MIAMI - Frank Martin remembers the first time he laid eyes on J.J. Barea 10 years ago, and like every coach who sees the diminutive guard for the first time, he had his doubts. Martin's friend, Art "Pilin" Alvarez, was Barea's coach at Miami Christian High, and had been begging Martin to fly down and see his young gem from Puerto Rico.

"Looks are deceiving," said Martin, the Kansas State coach, who was an assistant at Northeastern University at the time. "Jose Juan looked like Opie. I thought, 'There's no way this kid can play at the next level.' But when I watched him play, he was as competitive as anyone I have ever seen. He's a winner. He's fearless. He's relentless and courageous. He has an unbelievable confidence about him, despite his size."

The 5-10 (5-11 in high tops), 175-pound guard is a key reason the Mavericks are in the NBA Finals against the Heat this week. His speed, ball-handling and heart led him to 21 points in 16 minutes against Oklahoma City in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. Kobe Bryant singled out Barea as a key reason the Lakers were swept by the Mavs in the previous round.

Barea, who went undrafted in 2006 despite a stellar career at Northeastern, has become the perfect pick-and-roll partner for Dirk Nowitzki and an icon in Puerto Rico. He is making headlines not only for his play, but his girlfriend, 2006 Miss Universe Zuleyka Rivera, who lives in Miami and stars on a telenovela.

Martin discovered during that recruiting trip to Miami what Puerto Rican basketball fans knew for years -- this little guy could play a big man's game. According to his father, Jaime, Barea dribbled a basketball with both hands when he was 2. He was a star tennis player at 10 and excelled at basketball and volleyball through middle school. His dream was to play Division I college basketball in the United States. To do that, he had to leave Puerto Rico for his senior year of high school.

"My son was 5-10 and Puerto Rican, so we knew the only way for him to get a college scholarship was for the U.S. coaches to see him in person," Jaime Barea said by phone Saturday. "He dominated every youth league here in Puerto Rico, and even though he was a little white kid, he played in every barrio, and was known and respected by players black and white. We knew once the U.S. coaches saw him, someone would give him a chance. We are so proud he could realize his dream after all the sacrifice."

Alvarez said Barea's basketball IQ was "off the charts," and that allowed him to make up for his lack of height. He is also tough as nails. He played in the high school playoffs while suffering from mononucleosis. In Game 4 against the Lakers, a soaring Barea took a cheap shot to the ribs from L.A.'s Andrew Bynum. Barea took a hard fall, but bounced back up.

Martin called Northeastern head coach Ron Everhart and insisted they offer Barea a scholarship. Barea averaged 20 points, six rebounds, eight assists and three steals per game his senior year and led Miami Christian to a 38-2 record and 1A state title. Marquette, New Orleans and N.C. State wooed him. Oregon State made a last-minute push, but Barea chose to go with the advice of Martin, a Cuban-American and former Miami High coach with whom he bonded.

"We were lucky all the big boys shied away from him because of his size," Martin said.

Barea left as Northeastern's second all-time leading scorer (2,209 points) and was a two-time finalist for the Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation's top point guard. And yet, the NBA shied away.

"NBA guys reached out to me and Ron, and they all said the same thing. 'Yeah, he's good, but he's so small,'" Martin recalled. "His game won't translate to the NBA. I said, 'You guys are going to make a big mistake.'"

The Boston Globe published a story before the 2006 NBA draft, and quoted unnamed NBA officials about Barea.

"I love his energy, but I'm not sure he's a true point guard, and he's far too small to play a two-guard in our league," said one executive. Another said: "He has tremendous guts, guile and desire. He'll play professionally somewhere, but probably not in the NBA."

Oh, no? Think again. Dallas invited him to camp, and he stuck. His contract expires this summer, and he likely will get a hefty raise.

"He was crushed, really hurt, [about not being drafted] but rather than go home, pout and cry, he couldn't wait to get out there and prove everyone wrong," Martin said.

Mission accomplished.