For a city characterized by supposedly soft superstars, 2011 has been an eye opener in the Big D.

It is the year of herculean effort among Dallas pro sports stars. We all remember Dirk Nowitzki playing through the flu and hitting the last minute shot in the NBA Finals to put Dallas back in the series.

We all felt the outrage and the insult of Dwayne Wade and LeBron James mocking Dirk and making light of his illness.

This week we have another local hero.

Tony Romo left Sunday’s game before the half with a rib injury that turned out to be much more. We heard announced yesterday that Romo also suffered a punctured lung.

These injuries make Romo’s return to the field and stunning play execution all the more heroic. You may have noticed that Tony had trouble fielding questions after the game due to the level of discomfort cracked ribs and punctured lung can cause.

Who Had the More Legendary Performance?

It’s a toss up which performance is more legendary.You have at least two deciding factors: difficulty of challenge and importance of game.

On the one hand,

You have Tony Romo enduring more pain and mobility problems. Many players would sit for the rest of the week, if not two. Meanwhile, Dirk took over and won the game against Miami while fighting to stay vertical with 105ish degree fever.

On the other hand,

Dirk was playing in the NBA Finals, and that win kept their championship hopes alive. That performance cemented Dirk into Dallas sports lore for the rest of his life.

Tony Romo, though perhaps overcoming an even greater obstacle, won on a much smaller stage. Game two, though a critical game for the progress of the season, was no playoff game and certainly no Super Bowl victory.

So I’ll leave it to you. Whose performance was more legendary? Dirk’s dagger mid-flu or Tony Romo’s overtime win with punctured lung?

I came across this photo of Tony and then fiancee, now wife, Candace, rooting on the Mavericks. It’s always good to feel the love.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XZso4MnXTA]

Curious. I wonder how they decided which Mavericks would attend the ESPYs. No Brendan Haywood. No Peja Stojakovic. No DeShawn Stevenson. Maybe they were just on vacation and couldn’t attend. Or maybe they weren’t invited.

With the addition of Rudy Fernandez, it looks like it’s time to say goodbye to Roddy Beaubois. As quick and talented as he may turn out to be, there’s no room for Roddy on this roster.

We have to make assumptions to have this conversation in July. So many free agents in Dallas remain unsigned. Here’s the list:

• JJ Barea

• Caron Butler

• Brian Cardinal

• DeShawn Stevenson

• Tyson Chandler

• Peja Stojakovic

It’s probably too much to assume Dallas re-signs all of these. I think we can count on Brian Cardinal because he’s cheap and loyal. Tyson Chandler will be prospect #1. Then JJ and Caron will be 2a and 2b. Peja and DeShawn may be left holding the bag, depending on outside offers. Peja should come relatively cheap to someone. DeShawn probably will want more than he’s offered, so it’ll be a question of pride as to whether he returns to Dallas for whatever they can afford to offer.

Look at the logjam at shooting guard:

• Rudy Fernandez
• Jason Terry
• JJ Barea
• Roddy Beaubois
• Corey Brewer
• Dominique Jones

Even if you move Roddy up to #3 on the shooting guard org chart, that leaves almost no time available. JJ is currently the #2 point guard and a the #3 shooting guard. Roddy is the #3 point guard and #3 or #4 shooting guard.

Let’s get one thing straight. I don’t care WHAT Donnie Nelson says, Roddy will NEVER a star point guard. It just won’t happen. He’s a natural shooting guard. He doesn’t see the floor or think like a point guard. Those are skills you can’t teach at his age. He’s made it as far as he has because he can beat anyone off the dribble and get to the hoop. That’s his skillset. That’s who he is. He’s less trained than Devin Harris, and Devin never had a chance at leading this team to any sort of victory.

The point is, if any other team is still intrigued with Roddy B, use him as a chip and get a deal done for a power forward, true point guard, or backup center to free up Haywood as a trade piece. As a top 15 center, Haywood could still combine with another player or two in a trade for someone of Deron Williams’ stature.

The Ben and the Skin are major Deron Williams homers. They grew up here. Deron grew up here. His high school team played against their high school team. Or whatever. He’s a home grown player and they’re drooling over the possibility of a free agent signing in Dallas next year.

There’s only one problem. There’s not enough cash to go around.

It’s a Money Problem

Either Dallas signs #1 Mavericks center of all time Tyson Chandler to an exorbitant contract or he goes to the highest bidder elsewhere. If he stays, there’s no room for Deron on the books. If Chandler goes, Dallas is a prime contender for the 4th best point guard in the league (Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, Jason Kidd).

It doesn’t matter whether you have D-Will ranked as #2, #4, or #6. He’s probably about as high on the point guard list as Tyson Chandler is on the center list. Not the best, but you gotta get him on your team if you can.

Logic Doesn’t Always Apply

Yes, the Mavericks have a top 15 center in Brendan Haywood. But he doesn’t bring the amazing intangibles that Chandler does. And as Chuck Cooperstein said in his on-the-air bashing of Ben Rogers, you never trade a big for a small. Big man talent is much more rare than small man talent.

Yes, Deron Williams can easily score more and put up better stats than Tyson per game. But he doesn’t get your team to push beyond their comfort zones and sacrifice their bodies for the win. That’s a classic Tyson Chandler intangible.

I would L-O-V-E to have Deron Williams on this Mavericks team. Don’t get me wrong. If you put D-Will, Fernandez, Butler/Marion, Dirk, and Chandler on the floor, you WILL NOT LOSE. Plain and simple. But it’s not going to happen. Even if Dallas traded away Roddy B and Haywood, they probably couldn’t get the trade or the numbers to work.

We Haven’t Even Mentioned the REAL Problem

Dallas could very easily lose at both. Re-signing Tyson Chandler isn’t a lock. He could go elsewhere for more money. He’s never been paid like a rockstar. This is his time. But say Cuban could sign Chandler, but decides not to for the sake of POSSIBLY signing Deron Williams the year after. What happens when New Jersey signs Dwight Howard and D-Will decides to launch the new Brooklyn team? Dallas is out and the championship ride is over. Without heart and intensity down low, Dallas is a 2nd round playoff loser.

And THEN Jason Kidd will retire. Who is going to lead this team? Roddy B? Not a chance. JJ? We’re not even sure Dallas will re-sign JJ. They SHOULD. But they might not. JJ is going to get his best offers this summer as well.

Imagine a Dallas Mavericks post-championship team without JJ Barea or Tyson Chandler. Puff! They’re gone. You might as well not even play the season. Might as well sit this one out and hope for a top lottery pick.

But what if Dallas somehow got BOTH Chandler and Williams?

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MN8JTYGDP8]

Around the 2:20 mark, you’ll see Deron break JET Terry’s legs off. Would be nice to have that here.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bF5LuWeLf1g]

We’ll stop beating the Mavs drum soon…. or not. Check out these highlights from the playoffs.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3ZJ6FEcTTA]

Back when LeBron hadn’t announced his decision, some Dallas fans put together a video and a website to show fan support to LeBron, in hopes of drawing him to Dallas.

That obviously didn’t work, and now that Dallas has a championship at the expense of LeBron and the Heat, I wonder what Dallas fans think of LeBron now. He’s no longer our nemesis. He’s just another guy who didn’t win a championship… yet.

But history will tell.

Question for Mavs Fans:

Are you glad LeBron went to Miami so this Dallas team would win it all? Or would you rather have had LeBron, possibly give up this year’s title in exchange for potential multiple future titles?

This is awesome.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVHl05Lz8Ms&NR=1]

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoqYFeSpWro]

Part of the scene yesterday at the American Airlines Center at the end of the Championship Parade, they played the official DFW Digs Dirk music video before a crowd of 20k+.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Xi5JnA6MkA]