The MIA Big 3 ... even when you try not to hate them, why do they keep doing these douchey things? haha Lebron's dunks and Wade's flops did 'em in, they were gassed in the endgame. Bosh was just pathetic the whole game.
It is a bit annoying that they do that. The questions might be similar but they aren't the same person so there will be different questions. I really can't decide if it is a good sign of unity between the two or them not wanting to deal with all the heat they might take in seperate interviews.
He got his way at the end of the first half - not surprised he thought he could cry his way out of it again. I've never seen anything like what I saw following the minor Chandler bump. Wade went on a tirade - as did LeBron and Spoelstra - for over a minute straight on the official. Not only were none called for a technical (note that this is the league that put in all the airtight rules to supposedly stop such whining), but the Mavs were then whistled for off-ball fouls on three consecutive possessions (two 90 feet and 35 feet from basket), giving Miami six free throws and helping them tie the game at the half (was 51-42 Mavs). Wade and LeBron get their way all the time. Didn't shock me that he thought he could pull it off again. Anyway, aside from my normal Heat officiating gripe, the other thing that interested me about this game (outside of what's already been said here) was Spoelstra's mismanagement of timeouts down the stretch. One of the things I always respected about Phil Jackson was how much he understood the importance of timeouts late, and tended to let his team play their way out of minor struggles over the course of a game so that he didn't waste them. When you don't have a timeout in the last 10 seconds of a game... it changes the complexion of everything. (Yes, I know Miami got the Chalmers three out of the prior timeout. Big deal - that's why you save yourself at least two for the last minute.) A lot has been made these playoffs of how low shooting percentages are (think Rose vs. MIA) in tie games in the closing seconds. Why? Because teams are terrified of shooting too early - for fear that if they miss, the other team can call a timeout, and potentially get a shot like Chalmers did out of the timeout to win the game. So, it makes it ridiculously easy for the defender. They usually don't have to worry about a drive to the basket, since those often lead to a double team and kickout (not enough time), AND they know exactly when to put their hands up and contest. It leads to almost-impossible shots. Except for last night, when Dallas didn't have to worry about Miami advancing the ball. So Dirk could start his drive early (the lack of using foul-to-give helped, too), play in rhythm, and not have to worry about exactly how much time was left... because Miami couldn't advance the ball, and the best they could do was a 35-foot, off-balance prayer. In a tight game, there's just no excuse for not saving a timeout for the closing seconds. Having it, or not having it, changes everything. It's fascinating to me how many coaches can't grasp that.
No one's seriously complaining about it, or at least I'm not. I just didn't agree think James and Wade do it because they want to save time. But I do find it funny that they and no other pair of players do it so regularly. Though I'd bet Francis and Mobley would've loved to have done it back in the day. Pause.
Actually Bibby was the most valuable player on that Kings team against the Lakers. He was the only one who dared to shoot in the elimination game.
We really missed you after Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Can we take your lack of posting to mean that you didn't mind that officiating was incredibly biased towards the Bulls?
So? Yeah Stern was clearly trying to extend basketball in May, doesn't mean that he doesn't want the Heat to win it all. Officiating last night was pretty terrible yet the Mavs pulled through in one of the most epic finals comebacks ever.
The people that are complaining about the refs are saying the refs were giving Miami calls but Dallas overcame them.
Yeah, but they were saying the before the game too. I'm sure before game 3 at least one person will come out and say "Stern won't want Miami to get too far behind, so look for some fishy reffing..." It never ends.
I think I've posted after about three or four games this entire postseason, so I'd say taking anything from my silence is quite a stretch. That said, one game in anything - especially basketball - means very little in the context of an overall trend.
