The Daily Nickel

Comparing the Mavs and the Thunder rosters.

1. Point guard: Russell Westbrook vs Jason Kidd. Westbrook could learn a lot from Kidd. He tends to be a ball hog and totally ignore Kevin Durant for stretches at a time. Kidd on the other hand, has made a career of deferring to others...even if it means passing up a wide open layup. Still, Kidd's ability to run the offense and get others involved doesn't put him past Westbrook's athleticism and shot making ability. Advantage: Thunder.

2. Shooting guard: DeShawn Stevenson vs Scrubo Shefolosa. Both of these guys are starters but only by name. Scrubo averaged under 20 minutes a game against the Grizzlies, giving way to the much better James Harden for most of the game. And DeShawn? He does the same thing as Scrubo because he just keeps the shooting guard spot warm for JET. So really, this is a comparision of Harden and JET. Harden can shoot, orchestrate the offense, and play ruggid defense. And JET? He can only shoot. You JET lovers that are still high on his awesome Game Four performance against the Lakers are going to call me nuts, but I'm taking Harden in a heartbeat. Advantage: Thunder

3. Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs Shawn Marion. Writing anything here would be a waste of time. Advantage: Thunder

4. Power Forward: Dirk Nowitski vs Serge Ibaka. See my comment for Nickel #3 . Advantage: Mavericks

5. Center: Kendrick Perkins vs Tyson Chandler. This is an easy one. Kendrick Perkins scows a lot and acts tough, but he really doesn't do anything on the court. While their post season stats look similar Tyson's are skewed because he barely played against the Trailblazers in round one because the refs hated him. Defensively, Tyson has shut down LaMarcus Aldridge and he made life tough enough for Andrew Bynum. Perkins on the other hand, got abused by Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph in the last round alone. Advantage: Mavericks

6. Nickel # 6 is my prediction. I'm going with the Mavericks in Six games. Even though the Thunder have the advantage at point guard, shooting guard, and small forward, the Mavericks have a much better bench AND the best player in the series. I know that Durant averages more points a game than Dirk, but Dirk is more savvy and is much better at closing out games. The Thunder's inexperience will finally catch up to them as the veteran Mavs execute their game plan to perfection.