On Christmas Day, Miami will have the chance to get revenge on the team that humiliated them in last year's championship.
The NBA season is finally set to begin in five short days and it is already looking to be one filled with subplots and storylines galore (Will Chris Paul make the LA Clippers contenders? How will Tyson Chandler fit in with the New York Knicks? Has the Boston Celtics window of opportunity closed or do they have another run left in them? Will Dwight Howard be traded?).
However, one game on opening day has enough storylines to keep fans busy for days: the Miami Heat vs. Dallas Mavericks.
The Dallas Mavericks ousted the Miami Heat in last season's NBA Finals. The Miami Heat have said that it was a crushing defeat and that they want to prove that they are a different team than the one that struggled to hold leads last year. What better opportunity to show their improvement than to take on the team that handed them six total losses last season?
In fact, the Heat have not won a regular-season game against the Mavericks in almost seven years.
The NBA Finals rematch is sure to be an emotional contest for both teams. Here are 10 storylines to watch as they square off on Christmas Day.
This post also appears on Bleacher Report, an Atlantic partner site.
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