Dirk Nowitzki

Five years after watching the Miami Heat take the 2006 Finals from a Dallas Mavericks team that had not forgotten a single second of it, Dirk Nowitzki arrived at the 2011 rematch carrying everything that had been left unfinished. In Game 2 on June 2, 2011, Miami had opened a 15-point lead with seven minutes remaining. Dwyane Wade stopped in front of the Dallas bench after a three and let the moment linger a beat too long. The Mavericks heard it. Dallas closed the game on a 22-5 run, and at the center of everything was Nowitzki, who scored nine of the final eleven Dallas points. With 3.6 seconds left, Kidd ran the clock down and fed Dirk, who drove into the lane, spun back to his left, and laid it in off the glass with his non-shooting hand. The Mavericks won 95-93 and evened the series they would go on to win in six games, Nowitzki taking home Finals MVP along the way.

Championship Year