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JJ Barea Reveals Dirk Nowitzki Hated Miami, LeBron, Wade & Was Extra Motivated To Punish Them In 2011

After acquiring LeBron James and Chris Bosh in the summer of 2010, the Miami Heat instantly made the impression that they were the team to beat in the NBA around that time. In their first year together, it looked like LeBron James will finally capture his first ring, and the Larry O’Brien Trophy will head back to South Beach.

But they shouldn’t have counted their chickens before they were hatched, as the Dallas Mavericks, led by and incredible Dirk Nowitzki, proved everyone wrong and beat the Heat in six games during the 2011 NBA Finals.

The Mavericks put on a show in the playoffs, swept the defending champions Los Angeles Lakers and beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, yet they were pretty much disrespected by countless of fans who thought the Heat got everything all locked up.

More so, not only fans, but also Dwyane Wade and LeBron James disrespected the Mavericks and Nowitzki especially. 

When Dirk Nowitzki suffered from flu-like symptoms in Games 4 and 5, but still managed to perform at a high level, a video of the two Heat stars surfaced in which they mocked Nowitzki by coughing and jokingly discussing how they were getting sick. 

During his appearance on ‘The Old Man & The Three’ podcast, JJ Barea, who also was a member of the championship winning 2011 Mavericks, was asked about their Finals run, and Dirk’s specifically.

Barea revealed that Dirk Nowitzki hated Miami, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Dirk Bosh, and was more motivated then usual to beat them in 2011.

“He hated Miami, he hated LeBron, Wade, Bosh… He’s never gonna say that, but he couldn’t stand it. He got ready for it, and that year… He don’t talk much. Dirk, if you know him, he leads by example. He don’t lead by talking. But that year, during timeouts, before the games, at half-time, he would talk. And he would talk loud and he’d point fingers, and he was on…

When LeBron and Wade started making fun of him by coughing when he got a little sick… that clip really hurt him. That gave him a little extra to finish them off.”