Follow the Yellow, Bricked Road

Queen James and his Princess Dwyane proved Thursday that they're still in need of a heart. Who thought the heart they needed would be the oft-criticized and now-missing Chris Bosh?

Indiana dismantled Miami from the inside out, as Pacer big man Roy Hibbert slapped a 19-8-5 line in the box score. The Heat were so desperate that head coach Erik Spoelstra resorted to starting Dexter Pittman -- who is most widely known for being a poor man's Oliver Miller.

The Pacers were like Mola Ram in The Temple of Doom, except they found nothing when they reached into Miami's chest to finish them off. The Big Three, Minus One is a shell of a team with no post presence. Its two remaining stars base their games on one-on-one matchups, and are being harassed on the perimeter by able defenders who are backed up by willing big men. But just like last year's final against Dallas, the "Dynamic Duo" continues to throw up brick after brick.

When Mario Chalmers stood face-to-face with David West in pure studio fashion, Indiana laughed. When Queen James threw a cheap elbow at Danny Granger, they surely tweeted SMH, knowing this "Icon" was yellow. When Her Highness missed the technical free throw that Miami was awarded when James swung the elbow at Granger, they mocked The Queen. When Wade snapped at his coach, much to the disgust of teammates and longtime NBA veterans Udonis Haslem and Juwan Howard, they knew it was over. TKO.

PYB will root for the Pacers the rest of the way, along with the rest of America. At least those of us who hope that sports can still be more than a hype and glam and marketing machine. Those of use who prefer the game to the glitz. Those of us who'd love a San Antonio-Indiana final, just to see the best basketball and the worst possible scenario for Commissar Stern's television ratings.

Unless The Queen and Her Court cut in front of The Tin Man in the line for a heart, we'll get our wish.