"
Mike Breen's mouth fell open.
"We just saw the LeBron-Wade connection, and the Blake-Curry connection answers immediately with an even more brutal alley-oop!
"Game 1 of the NBA Finals has gone straight into a shootout from the opening tip!"