Accompanying The Heat And Tom Petty To The NBA Finals...

And your NBA Finals are set: It's old school vs. new school. It's a friendly, non-threatening German vs. The Diesel. It's a young, energetic, wide-smiling head coach vs. a crusty old man who hasn't smiled since 1983.

But there will be plenty of time to look ahead to Mavericks/Heat. About five full days, in fact. For now, though, we should take a second to acknowledge he Phoenix Suns. If you've loved the playoffs so far, the Suns are a big part of the reason why. They went toe-to-toe against Kobe and played a seven-game thriller. They slugged it out with the Clippers in another seven-game thriller. Their style of play, and dare I say their humongous balls, have played a large part in making the last month of basketball phenomenal.

As for the game last night, Dirk Nowitzki had another fantastic second half. Phoenix got into foul trouble, and looked at times like their legs were finally starting to give out. And Josh Howard was his usual outstanding self, sweating Steve Nash all over the court and forcing the ball out of his hands.

Mark Cuban was fantastic last night, too. So rarely is the owner the first person to be interviewed in a champagne-soaked locker room.

Dallas 102, Phoenix 93 [ESPN.com]