The Diverging Tales Of Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash

Congratulations to the Dallas Mavericks and their fans for beating the Miami Heat and winning the 2011 NBA Finals. We can only imagine the thrill (because the Suns are the oldest NBA franchise never to win an NBA title so all we have is our imagination and vicarious living through others).

There's a gazillion different angles to discuss on the day after Game 6. LeBron James choking and the entire debate about his place in history. The "stars vs. team" battle and how that played out between the Heat and Mavericks. Jason Terry backing up his big mouth. The massive amount of payroll Mark Cuban has taken on over the years to get his team here. And of course, the joy Shawn Marion is feeling right about now.

The one thing I keep coming back to though, is the divergent paths taken by Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash since the two parted ways in 2004.

Dirk is an NBA Champion today while Nash has spent the entire postseason traveling with his new girlfriend and taking in the sites from Jamaica to Vancouver to Miami to Boston. While Steve is surely having fun playing Find Waldo, there's little doubt where he would rather be right now -- nursing a hangover after a night of celebrating an NBA Title.

So what happened? Where did things go wrong for Steve when they finally went right for his buddy Dirk?

Here's a few ideas to vote on, but by all means do what you do and leave some insightful comments.