Mavericks Blueprint Changing?

by Ryan Wilson on August 24, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

The long-range plan is to keep the powder dry and wait out a superstar. It’s why when Deron Williams chose Brooklyn over Dallas, Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson didn’t get in a bidding war for a player such as Goran Dragic but rather targeted players either on the last year of their current deals or who were open to a one-year contract.

Check out the current roster. Of the five players acquired this summer — excluding the three rookies that give Dallas eight new faces on the 15-man roster — all are on one-year deals. O.J. Mayo‘s reduced-rate contract is technically for two years, but the second year is a player option that he will almost certainly exercise.

One-year deals allow the Mavs to easily create cap space for next summer to chase marquee free agents. But with the 2013 “big fish” free agency class threatening to be a dud with Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum and Chris Paul all with good reason to stay put, could the Mavs’ philosophy be moving away from the rent-a-player approach of these last two offseasons?

After all, how do you sell player jerseys of guys that won’t be around but eight or nine months?

“I’m not a big believer in rent-a-players, not in your top seven or eight guys anyways,” Cuban said during his Tuesday appearance on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM’s Ben & Skin Show. “I want these guys to stay and develop because they can be a great, young nucleus. The devil you know is always better than the devil you don’t know in basketball, particularly when you have an infrastructure that hopefully can continue to develop these guys. That’s the goal and we still have flexibility then to do sign-and-trades, potentially sign a free agent; just see where it takes us.”

Cuban’s great, young nucleus comment is in reference to 24-year-old guards Darren Collison, penciled-in to start at point guard, and Mayo, who will start at shooting guard. Collison will be a restricted free agent next summer and can entertain offers from other teams with the Mavs being able to match. Mayo, with a strong year, could get the payday he hoped for this summer. Chris Kaman and Elton Brand will be seeking to play their way to multiyear deals as well, either with Dallas or somewhere else.

The Mavs might be the team to give it to one or all of them, but likely only after they are convinced that none of the superstar free agents will be available to any team but their current one, which can offer one more year and millions more than other teams. And they’ll also keep an eye on the bottom line for the summer of 2014, when the Mavs will have no players under contract and could chase multiple potential free agents such as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant, Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony.

“The blueprint is to say, like a Jet (Jason Terry) scenario, or even Josh Howard’s first year, Marquis’ (Daniels) first year, where it’s not apples to apples, it’s like wow; we want these guys to develop into a D.C. and O.J. tandem that can be a foundation for years to come and we keep them together and we improve and we grow with them and have the ability to continue to add players,” Cuban said. “So the optimum scenario is everybody plays great.”

And then perhaps instead of gutting the club to chase a Dwight Howard, the team-building focus turns to re-signing their own and chasing, say, a Josh Smith and cohesion.

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Heat Celebrate In Victory Parade

by Ryan Wilson on June 26, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

The NBA championship trophy was center stage, bathed in white light and sitting on a pedestal. And each Miami Heat player offered it a different greeting.

Mike Miller bowed. Udonis Haslem kissed it three times. Chris Bosh hugged it, and LeBron James strolled past before waving at the crowd.

Dwyane Wade did something different. In a nod to his preferred postgame fashion style throughout the playoffs, he emerged with a pair of faux eyeglasses and slipped the frames onto the neck of the trophy. Heat president Pat Riley, coach Erik Spoelstra and team managing general partner Micky Arison all donned the black spectacles as well at various points during the party.

The glasses were fake. The sentiments were all real.

And with that, two years after Wade, James and Bosh opened their time together with a celebration, they got the party they really wanted on Monday. An estimated 400,000 people filled the streets of Miami for the Heat championship parade, and then 15,000 more got into the arena afterward for a long, loud reception for the NBA’s new kings.

“It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had. … This was my dream, right here, to be able to hoist that Larry O’Brien Trophy up, hug it, grab it, never want to let it go,” James said.

During the parade, players and coaches were on double-decker buses with friends and family, most of them taking photos and video of the crowd. Other Heat staff were on flatbed trucks, as confetti fell and horns blared every step of the way. Wade cradled the championship trophy in his arms for much of the ride.

“I appreciate all our fans for sticking with us,” said the now two-time NBA champion Wade, adding, “Best fans in the world.”

And then the party moved inside, with a similar setup to the event that welcomed James and Bosh to Miami to play alongside Wade in July 2010. Music blared for nearly an hour as fans danced for joy, before the arena went dark briefly — and the trophy was sneaked onto the stage.

For nearly 90 minutes afterward, the Heat relived so many aspects of the season, from Haslem’s flagrant foul against Indiana’s Tyler Hansbrough in the Eastern Conference semifinals (“the greatest flagrant foul in team history,” Heat broadcaster Eric Reid told the crowd) to countless highlights from the NBA Finals against Oklahoma City, the Heat left few stones unturned.

Juwan Howard – the first member of Michigan’s Fab Five to win an NBA title — did the Cabbage Patch dance, as teammates broke into absolute hysterics, waving their arms in time with him. Mario Chalmers was asked about why Wade and James yell at him so much on the court, as a montage of some of their more fiery moments played on the giant video screens. And the Miami natives, Haslem and James Jones, got perhaps the loudest ovations of anyone outside of the finals MVP.

“Feels great, man,” said Haslem, who along with Wade is the lone holdover from Miami’s 2006 championship club. “Changing my name from Mr. Miami to Mr. Two-Time. I ain’t Mr. Miami no more. I’m Mr. Two-Time. … It never gets old. But this one is more gratifying because of the way last season ended.”

Spoelstra had a similar sentiment, talking to the crowd about the team’s commitment, especially after Miami lost last season’s finals to Dallas.

“People from the outside, they criticized this group, this team,” Spoelstra said. “They counted this team out. But they never estimated how close this group was as a family. Every single one of these players had to sacrifice something, either money, opportunity, minutes to be a part of this dream. And it was all for a moment like this.”

After the celebrating was done, there was business. Wade reiterated that he would seek medical advice before committing to play with the Olympic team. Bosh — who missed nine playoff games with a strained lower abdominal muscle — said he was “all in, for now” on being part of the London Games. And Miller, who was hobbled by back and foot issues, said on Twitter he planned to meet with Miami neurosurgeon Dr. Barth Green on Tuesday, presumably to get checked out and discuss options.

Miami won the title by defeating Oklahoma City in five games in the NBA Finals. It was the second title for the Heat and the first for James, who nodded and pointed to fans for much of the parade. James came to Miami after seven years in Cleveland, and after he and the Heat fell in the finals a year ago, he’s finally a champion.

“It’s good being around other people who support LeBron,” said Doug Mead of Toledo, Ohio, who came to the parade with his family. “They really don’t like him in Ohio. They celebrate when he loses.”

Everyone was celebrating in Miami on Monday. Arison snapped and tweeted several photos during the parade. Riley shouted “Thank you” to fans over and over, as his wife, Chris, stood to his left and led “Let’s go Heat” chants.

Some fans began lining up for spots along the parade route Sunday night.

“I’ve been a fan since `89. For me personally I feel like I’m part of the Heat family,” said Dexter Pace of West Palm Beach, Fla. “I’ve been through the goods, the bads, the losses, the trades, and now it’s like someone in my family has accomplished something. …. It’s going to mean a lot for the city of Miami, winning the championship.”

As the event ended, Bosh thanked both the fans inside the arena and those outside, saying that without them, nothing would be possible for the Heat.

“It feels right,” Bosh said. “This is how it’s supposed to be … and I would like to do it all the time.”

—

Associated Press Writer Jennifer Kay contributed.

—

Follow Tim Reynolds on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ByTimReynolds
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

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Credit Mavericks For Lebron's Finals Improvement

by Ryan Wilson on June 22, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

 

Can the Mavericks get a little credit for LeBron James’ failures in last season’s Finals now?

Maybe, just maybe, the Mavs had more to do with James’ pedestrian performances than the pressure of the moment.

In hindsight, after LeBron followed up with a historic playoff run to his first championship, that certainly appears to be the case. And it’s foolish to think King James suddenly developed the mythical clutch gene or the mental toughness required of a playoff hero over the last year.

Never mind all the times he carried the Cavaliers to playoff wins. How about him dominating crunch time in the 2011 Eastern Conference finals against the Chicago Bulls? You think he suddenly got scared of the final five minutes of games in the Finals?

“That’s a complete insult to us,” Mavs owner Mark Cuban said during his Friday morning appearance on ESPN’s First Take.

Or do you think the Mavs’ coaching staff came up with a phenomenal plan and the Dallas players executed it excellently?

“It’s amazing how nobody wants to give the Mavs credit for playing some amazing defense last year!!!” Shawn Marion tweeted after listening to some of the talk before last night’s Finals clincher. “We earn that ring!!!”

Reached Friday, Marion said he didn’t need to elaborate on the subject, adding only that his championship ring is really heavy.

Marion, perhaps the most underappreciated defender in the league, earned his ring in large part by giving LeBron precious little room to work. Same goes for DeShawn Stevenson, the defender LeBron saw most often after Marion.

As well as Marion and Stevenson played, they didn’t stop LeBron one-on-one. They thrived with the support of their on-a-string teammates with Tyson Chandler serving as the backbone in a complicated concept designed by Rick Carlisle, Dwane Casey, Monte Mathis and the rest of the Dallas coaching staff.

“Are we in a zone? What type of zone are we in? How are we matching up? What kind of rotations are we in?” Cuban said, describing the thought process James had to go through every time he touched the ball. “Making him think made them pass the ball around the perimeter, which gave us a chance to adjust.

“Now they’re smarter, they’re a better team. They deserved to win this year. But that’s the way we played it. So it wasn’t just LeBron. LeBron actually played it right more often than not. He made the right pass to the right guy, who didn’t make the right play. And that’s exactly what we wanted. We wanted to get the ball out of their hands and into the hands of somebody else.”

If you insist on just chalking James’ ’11 Finals failures up to him choking, feel free to continue ignoring the facts. Just don’t forget to call the Dallas team that defended him so well champions.

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Heat Hold Off Thunder

by Ryan Wilson on June 15, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

LeBron James has seen his share of great starts turn into faulty finishes.

So with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh providing the help he needed, he wasn’t letting another one get away Thursday night.

James scored 32 points, got a disputed big stop on Kevin Durant and the Miami Heat held off a furious fourth-quarter rally behind their three All-Stars to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-96, tying the NBA Finals at one game apiece.

“We had played too well in the first 36 minutes to try to let this one slip away from us,” James said. “We just wanted to make one more, two more plays than they made and come out with a victory and we were able to do that.”

Wade rebounded from a poor opener to add 24 points and Bosh had 16 points and 15 rebounds in his return to the starting lineup for the Heat, who snapped a four-game Finals losing streak with their first victory since Game 3 against Dallas last year.

“It’s been so long since we’ve had them all together,” Heat forward Shane Battier said. “They played like the All-Stars that they are and that’s the effort that we need.”

Now they go home to host Game 3 on Sunday and the next two after that, knowing they don’t have to hear the noisy Thunder fans again — not to mention all their critics — if they win all three.

Miami blew a 13-point lead in Game 1 and seemed headed toward a repeat of the second game of the Finals last year, when it blew a 15-point edge on its home floor.

Not this time.

“This is a good team and we didn’t want to be down 2-0,” Bosh said. “We know in order to accomplish our goal, we have to win on the road. We’re a good road team. We’ve done it before. They posed a great challenge because they haven’t lost up until today. But we felt that we let one get away and we felt that we could play a much, much better game in Game 2.”

Durant scored 32 points for the Thunder but missed a short jumper with 9.9 seconds left after appearing to be bumped by James. The basket would have tied a game the Thunder trailed the entire way.

Oklahoma City’s explosive point guard Russell Westbrook finished with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists but shot 10-of-26 from the field.

James Harden tried to keep the Thunder in it early and finished with 21 points, but this time the Thunder couldn’t come back from a double-digit deficit after spotting Miami a 17-point advantage during their worst first half of the season.

“That was the game. We can’t start off down 18-2,” Durant said. “We can’t go down that much, especially at home. We’ve got to correct it.”

It was the first home loss in 10 postseason games for the Thunder, who had overcome a 13-point deficit in Game 1.

James had what was his career high, 30 points, in the opener, but afterward said Wade needed to be Wade — All-Star, Olympic gold medalist and finals MVP.

In Game 1, Wade was 7-of-19. He wasn’t sharp in the last round and continues to hear reports that something is physically wrong with him. He was all but asked Wednesday if his explosiveness was a thing of the past, what must have been insulting to a player who, though 30, still believes he’s not far from the top of the game.

Wade bounced back in a big way, not quite at the level he was as the 2006 Finals MVP, but certainly good enough with the help around him now for the Heat to win another one.

“Just know that I’m always going to keep coming back until I don’t play this game no more,” Wade said. “I know my abilities, I know what I’m capable of and it was good.”

He spun into the lane and found Bosh for a dunk that seemed to have the Heat safe at 98-91 inside the final minute, but a 3-pointer by Durant cut it to 98-96 with 37 seconds left. After James missed a 3-pointer, the Thunder got the ball into Durant, who appeared to be knocked off balance by James as he missed the baseline shot attempt.

Durant said only that he missed the shot, saying he would have to watch the tape to see if he was fouled.

James then sank the insurance free throws — finishing a 12-for-12 night at the line — as fans booed loudly over the no-call.

Bosh started after coming off the bench in every game since returning late last round from his nine-game absence with a strained lower abdominal muscle. The Big Three joined Battier and Mario Chalmers in the lineup, the first time Miami had gone with that first five all season.

It sent the Heat on their way to a terrific start, and Battier matched his surprising 17-point performance in Game 1 by going 5-of-7 from 3-point range, providing all the help the superstar trio needed.

James had his fifth straight 30-point game, breaking Wade’s franchise playoff record, and added eight rebounds. He defended Durant early in Game 1 and helped put the league’s scoring champion in early foul trouble, just one of the problems the Thunder had early.

Another loud, blue and white crowd tried to inspire them to rally, but the team could just simply never get close enough to until the final minutes.

For most of the first three quarters, the home team would get the deficit to around 10, and James would get himself into the post or drive powerfully into the lane to score or set up a teammate.

Durant nailed a 3-pointer and drove into the lane to throw down a dunk over Battier that cut it to 82-74 with 8:22 remaining. His 3-pointer from the wing trimmed it to 90-86, and the Thunder got it all the way to 94-91 when Westbrook dunked Durant’s miss with 1:48 to go.

James answered by banking in a jumper for his first basket of the final period, as the Big Three combined for all but one of Miami’s seven field goals in the fourth quarter.

The Thunder missed 11 of their first 12 shots, and when James capped a run of 13 straight Miami points with a basket, it was 18-2 with 4:51 remaining in the period.

Coach Scott Brooks had talked to his team about its poor starts — this was three straight games with a double-digit deficit — and told the Thunder during a first-quarter timeout that the Heat were playing harder than they were. The Heat kept it up, pushing it to 25-8 on Wade’s jumper with 2:39 left.

“We kept missing good shots,” forward Serge Ibaka said. “We can do better.”

 

Game notes

The Heat used their 25th different lineup in their 86 games this season, including seventh of the postseason. The most frequently used lineup in the regular season, with James, Wade, Bosh, Chalmers and center Joel Anthony, has not opened a game in the postseason after going 27-10 during the regular season. … Reserve James Jones checked in for the Heat in the first quarter after missing Game 1 with a migraine. … Former Oklahoma star running back Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings was at the game. … A powerful storm knocked out cable in many South Florida homes, keeping Heat fans from seeing the entire game.

 

 

 

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Heat Face Hard Truths

by Ryan Wilson on June 13, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

There are a few truths the Miami Heat will have to come to terms with in these Finals and perhaps it was best to confront them right away.

They are playing a team that is deeper than them, both in terms of energy and bodies. They are facing an offensive force they are not accustomed to seeing in the Eastern Conference. And so far as Dwyane Wade, well, it’s not 2006.

The Heat were the underdogs in the Finals for a reason, and it was evident in the Oklahoma City Thunder‘s 105-94 win. It’s not to say the Heat can’t figure out ways to overcome these issues, but this first outing certainly displayed the Thunder’s advantages.

It is common in all Heat losses, especially in the playoffs, for observers to define a culprit and assess various amounts of criticism. Sometimes this is fair, sometimes it’s excessive and sometimes it misses the point. Finding a goat in this one is going to be challenging because the Heat are obviously facing the most complete opponent of the playoffs thus far.

The easiest target is Wade, who shot an inefficient 7-of-19 for 19 points. He did have eight assists but seemed to spend a lot of time with the ball in his hands in the second half, as the Heat’s overall offensive effectiveness ground to a halt while the Thunder zoomed past.

 

It’s been common this postseason when Wade doesn’t have superstar performances to question what might be wrong with him or his health. The reality, however, is that Wade is who he is now. He has flashes of brilliance, as he did for the three-game stretch against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, but he’s simply not the same player he was a few years ago, even if he’s still held to that standard.

He’s 30 years old with a troublesome left knee — getting it drained in the Pacers series was a temporary solution and also not the first time he had to have it done this season — and he’s played like it for months. Wade averaged the fewest points since his rookie year during the regular season, and he missed 17 games with various ailments including time when he was getting what the Heat called “maintenance” on his knee. It’s not that it’s badly hurt, it’s just that he’s limited, something that is unlikely to change in the short term.

Even with all that, Tuesday was a subpar game from Wade. There was a period in the second half when the Thunder turned up the pressure with transition offense and Wade responded by falling into a funk where his top priority looked to be trying to bait defenders and officials into putting him on the foul line. That’s never a sign he’s playing his best.

But judging Wade by past years’ standards is probably going to leave you disappointed. This postseason he’s averaging 22 points per game — same as he did in the regular season — and shooting 47 percent, slightly below his mark in the regular season. And that does include that three-game stretch against the Pacers when he averaged 33 points and shot 55 percent.

“Sorry man. You know, it’s the Finals. I’ve been doing it all year and I’m going to continue to do it,” Wade said, describing his offensive game which hasn’t been as aggressive or as potent as in the past. “One night I’m going to have a big night scoring, some nights I’m going to have a big night doing other things. Just doing whatever it takes to win the ballgame, not necessarily sitting up here worrying about scoring 30 points.”

Wade is being honest and a tad defensive. The thing is, however, the Heat do need the scoring. The Thunder average 102 points per game in the postseason. So Game 1 was only a slightly above average performance, even if the numbers — 56 points in the paint, 52 percent shooting, a 24-4 edge in fast break points — suggested otherwise.

The Heat will focus on some defensive lapses that allowed the Thunder to score a whopping 48 points on shots from inside five feet of the rim, but thinking the Thunder won’t find ways to get near triple digits every night is probably flawed logic. The 105 points were the most the Heat have allowed in regulation during the playoffs.

“They keep on coming, they’re relentless,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “They beat us at their game.”

The Heat got the requisite 30 points from LeBron James, though they could always use more and naturally more will be expected. Getting just 29 points combined from Wade andChris Bosh (10 points) probably will never be enough against the offense facing them in this series. The Heat recognize they’ll have to be more adept at slowing the Thunder’s fast break and that Bosh, who touched the ball only 26 times Tuesday, needs to be more involved.

In short, though, the Heat will likely need more points. They got a combined 29 points on 16 shots from Shane Battier and Mario Chalmers, not something you’d expect to see again. The Heat really need Wade to come alive again like he did in the Pacers series but there’s also the reality that they may have to get offense elsewhere.

“This first game, as in every series, is always just a game to see,” Wade said. “Now we make adjustments.”

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Thunder? Heat? Allow Us

by Ryan Wilson on June 13, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

Call yourself a Mavs fan?  Then root for the Heat.

Some of your minds are blown, I know. But just bear with me…….

Here’s an example that might clear it up, assuming you know anything about baseball and you’re a Texas Rangers fan.

In 2002, The SF Giants faced off against the Anaheim Angels.  The hated Barry Bonds vs. the Rally Monkey Angels.  Remember? I’m sure at the time, some Ranger fans were rooting for the Angels.  What was the harm right?  A lesser known team of scrappy ball players was making a run in October.  Plus most of you all loved to root against Barry Bonds.  But looking back, how dirty does it make you feel for rooting for the Angels in 2002?  Now that the Rangers/Angels rivalry is heated up, I despise the fact that the Angels fan base has ammo in a sports talk battle.  The dreaded, “We have a ring, how ‘bout you?”

What’s your point, Tony?

My point is that Lebron James is playing the part of Barry Bonds in these NBA finals.  Hated and despised for their own separate reasons, but hated none the less.  The OKC Thunder are the sweet little team that peaked a little earlier than planned like the 2002 Angels.  80% of Mavs nation is pulling for the Thunder.  I’ve cleverly come up with “80%” based solely off text messages and tweets.  But there is a healthy majority of Dallas Mavericks fans that are rooting for OKC simply because of their hate for the Miami Heat.  The hate is deserved and warranted.  But it’s misplaced.

My warning to you today is that in a few years when the Mavericks/Thunder rivalry reaches the level of Mavericks/Spurs, you’ll REGRET ever pulling for the Thunder.  You’ll despise the fact that they have as many championships as our Mavericks.  You’ll hear the Thunder’s new found fans talk trash and I guarantee you’ll hear this; “OKC has only been around for 4 years and we already have as many rings as Dallas.”  (Although we all know they were the Supersonics before moving to OKC so the 4 years thing is a little skewed.  But we wouldn’t expect a fan base like OKC’s to be clever enough to take that into consideration.  Ouch! SHOTS FIRED!).  Not to mention the fact that OKC has had minimal hardships on the way to the Larry O’Brien trophy, if they happen to win it.  Look at our precious Mavs, YEARS of torture and heartache.  Do we really want to see a young, cocky, brash, streaky shooting team from Oklahoma win a title?  So easily?  Nope.

Also, another reason to root for Miami is rather simple.  By the Mavericks beating the Heat last year, it will make our title look even better.  Miami would’ve taken down the favorites, OKC.  The Mavs would be the only team to solve and conquer the 3 headed Miami beast.  Our trophy will be shinier for this.  Just trust me.

Mavs fans, think this through and root against the Thunder.  Your future self will appreciate it.

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Heat Defend Home Court

by Ryan Wilson on May 31, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

The biggest postseason comeback in Miami Heat franchise history wasn’t enough.

The Heat needed more — and got it, digging deep to take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

LeBron James scored 34 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Dwyane Wade scored 23 and the Heat rallied from 15 down to beat the Boston Celtics 115-111 in overtime on Wednesday night.

Mario Chalmers scored 22 for the Heat, who won despite an unbelievable night by Rajon Rondo. The Celtics guard played all 53 minutes and scored 44 points, dished out 10 assists and grabbed eight rebounds. The Heat expected Boston’s best — and the Celtics didn’t disappoint.

“This group had resolve,” Wade said of the Celtics. “They came out and played a great game. It was physical early. They brought the game to us. That can’t happen. We used our crowd and the energy to get back into the game and we had to play better.”

Paul Pierce scored 21 points, Kevin Garnett added 18 and Ray Allen 13 for Boston.

Rondo finished 16 of 24 from the floor, 10 of 12 from the foul line and made both his 3-point tries.

“He was absolutely phenomenal,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “Put us, put the whole team at times on his shoulders. … We had a lot of opportunities to win the game.”

Allen’s 3-pointer with 34.3 seconds left tied the game at 99-all. James missed two shots, first a layup — he got the rebound of his own miss — and then a jumper on the final possession of regulation, and to overtime they went.

“We had to do it the tough way,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Game 3 is Friday in Boston.

The Heat had come back to win from 14 points down in playoff games twice before, first in Game 6 of the 2006 NBA finals — their title clincher — and again last season against Philadelphia.

And this one was slipping away, more than once. James missed two free throws 21 seconds into overtime, and Miami looked in trouble. But the Heat held on, in a game where they took 47 free throws — 24 by James — to Boston’s 29.

The scoring dossier in overtime began like this: Rondo scored, Heat tied it, Rondo scored, Heat tied it, Rondo scored, Heat tied it.

When Rondo missed a layup — he thought he was fouled, and the Celtics agreed — with 1:33 left, Miami took advantage, with Udonis Haslem getting a dunk to put the Heat up 105-103. And after a turnover on the next Boston possession, Wade drove the lane, hit the deck and watched as his layup bounced on the rim and dropped through.

Garnett stood over Wade and glared, to no avail. Wade hit the free throw, and Miami was up 110-105 with 59.7 seconds left.

On a night where the Heat missed 16 free throws — including at least four by James in crucial situations — they would survive.

“Now we’re going home,” Boston’s Mickael Pietrus said. “Our jersey is going to be white. They got two. Fine, good for them. But we’re going home now and you know what that means.”

Miami was down by 15 in the first half and by as many as 11 in the third quarter, before a pair of 3-pointers by James started a comeback. Wade made consecutive jumpers midway through the third to shake off a slow start to his night and get the Heat within three both times, and the 2006 NBA finals MVP set up Haslem for a three-point play with 2:55 left that gave Miami its first lead since the opening minutes, 73-71.

As Haslem’s shot dropped, Wade spun at midcourt and punched the air. More highlights followed.

Miami’s lead got to as much as seven in the third after James blocked Pierce’s shot near the rim, sending the ball high into the air and starting a sequence that was capped by a three-point play from Wade, pushing the margin to 78-71. It capped a 12-0 run for the Heat, who took an 81-75 lead into the fourth.

It was the fifth straight game where Miami outscored its opponent by double-digits in the third quarter. In each of the previous four of those outings, Miami never trailed in the final period.

That streak ended in this one.

And a call that Boston argued against played a big role in the Celtics getting the lead back.

James stole the ball from Rondo early in the fourth, drove down the court and got wrapped up by Pietrus, who was assessed a clear-path foul, meaning Miami got two free throws and the ball. James missed both foul shots, Mike Miller missed a 3-pointer later in the possession, and the lead stayed at 85-81.

Barely a minute later, it was gone. Pietrus hit a 3-pointer, Rondo followed with a steal and layup and Boston led 86-85. The Celtics led by five with 3:50 left after a jumper by Pierce, and the Celtics looked to be in control.

It was temporary. The Heat scored the next nine points, Haslem’s jumper with 1:08 remaining put Miami up 98-94. So of course, back came Boston — Allen’s 3-pointer tying the game a few moments after Pierce fouled out.

Early on, it was all Boston. Over the first 15-plus minutes, Boston was shooting 65 percent (15 for 23), Miami 27 percent (7 for 26). By halftime, Rondo had 22 points, the most anyone had scored in the first half of a playoff game against Miami since 2004.

“An incredible game,” Spoelstra said of the Celtics’ point guard.

Miami’s point guard did his best to keep the Heat close.

Chalmers had 12 in the second quarter and seven in a 14-6 Miami spurt to end the half. He hit a pair of 3-pointers during the flurry, Wade got his first points of the night on a falling-down layup with 27 seconds left and the Heat closed the margin to 53-46 by halftime.

 

Game notes

Celebrities in attendance included UCLA coach Ben Howland, rapper Flo Rida and former Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino, a regular in the Heat crowd. … Celtics F Greg Stiemsma had four fouls in the first quarter, the first NBA player to do that since 2009. … Rondo’s other 22-point first half was Feb. 22, 2009 at Phoenix. … Allen, considered one of the game’s absolute best shooters for many years, said he’s been getting plenty of unsolicited advice lately on how to get rolling again. “I’ve only been doing this for 20 years,” Allen said at the morning shootaround. … Haslem (6) had more rebounds than Boston (5) in the third quarter. … Heat C Ronny Turiaf started, played the first 4:51 and did not return. Joel Anthony started the second half in Turiaf’s place.

 

 

 

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Lebron, Wade Head Back To Miami All Even At 2-2

by Ryan Wilson on May 21, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

The coveted NBA championship, the one LeBron James needs to validate everything, was vanishing.

With 18,000 towel-waving fans roaring like an engine over at the Indianapolis Speedway, the Indiana Pacers had knocked the Miami Heat to the floor and to the edge of elimination.

James didn’t panic. He simply picked up his teammates and carried them to a win.

And this time, Dwyane Wade helped.

James scored 40 points with 18 rebounds and nine assists, and Wade added 30 points — 22 in the second half — as Miami rallied to even their semifinal series against Indiana with a 101-93 win on Sunday over the Pacers, who had the defending Eastern Conference champions down couldn’t keep them there.

“I felt like I had to do whatever it took to win,” said James, who played all but four minutes.

With All-Star forward Chris Bosh injured and back in Florida, the James-Wade tag team saved the Heat, who will host Game 5 on Tuesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.

“Me and ‘Bron had it going,” said Wade, who bounced back from the worst playoff game of his career — five points on 2-of-13 shooting — with one of his best, “We played off of each other very well. We both were aggressive at the same time. That’s beautiful basketball for the Miami Heat when we play that way.”

The Heat now head home back in control of the best-of-seven series, which is down to a best-of-three with two of the games on Miami’s home floor.

“It’s still going to be a dogfight,” James said.

Udonis Haslem, playing with a large bandage covering a nasty cut over his right eye that required nine stitches, added 14 points for Miami.

For a while, the Heat’s season was slipping away.

The underrated Pacers had built a 10-point lead in the third quarter and were threatening to run away as they did in Game 3, when James and Wade took over. They scored 38 consecutive points in one stretch bridging the second and third quarters and combined to score 28 of Miami’s 30 in the third when the Heat seemed to be playing with two to Indiana’s five.

“LeBron had that look,” Heat forward Shane Battier said. “And when he has that look and Dwyane has that look, you want to run through a wall.”

Wade finished with nine rebounds and six assists, erasing the ugly memory of Game 3 when he also had a confrontation with Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, a public dispute that turned into a bigger deal than it probably was because of a two-day break between games. The next day, Wade, who has refused to blame injuries for his recent struggles, visited his former Marquette coach Tom Crean, who is now at Indiana.

Wade said Crean had film for him to watch.

“I was able to be a student of the game,” Wade said. “Just figuring out what I needed to do differently to help our team get this win. I just wanted to come out today and affect the game somehow. Obviously, I knew I was struggling a little bit on my offensive game. I wasn’t going to let that affect my overall game.”

James dismissed the idea the Heat were desperate team.

“That’s a strong word,” he said. “It’s a team with a lot of veterans and a lot of fighters.”

Danny Granger scored 20 and Paul George 13 to lead the Pacers. Center Roy Hibbert, so dominant at both ends in Game 3, had just 10 points and was in foul trouble in the second half.

Indiana coach Frank Vogel second-guessed his decision to keep Hibbert and David West on the bench for a long stretch after halftime. But it was the Pacers’ inability to stop Wade and James that was the difference.

“You get the ball out of one of those guy’s hands and it gets to the other guy’s,” he said. “It’s not like one superhero and a bunch of role guys.”

Granger’s 3-pointer had given Indiana a 61-51 and the Pacers, outhustling the Heat to loose balls, appeared poised to take a commanding lead in the series.

But that’s when James and Wade put on a jaw-dropping spectacle, combining for all but two points in a 25-5 run that put Miami up 76-66.

During one sequence, Wade lost his balance and fell and was lucky to push the ball toward James near the top of the key. As Wade scrambled to his feet, James alertly passed him the ball and he calmly knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Heat a 64-63 lead. The pair made easy shots, tough ones and did everything in their power to steer Miami away from a 3-1 hole.

Only eight teams in league history have overcome a 3-1 deficit to win a best-of-seven series. That’s what the Heat were staring at with a loss in Game 4.

The Heat took a 76-70 lead into the fourth, and every time Indiana got close, either Wade or James responded.

Miami also got a huge lift down the stretch from Haslem, who hasn’t been a factor in the series but made four big jumpers in the final six minutes despite having his head split by an elbow by Indiana’s Louis Amundson.

“Those guys carry a large load,” Haslem said of Wade and James. “But sometimes we need other guys to step up and tonight was my turn. Next time it might be somebody else.”

Granger’s 3-pointer got the Pacers within 96-91 with 1:33 left, but Haslem hit another short shot and James closed the Pacers out with three free throws in the last 16 seconds.

Following the game, James sat in front of his locker icing both knees and reading a hard copy of “Hunger Games.”

After finishing a page or two, he set the book down. There’d be time for that later.

The Heat were heading home, feeling good about the next chapter.

 

Game notes

James, Wade and Haslem combined for 53 of Miami’s 55 second-half points. … Before the game, Miami F Juwan Howard and Pacers G Stephenson exchanged words. In Game 3, Stephenson mocked James by flashing a choke sign after James missed a foul shot and Howard confronted the Indiana reserve. Pacers assistant coach Brian Shaw stepped between the players. … Granger was slapped with his second technical in two games after getting in Wade’s face late in the second quarter. … James was one rebound shy of his postseason high. … The national anthem was performed on harmonica by 85-year-old Carl Erskine, who pitched for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1948-59. Erskine is an Indiana native. … Heat owner Micky Arison was asked for his autograph by several fans sitting near the Miami bench. “You must be desperate,” he cracked.

 

 

 

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Miami Heat Knock Out Knickerbockers

by Ryan Wilson on May 10, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

The final horn sounded, and LeBron James wrapped his arms aroundCarmelo Anthony in a warm embrace.

Their head-to-head scoring matchup in this series was even, 139 points apiece.

Just about everything else tipped Miami’s way — so the Heat are moving on and the New York Knicks are going home.

James had 29 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade both scored 19 points and the Heat ousted the short-handed Knicks 106-94 in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference first-round series Wednesday night.

The Heat won the series 4-1, and will meet Indiana in the East semifinals starting Sunday in Miami.

“We do not take this for granted,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “This was a tough series. We feel very good about moving on and it’ll only get tougher from here.”

For the Heat, it was only the first step. The reigning East champions have one goal — getting back to the finals and winning it all — and that was likely why even beating the franchise’s longtime rival prompted, at most, a subdued celebration.

“We will savor this win tonight,” James said. “And then we get to work tomorrow and get ready for Indiana.”

Anthony scored 35 points for the Knicks, including a spinning jumper over James at the end of the third quarter that pulled New York within 81-67. It was far from being enough to stave off an all too familiar playoff result for Anthony, part of that 2003 draft class that also yielded James, Bosh and Wade.

Anthony has played 54 postseason games, being part of wins only 17 times. A misleading stat for certain — it’s hardly all on him — and no shortage of people in the Heat organization interrupted their celebrating of a series-clincher to tip their caps Anthony’s way afterward.

“We fought, under the circumstances,” Anthony said. “I’m not one to make any excuses for anything. … But Miami, they’re a tough defensive team. They stick to what their schemes are.”

James shot 48 percent from the field in the series; Anthony shot 42 percent. James averaged 6.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists; Anthony averaged 8.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists.

“It was fun, man,” James said. “He’s one of the most competitive players I’ve ever played against in a playoff series.”

Amare Stoudemire scored 14 points, Landry Fields and J.R. Smith both added 12, Mike Bibby had 10 and Tyson Chandler grabbed 11 rebounds for New York, which is 1-8 in playoff games with Anthony and Stoudemire as teammates.

“Miami is a very good team,” Stoudemire said. “You have to give credit to them.”

Stoudemire fouled out with 4:48 left, and the Knicks put together one more run with hopes of extending the season. New York cut the margin to 11 points four times in a 2-minute span, but Miami answered every time, the last of those a 3-pointer by Shane Battier with 54 seconds left.

That sent the white seat covers flying in all corners of the arena, the fans knowing it was finally over.

“There’s a lot of pride that takes place in this kind of series,” Wade said. “Even though it was a five-game series, it was a very tough series to win. … I thought it helped us. You couldn’t overlook this team.”

Bibby averaged 0.5 points in first-quarter appearances this season. That was before scoring eight in the opening minutes of Game 5, including a jumper over Wade that gave New York a quick 14-8 lead.

It was one of New York’s few moments to enjoy. James had 13 points on only six field-goal attempts by halftime, Wade shook off a scoreless first quarter with 12 in the second, and Miami went into the break leading 55-44.

The margin was less than 10 points for only 90 seconds of the third quarter. Stoudemire went to the bench with his fifth foul with 6:41 left in the third, and Miami went on an 11-2 spurt not long after that all but sealed the outcome. It was 67-58 when Fields made two free throws with 4:49 left in the quarter — and then the Heat’s “Big Three” needed just 3 minutes to blow the game open.

Bosh and Wade combined for six points in that flurry, James the other five, including a 21-footer with 1:29 left to put Miami up 78-60.

“It was very crucial,” James said. “We had an 11- or 12-point lead in Game 4 and we weren’t able to bump it up to 15, 16. … We allowed them to get back into the game. We were very conscious tonight when we got that lead.”

For the Knicks, it was the 12th straight season without a playoff series victory. The last time New York advanced in the postseason came at Miami’s expense in 2000 in the East semifinals.

New York’s season started with great expectations. Not long after the lockout ended the Knicks acquired Chandler from Dallas, a move made possible by using the amnesty clause on Chauncey Billups.

Those moves were expected. Just about everything else that happened was not. From the firing of coach Mike D’Antoni to the emergence of Jeremy Linbefore he was sidelined by a knee injury, the Knicks had a roller-coaster ride that continued with a baffling series of injuries against Miami.

Rookie guard Iman Shumpert was lost in the third quarter of Game 1 to a torn knee ligament, Stoudemire sliced his left hand after taking out his frustrations on a metal-and-glass fire extinguisher case after a Game 2 loss, and Baron Davis shredded his knee so badly in Game 4 that he is expected to be out a year — at least.

“I thought we played well in spurts,” Knicks interim coach Mike Woodson said. “Our guys got a short taste of what playoff basketball’s about. It’s something this summer we’ve got to sit and think about and hopefully get ready for next season.”

He didn’t put any extra emphasis on the word “hopefully,” but he could have. One of New York’s first orders of business this offseason will likely be deciding if Woodson will be back on the sideline, as many expect.

“Woody’s done a heck of a job with that team,” Spoelstra said.

Game notes
Miami went 7-1 against the Knicks this season, including playoffs. The Heat won three of four games against Indiana this season. … James had seven points, five assists and zero field goals in the first quarter. Only two other players (Billups in 2007 and Jerryd Bayless in 2011, both in fourth quarters) had done that in any quarter since James entered the league, according to STATS LLC. … Rapper Rick Ross was among those courtside.

 

 

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Just In The KNICK Of Time

by Ryan Wilson on May 7, 2012 in Mavs 09 comments

Amare Stoudemire raised his hands in the air, one covered in padding, as streamers fell from the ceiling above him.

Finally, New York could celebrate an NBA playoff victory again.

Carmelo Anthony scored 41 points, Stoudemire had 20 points and 10 rebounds in his return from a cut hand, and the Knicks snapped an NBA-record, 13-game postseason losing streak by beating the Miami Heat 89-87 Sunday in Game 4 of their first-round series.

“I think it’s the first of many,” said Stoudemire, his left arm back in a sling to keep his hand elevated. “Tonight was a great win for us, for our fans to finally get over that hump of those consecutive games that we lost, I guess the Knicks, lost over those years in the playoffs.”

Anthony made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 54.5 seconds left as the Knicks overcame another serious injury to win a playoff game for the first time since beating Toronto on April 29, 2001, in Game 3 of a best-of-five series.Baron Davis dislocated his right kneecap in the third quarter, just as the Knicks were making the run that got them back into the game after a dismal first half.

“I’m just glad that we came together after that, kept our composure, kept on fighting and won the basketball game,” Anthony said.

LeBron James scored 27 for the Heat, who will try to close it out in Game 5 at home on Wednesday.Dwyane Wade had 22, but missed a 3-pointer on the last possession that would have given Miami a lengthy rest before starting the second round.

“We’d love to take the week (off) but it’s not in the cards for us to do that in this round,” Wade said. “You know, we’ll adjust. We play Wednesday in Miami at 7 o’clock. We’ll be ready to play and give our fans another exciting game.”

Wade’s errant shot set off a loud celebration from Knicks fans whose team was on the verge of getting swept for the second straight year, and third straight time dating to 2004. It didn’t look as if the elusive postseason victory would come in this series, after the Knicks had been blown out by 20 points per game in the first three games.

But they got a huge lift from Stoudemire, playing with padding over his hand just six days after he punched a fire extinguisher case after a Game 2 loss in Miami. And they got a sensational effort from Anthony, who shot 15 of 29 and was one point shy of his playoff career best after he made only 34.4 percent of his shots in the first three games.

“We stepped up to the challenge,” Anthony said.

Now here comes another: The Knicks need a solution at point guard after Davis was carted off on a stretcher with his severe knee injury. Jeremy Lin is close to returning from knee surgery, but Iman Shumpert was lost with a torn knee ligament in Game 1.

A day after the Dallas team that beat them in the finals was swept by Oklahoma City, the Heat failed in their attempt for their first sweep since beating Washington in the 2005 Eastern Conference semifinals.

The series was on pace to be one of the most lopsided in NBA history through three games, but this one was within four points the entire fourth quarter, the crowd at Madison Square Garden growing louder with every play that moved the Knicks closer to their first playoff win in 11 years.

Mike Bibby‘s 3-pointer with 1:23 left snapped an 81-all tie, but the Heat called timeout and ran a play that freed James for a wide-open 3 that tied it again seven seconds later. On the Knicks’ next possession, Anthony came far beyond the arc to receive the ball after JR Smith picked up his dribble, then dribbled forward and pulled up for a 3 that made it 87-84 with 54.5 to play.

The Heat turned it over on their next possession when Chris Bosh‘s pass sailed into the backcourt, and Anthony was fouled by Shane Battier attempting a 3-pointer. He made only one foul shot, and the Heat cut it to one again when James converted a three-point play while drawing Tyson Chandler‘s sixth foul.

Stoudemire made a free throw with 14 seconds left to make it 89-87, and Wade lost control of the ball driving into the middle on Miami’s last possession. He regained it and dribbled to the corner for a 3-pointer that was off.

“I had a lane and then I kind of lost the ball. When I lost it, I knew that they’d recover by then so it made me dribble it out,” Wade said. “We got the switch and I got a little step on Amare and I was about to go to my shot. I was about to go to my shot but I kind of fumbled the ball a little bit. I thought I got a good look. I thought it was going in. But it came up a little short.”

Stoudemire had surgery Wednesday to repair a muscle in his left hand and the Knicks had listed him as doubtful for Sunday, but he was back on the court during practice Friday and cleared to play in Game 4.

He was back in his usual spot as the last player introduced during starting lineups, getting a loud reception, and he quickly picked the Knicks up after their sluggish start.

“He’s a good player. He’s a great player honestly, and he gave them the spark that they needed,” James said.

The Heat jumped to an 8-1 lead, holding the Knicks without a basket for almost four minutes to start the game. Then Stoudemire had three baskets in a 12-2 spurt to give the Knicks the lead, and they were up 20-18 after one following two free throws by Anthony with 7.3 seconds left.

The game then turned into a foul-fest, with 23 called in the second period. The Heat shot 19 free throws, making 14, while the Knicks were 8 of 9. Stoudemire and Chandler both went to the bench with their third fouls, but the Heat failed to pull away even after forcing the Knicks to miss their first six shots of the period while opening a 10-point lead.

Both teams shot 33 percent in the quarter, played at a glacial pace while the teams paraded to the free-throw line. Miami led 44-38 at halftime.

Miami led 51-40 before the Knicks’ offense finally got going. Stoudemire made a jumper and converted a three-point play, Anthony made a layup, and Smith stole the ball and made a 3-pointer for a quick 10-0 run.

James missed and the ball was batted up ahead to Davis, who drove in with a chance to give the Knicks the lead. But his leg buckled near the foul line and he crumbled to the court, called for a travel. Concerned teammates quickly waved for help, and Davis was wheeled off the court.

But New York regrouped and surged into the lead, going up by six late in the period before taking a 64-61 advantage to the fourth. After making only 13 baskets in the first half, the Knicks shot 10 of 20 in the third, getting 11 points from Anthony.

Game notes
Heat reserve C Eddy Curry (flu) was not with Miami for the game. … There was a musical tribute during a second-quarter timeout for Adam “MCA” Yauch of the Beastie Boys, who died Friday of cancer.

 

 

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