2013 NBA Finals Preview

By Dante R Maddox /

Point Guards: Mario Chalmers vs. Tony Parker While Miami€™s Mario Chalmers has proven to be an integral part of the Heat€™s offense, he will have his hands full with Tony Parker who, despite being a perennial MVP candidate, is a highly underrated guard in the NBA. Parker is a devastating blend of floor control and offensive explosion; most defenders are rendered helpless against him. There is already talk of LeBron James taking a share of the defensive duties when it comes to Parker, but it seems very likely that the Heat will let Chalmers and his backups have a crack at slowing the speedy point guard down. While he€™s good at attacking the passing lanes, Parker won€™t have an overwhelming advantage when it comes to direct on ball defense against Chalmers whose offensive duties are mitigated by James who handles the ball at the start of many of Miami€™s offensive sets. Chalmers hangs is hat on spreading the floor with an impressive 3 point threat, having to keep him off the three point line will keep Parker out of the passing lanes. He also helps Wade and James attack the basket at will in the same manner. If he has good shooting performances in these games it will give Miami a crucial advantage.

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