It was a sizzling night as we move to the west coast to focus on more high-quality NBA basketball.
In Phoenix, you had Kobe going for 48 (playing through a wrist injury that would send most players to surgery), to take out the struggling Suns. Will Nash be traded? He is starting to decline and PHX may want to try to get some value for him, he would still be a great 2nd or 3rd option on a contender. Knicks?
In Oakland, our Miami Heat came in ready to do battle against a new Warriors regime with ex-player/broadcaster Mark Jackson at the helm. He is preaching defense to his team, which makes sense because the GS culture has always been about run and gun west-coast styled bball. If he can balance that out with some defense he may have something. GS is stacked with young talent.
Anyways, to the game:
In the first half, the Warriors came out of the gate hard, trying to establish the tempo. They did a well enough job but the Heat showed that they have more than enough firepower to hang close. With Dwyane Wade back after a 2 game hiatus, the Heat were at full power with the starting unit and were able to make outstanding play after outstanding play.
Wade finally started looking comfortable again at the 2 spot, even showing a glimpse of the mid-range perimeter game that he likes to go away from. But, Wade’s game remains flawed: he needs to work on his reverse lay-ups and his footwork. Wade could score with much more ease if he went to the reverse layup, using the rim to block the defender. Dwyane’s moves still lack a certain fluidity/polish that can be perfected with repetition in the offseason. Maybe it is the foot pain that is hobbling Wade, but these patterns have been creeping up for a sec now…to be continued. We will see how Wade ‘s game develops as the season unfolds.
In the 3rd, Miami started pulling ahead.
Bron had his J going and was finding Bosh for some sweet cuts to the rim for slammas. Chalmers was hitting threes, Cole was attacking… it was going pretty damn well. The 3rd quarter looked like endgame for Golden State. It was Miami’s game to lose. They then proceeded to do just that.
Yes, this game featured a passive LeBron in the 4th quarter. The haters will be dining on LeBrick tweets tonight.
Some would say that LeBron quits or “checks out”.
Some would say that LeBron has a mental hurdle to overcome during pressure situations.
Some would say Bron gets fatigued.
I myself expect Wade to do more in the clutch with Bron as the facilitator.
But the truth is Miami as a team started having problems with defense (which was surely caused by fatigue?) and Golden State started lighting it up from the perimeter at a high clip, led by Dorell Wright’s 6 three-pointers. The Warriors were able to push the pace again and Miami just went cold. Even normally reliable Udonis Haslem had a dunk pop out on him and had a ball slip through his fingers and go out of bounds. James Jones was nowhere to be found on the court tonight. Literally. He played 3 mins. For some reason when James Jones plays, the Heat win.
So, in the 4th and overtime (yes this game went to ot) Bron was settling into his role as clock manager and distributor, but he again lost his aggression in the closing moments. This is obviously something that Bron has to work on. Many people think that LBJ is a perfect ball player but he still has a ton of growing to do, mentally and experience-wise. Tonight was not his night from a late-game management standpoint. Only Bron knows what is going through his mind late in the game, but I am highly doubtful it is the “psychological paralysis” that many think he is going through.
It could be as simple as Bron deferring to Wade and Wade just not able to get open.
But why should a talent like Bron defer and not be aggressive with the scoring?
Is it respect for Wade? Fear of failure? Strategy? Forgetfulness?
Probably neither, but one thing is clear:
There is still much work to be done before that championship ring finds the finger of the “chosen one” and these players and it’s superstars are far from perfect.
This team is far from perfect.
Notes: The final play of regulation featured both Battier and LeBron shutting down Monta Ellis. That is serious defensive firepower.
Can Wade and Bron finally figure it all out?
Hey, have been following your blog for a bit and enjoy the recaps. I’d like to ask you some questions about it but you don’t have an email address listed, can you contact me at BlogABull@gmail.com? Thanks, -Matt