Miami twice? Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Before we jump ahead to next season, let's examine what the Heat's title run taught us.(NBA)

1 Wade is the man (and a few less important lessons)

Dwyane Wade is standing on top of the world. Well, not really, but it sure seems that way. Wade actually is standing on a chair in a corner of the Heat's locker room, towering above the media crammed in front of him. Nearly an hour has passed since Wade delivered the Heat its first NBA championship, and he clearly is enjoying the moment. "Hey, McAdoo," he shouts across the room. "You got one of these?" Wade is talking about the Finals MVP trophy tucked in his locker and, from his wily grin, you can tell he already knows the answer. Bob McAdoo, Heat assistant coach and member of two Lakers title teams, smiles back and isn't the least bit bothered. His answer is no.

After all, not many players--including Hall of Famers such as McAdoo--have the game's most prized trophy in their collections. Besides Wade, among active players there's only Shaquille O'Neal, Tim Duncan and Chauncey Billups. The club does not include Kobe Bryant or LeBron James, a point to remember the next time you're arguing about who's the NBA's best player. Those debates always come down to who's flapping his gums, anyway. Kobe fans insist Kobe is the best, and LeBron's people disagree. But this you can't argue: Wade has the Finals MVP trophy. Everyone else has next year.

So what did The Finals teach us besides that--at least for the offseason--Wade gets to be the latest (and most legit?) "next Michael Jordan"?

Experience matters. Next time, Mavericks coach Avery Johnson will not be so emotional when criticizing the officiating and Mavs forward Josh Howard will know when to call a timeout. If Johnson was trying to defend his team by focusing his rage on the refs, he failed. Hopefully, he learned that too much complaining makes it too easy for his players to use the refs as an excuse.

Gary Payton should retire. He has his ring. Now he should realize that making an open jumper and a scoop shot, even in crunch time, doesn't mean he's still a good player. Future Hall of Famers should not end their careers playing in garbage time.

The Mavs should let Jason Terry walk. Terry likely earned a big payday with his streaky shooting, but it shouldn't come from the Mavs. They would be better off giving his minutes to Devin Harris, Marquis Daniels and a true point guard they could find on the free-agent market, such as Speedy Claxton. The Mavs, however, say re-upping Terry is their No. 1 offseason priority.