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MIAMI -- As Tony Parker arrived at the podium for an interview session Wednesday in Miami, he crossed paths with San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich, who was just departing. Popovich made a joke, and Parker laughed. A few years ago, that might not have happened. Several summers ago, the Spurs were trying to sign Jason Kidd, which in some circles was incorrectly perceived as Popovich deciding that he no longer wanted to have Parker around. That couldnt have been more wrong, since what the Spurs were actually thinking was that a veteran like Kidd would have been the perfect mentor for Parker as he was continuing to mature and learn the NBA game. Kidd never joined San Antonio. Parker ended up just fine without him. Even in a year where Tim Duncan was able to turn back the clock and post one of the best seasons in his long career, Parker is probably the biggest reason why the Spurs are in the NBA Finals for the fifth time. And hell be the focal point of the Miami Heat defensive gameplan on Thursday night, when the teams get together for Game 1 of the title series. "It seemed to me that it would be a great move if we could get Jason to help mentor Tony," Popovich said. "My illustrious NBA career ended after a week and a half. So what the hell am I going to teach him about being a point guard? ... Tony did not love that idea at all. But we still tried to do it." Parker -- one of four former Finals MVPs in the series, joining Duncan, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James -- doesnt need much help anymore. Hes averaging 23 points and 7.2 assists in these playoffs, playing at even a higher level than he did during an outstanding regular season, and is coming off a Western Conference finals performance against Memphis in which he shot 26 for 43 and averaged 31.5 points in the Spurs two road wins that finished off a four-game sweep of the Grizzlies. "Against Miami, its the last step," Parker said. "Its going to be the hardest one, because winning a championship is very hard. Especially against a very good team in and LeBron, four-time MVP, its going to be really tough. But its a great opportunity for us to try to beat them." The Spurs love him, and the Heat rave about him, so much so that Miami may offer Parker what they would consider to be the ultimate compliment on Thursday night. They may have James guard him at times. Mario Chalmers will start off against Parker, but if the Heat want a different look or if their starting point guard gets into foul trouble, Miami will not hesitate to give James a chance to guard the Spurs star. After all, Miami calls James "One through five" for a reason, a nod to how he can guard all five positions on the court. "Im looking forward to it a lot," Chalmers said of the assignment against Parker. "Itll be a matchup with one of the great point guards in the game right now and its going to be my job to contain him." But the Spurs will be ready to see James standing in Parkers way. Its not uncommon for teams to try to put someone bigger against Parker; in fact, the majority of the league does so fairly regularly. But its rare that someone 6-foot-8, 250 pounds and possessing the combination of size and speed goes up against a point guard. "No matter what they do, we just have to live with it and play," Popovich said. "At this point in the season were not going to change very much what we do. Theres no time for it. And as far as anticipating what people might do, I try to stay away from that, because you can drive yourself crazy. Thats what the game is for. You make adjustments during the game, hopefully to help your team. But whatever is presented is what has to be dealt with." Parker is not the Spurs only offensive option, of course. At times, Duncan is the key to everything. Other times, Manu Ginobili is the catalyst. But more often than not, how Parker fares in a game pretty much is the right indicator to show if the Spurs won that night or not. The Spurs are 42-8 this season when he scores 20 points. When he plays and doesnt score 20, theyre just 17-13. And Duncan doesnt see any comparison between Parkers game now and the game he had when he was good enough to be Finals MVP in 2007 after San Antonio swept James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. "I think hes a lot better," Duncan said. "I think hes a lot better player. He is asked to do a lot more. I think he has a lot more responsibility for making our team go than he did then. And I think hes a lot more prepared to do that. So as good as he was then, I think hes even better now." Thats basically because the Spurs demanded he be that way. Parker was issued a challenge two years ago. The Spurs watched what he did with the French national team and were duly impressed. He controlled the games. He was his national teams unquestioned leader. And it didnt take long for Popovich and the rest of the Spurs organization to decide that the time was right for him to assume an similar role in San Antonio. Parker has more than responded. Its no coincidence that the Spurs are back in the finals. "He was the best player in the Western Conference playoffs each game, and were well aware of that," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Every time he stepped on the court, he was the best player, the most impactful player, and he was driving their success. Now, they have obviously Hall-of-Famers and a well-oiled system. ... But hes a great player, an MVP candidate each year."Fake Jordan 1 Chicago .Gather a group of friends, or find a league to join online, draft your team, set your lineup and compete in a number of different formats. Air Jordan 1 Satin Black Toe Black Womens . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. http://www.bestfakejordan1.com/best-fake-retro-air-jordan-1-banned-black-mens.html . Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan scored shootout goals, and backup goalie Cam Talbot earned his second win in two nights as the Rangers shook off a late tying tally and beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 Monday night. Jordan 1 Clearance . -- When the Florida Panthers fell behind by two goals in the first period to the top team in the NHL, it appeared they were on their way to yet another loss. Jordan 1 Bred Cheap . But Bourque, who has missed three games with a lower-body injury, wont be in the lineup when the Habs travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Wednesday.(STATS) -- A national panel of voters began to select the STATS FCS legacy awards, which honor the players and coaches of the year, on Monday.The 13 FCS conferences have finalists for the STATS FCS Walter Payton Award (FCS offensive player of the year), STATS FCS Buck Buchanan Award (FCS defensive player of the year), STATS FCS Jerry Rice Award (FCS freshman player of the year) and STATS FCS Eddie Robinson Award (FCS coach of the year).All four awards and the STATS FCS Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be celebrated at the STATS FCS Awards Banquet and Presentation, scheduled for Jan. 6 in Frisco, Texas, on the eve of the national championship game.Not all nominees to the awards watch lists become finalists. The final addition was Western Illinois linebacker Brett Taylor to the Buck Buchanan Awards watch list.The voting panel consists of sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries. Voting is based on the regular season.---=2016 STATS FCS AWARDS=WALTER PAYTON AWARD FINALISTS(FCS Offensive Player of the Year)Khalid Abdullah, RB, James Madison; Jeremiah Briscoe, QB, Sam Houston State; Dillon Buechel, QB, Duquesne; Taryn Christion, QB, South Dakota State; Tarik Cohen, RB, North Carolina A&T; Julien Davenport, LT, Bucknell; Chase Edmonds, RB, Fordham; Austin Gahafer, QB, Morehead State; Dallas Goedert, TE, South Dakota State; Gage Gubrud, QB, Eastern Washington; Karel Hamilton, WR, Samford; DeAngelo Henderson, RB, Coastal Carolina; Devlin Hodges, QB, Samford; KD Humphries, QB, Murray State; Eli Jenkins, QB, Jacksonville State; DeVante Kincade, QB, Grambling State; Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington; Kyle Lauletta, QB, Richmond; Kamron Lewis, WR, Saint Francis; Tyrell Maxwell, QB, Gardner-Webb; Troy Pelletier, WR, Lehigh; Bryan Schor, QB, James Madison; Lenard Tillery, RB, Southern; Justin Watson, WR, Penn; Jake Wieneke, WR, South Dakota State---=BUCK BUCHANAN AWARD FINALISTS=(FCS Defensive Player of the Year)Pat Afriyie, DE, Colgate; Darien Anderson, LB, Alcorn State; Mike Basile, S, Monmouth; Christopher Beaschler, LB, Dayton; Dylan Cole, LB, Missoouri State; Winston Craig, DE, Richmond; Keionta Davis, DE, Chattanooga; Dee Delaney, CB, The Citadel; Garrett Dolan, LB, Houston Baptist; Anthony Ellis, DE, Charleston Southern; Chad Geter, LB, Gardner-Webb; P.ddddddddddddJ. Hall, DE, Sam Houston State; Darius Jackson, DE, Jacksonville State; Lorenzo Jerome, S, Saint Francis; Javancy Jones, DE, Jackson State; Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE, Villanova; Christian Kuntz, LB, Duquesne; Darius Leonard, LB, South Carolina State; Folarin Orimolade, LB, Dartmouth; Donald Payne, S, Stetson; Cole Reyes, S, North Dakota; Derek Rivers, DE, Youngstown State; Karter Schult, DE, Northern Iowa; Alex Searce, LB, Coastal Carolina; Brett Taylor, LB, Western Illinois---=JERRY RICE AWARD FINALISTS=(FCS Freshman Player of the Year)Tyrie Adams, QB, Western Carolina; Jordan Bentley, RB, Alabama A&M; Marlon Bridges, S, Jacksonville State; Elijah Burress, QB, Campbell; Stephen Calvert, QB, Liberty; Jaylan Foster, CB, Gardner-Webb; Chase Fourcade, QB, Nicholls; A.J. Hines, RB, Duquesne; Torrey Hunt, CB, North Dakota; Pop Lacey, S, New Hampshire; Sully Laiche, DE, Nicholls; Joe Logan, RB, Northern Arizona; Jerry Louie-McGee, WR, Montana; Steven Newbold, WR, Tennessee State; Corey Parker, S, William & Mary; Alex Probert, PK, Liberty; Max Roberts, LB, Fordham; Christian Rozeboom, LB, South Dakota State; Shane Simpson, RB/RS, Towson; Prince Smith Jr., CB, New Hampshire; Gee Stanley, LB, Robert Morris; Ryan Stanley, QB, Florida A&M; Nathan Stewart, WR, Sam Houst