TNT's roundtable topic was:
"Finals Game 6: Just How Difficult Will It Be for Phoenix?"
Charles Barkley was the first to speak.
"Game 6 is going to be incredibly difficult for the Suns.
"First of all, they fell behind 3-1 in the series, and no team in NBA Finals history has ever come back from that deficit to win the championship.
"Phoenix is a young team, while Miami has three stars in their primes.
"Trying to overcome that kind of opponent from 3-1 down makes the challenge even greater.
"The Suns managed to win Game 5 because 'Monster Rookie' Blake delivered an incredible performance, and home-court advantage certainly helped as well.
"But Game 6 is in Miami.
"The Heat still have two chances to close out the series, and now they're back on their own floor.
"They'll want to play their best basketball, end the series immediately, and lift the Larry O'Brien Trophy in front of their own fans.
"Phoenix has to travel, play on the road, and deal with the pressure of knowing that one loss ends their season.
"Trying to beat the Heat Big Three under those circumstances is going to be extremely difficult."
"Exactly."
Drexler nodded before continuing.
"And beyond playing on the road, there's another problem.
"Trying to win a championship while relying almost entirely on one star is difficult in itself.
"Throughout NBA history, no player has ever truly carried a team entirely on his own to a championship.
"And certainly no rookie has ever done it.
"For 'Monster Rookie' Blake to lead Phoenix all the way to the Finals in his rookie season is already remarkable.
"Winning the championship on top of that?
"That's an enormous challenge."
He paused and looked down at the statistics he had prepared.
"Last game, Blake produced a one-of-a-kind 50+8+8+8 performance.
"He also joined Michael Jordan, Vince Carter, and Kobe Bryant as one of the very few players ever to put up a 50+5+5 stat line in the playoffs.
"But if you look more closely at those games, you notice something interesting.
"When Jordan scored 63 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists against Boston in the 1985-86 playoffs, he didn't have Pippen beside him.
"He was essentially carrying the Bulls alone against a Celtics team led by Bird, McHale, and Parish.
"And despite that incredible performance, Chicago still lost.
"Jordan's other 50+5+5 game ended in a win.
"But by then, he was no longer doing everything alone.
"He had 'Batman' Pippen beside him.
"That night, Pippen also finished with 31 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists.
"That's exactly the kind of production you expect from a true second star.
"Then there's Vince Carter.
"When 'Half Man, Half Amazing' put up 50 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists against Allen Iverson and the 76ers in the 2000-01 Eastern Conference Semifinals, Toronto won that game.
"But the Raptors eventually lost the series in Game 7.
"And although 'The Answer' Iverson beat Carter, Iverson himself was carrying Philadelphia as its lone superstar.
"When the 76ers reached the Finals, they lost 4-1 to the Lakers and their 'Shaq-Kobe' duo.
"Finally, there's Kobe Bryant.
"When Kobe put up 50 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists against Phoenix in the 2005-06 playoffs, the Lakers still lost the game.
"And in that series, Los Angeles blew a 3-1 lead and eventually lost Game 7 to the Suns.
"Remember, Kobe averaged 35.3 points per game that regular season and won the scoring title.
"But aside from Odom, he didn't have much help.
"When you look at all of those examples, the pattern is obvious.
"Those players were individually brilliant while carrying enormous offensive burdens.
"But their teams still lost.
"That's how difficult it is to win a championship without enough help.
"Even players on the level of Jordan, Carter, and Kobe struggled with it.
"So for Blake, a 'Monster Rookie' who is still in his first season, the challenge is just as enormous."
"Well said."
Reggie Miller nodded firmly.
"Drexler, hearing you lay it out like that makes me feel for Blake all over again.
"Carrying that kind of load is brutal.
"And there's another major issue that Game 5 exposed.
"Stamina.
"Blake gave everything he had and dominated both ends of the floor.
"But late in the game, all that effort caught up with him.
"His stamina dropped, and his performance declined with it.
"That gave the Heat Big Three the opportunity to cut into the lead and nearly take control.
"Blake eventually buried that logo three to put Phoenix in position to win, then came up with the final block on Wade to finish it.
"But the problem was still there.
"Game 6 is on the road.
"Phoenix has to travel, which already takes something out of a team.
"And playing away from home can affect rhythm and performance as well.
"For Blake, who already has to play with incredible intensity, that could make the stamina problem even worse.
"And Phoenix doesn't have any margin for error.
"One loss.
"That's all it takes.
"One loss and the championship is gone."
"Exactly."
Kamla nodded and tapped the desk.
"If we put everything the panel has said together, the situation looks like this:
"Phoenix is heavily dependent on one star.
"They're trying to come back from a 3-1 deficit.
"They're playing on the road.
"And their centerpiece, 'Monster Rookie' Blake, has already shown signs of wearing down under the enormous workload.
"When you combine all of those factors, Game 6 could be the hardest game Phoenix has played in this entire series.
"Maybe the hardest game of their season.
"But difficult doesn't mean impossible.
"It doesn't mean Phoenix has no chance.
"As long as they have 'Monster Rookie' Blake, and as long as the game is still being played...
"Anything can happen."
"Exactly."
"The Round Mound of Rebound" Barkley nodded.
"We're only analyzing how difficult Game 6 is going to be for Phoenix.
"That doesn't mean they can't win.
"In fact, with the Finals this competitive, either team is capable of taking Game 6.
"So what happens?
"Does Miami win at home and claim the championship?
"Or does Phoenix survive one more time and force a Game 7?
"We'll find out soon enough."
"Exactly!"
"That's the question!"
"Game 6 can't get here soon enough!"
Reggie Miller and the rest of the panel agreed.
And from the very beginning, that had been the purpose of the roundtable.
To build even more anticipation for Game 6 between Phoenix and Miami.
It worked.
Fan discussion exploded again.
Everyone started debating, predicting, and arguing over what would happen next, driving the excitement surrounding Game 6 even higher.
...
Two days later, after all the discussion and anticipation, Game 6 of the Finals finally arrived.
7:30 p.m.
American Airlines Arena.
Tip-off was still an hour and a half away, but the massive arena was already packed.
Every ticket came with an assigned seat.
That didn't matter.
The fans had arrived early anyway, almost as if someone might take their place if they weren't there first.