Let's talk about The Finals

The NBA Finals begins on Tuesday in Oklahoma City. Here are three initial talking points...

TRACK MEET
Get ready for a fast-paced series. Both teams like to get out and run. The Thunder enters The Finals averaging 102.3 points per game in the playoffs. The Heat is averaging 96.1 points in the postseason and 99.2 points per game in victories.

"Finally in the NBA Finals you’re going to get to see great athletes be great athletes," said Magic Johnson on ESPN post-game show.

LEBRON JAMES VS. KEVIN DURANT
LeBron James is averaging 30.8 points per game this postseason, the most of any other player. Kevin Durant is averaging 27.8 points per game entering The Finals. James will guard Durant plenty in The Finals. Can't wait.

BATTLE OF THE BIG 3s
LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are averaging 67.4 points per game in the playoffs. The Thunder's Big 3 of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden are averaging 67.1 points per game entering The Finals.

Thoughts?

Comments

[sanya]

Thoughts? It'll be awesome! Best possible match-up.

[Ironman]

This should only be a track meet for the Heat who should run only when they have an advantage . The Heat MUST slow OKC down .Rebound.Play Wade at the pt to get Westbrook in foul trouble and also be able to move the ball better. Man and ball movement must be huge w cuts n back door cuts .

LEBRON must stay in the paint and work the side and elbow as he did in game 6. The Heat must attack the rim and work the mid block pick and roll w LEBRON n Bosh or LEBRON n Wade. If Turiaf,Miller ,Jones or Anthony don't score, they must play limited time. Use the little PT gd as a weapon . Have a zone offense ready as Durant will get protected in the zone .

[mike1361]

HEAT HAVE BIG 3 .... slightly better than OKC Big 3 ...... but the other 2 starters on OKC (Ibakka and Perkins, are much better than Chalmers and J.Anthony) ..... and OKC has home court advantage .... and the NBA finals uses a 2-3-2 arrangement, which is better than 2-2-1-1-1 for the team with home court advantage ....

I looke for an OKC blowout of Miami in game 1 ..... and a closer win in game 2 ....

Then, down 2-0 the Heat will go 2-1 in the next 3 games (in Miami)

the series returns to OKC with them leading 3-2 ..... I dont see Miami winning 2 games in a row at OKC

OKC in 6 ......

[Carl]

@ironman man go post on the Oklahoma herald or something you don't know nothing about basketball. You see how Dallas beat us in game 2 on our court and they stole home court from us. NOBODY HOME COURT IS SAFE IN THE PLAYOFFS. You just have to play hard enough team ball and you'll win. Anybody can beat anybody on their home floor dude. So don't say the thunder won't lose a home game. Especially against this great miami team. You sound stupid.

[Go C's]

Heat suck.

[BRING THE HATE]

@Go C's yeah the Heat suck thats why they're in the Finals you douchetard!!

[boy pickup]

OKC for the win!!

[boy pickup]

Seriously...Miami don't have a Serge Ibaka and a Kendrick Perkins down the middle.

J. Anthony no good..

Haslem is a fighter but I hate seeing his high looper of a shot that most of time doesnt fall.

OKC 2012 champs!

[black the trucker]

GET READY.... YEAH BABY....

[badmarmaduke]

Go Heat!!!!

[derbani1976]

I bet the heat will win in 6 series.....
Everyone expect OKC and that's when dwade lebron n bosh will show up lol

[Jerry Ellis]

Miami in 4. OKC is good but never played for all the marbles and the it will OKC Nerves = 0, MIA Experience = 4.

Go Heat!

[OKC!]

OKC!

[DwadeisaDbg]

Yes, the Heat won, with the help of the lopsided officiating. Too bad they couldn't have won it fair and square - I think the NBA thought they needed the extra help so they made sure the Celtics would sit down because of too many fouls. If OKC gets fair refereeing they can BEAT THE HEAT. Wade is very over-rated and LBJ hasn't totally forgotten how to choke. LBJ had zero personal fouls - did they SHD after the game too? I hope the Heat gets swept right out to the ocean :) Hold on for another disappointment Miami.

[Thunder#1]

The thunder will win on miami's floor! Bosh will be stretched out crying again!

[Thunder#1]

The heat have not played a team as fast as the thunder. Lebron will be 0-3 in finals.

[Thunder#1]

This will be a good series. miami is not going to be ready for the speed and quickness of the thunder. Wade will not be able to keep up and be in foul trouble all series.

[Thunder#1]

Miami can run the floor but not like the thunder!

[Thunder#1]

Durant long arms will be poking the ball from lebron all series! Lets go thunder!!!

[bbfan]

Three times will be a charm for James.

[derbani1976]

Dwade will show up against the thunders.....mark my words!

[Dashi]

Wow, how many okc fans?

I didn't know that many existed. There is more OKC fans on this blog than in all of Oklahoma. (Quick Fact for the AzzClowns: There are about 1 million more people in DADE County, than in all Oklahoma.)
Where were u last week? Oh, That's right different name, U guy's are Hilarious. It's always the same clowns. HATE, HATE, HATE. Hey Clownz, Take Lebron's meat out of ur throat, It's not helping ya get enough Oxygen to Ur Brain. Breathe fools. Disillusion and Dizziness are two Major Signs of a HEAT STROKE. Don't worry we expect all of ya to fall into a coma and die after the finals. The 2 other signs If Ya don't get treated properly.

What's going to happen to U Idiots when there is no one else to root for after the heat win?

That's right Clown#1 & Clown#2(Insert Ur name here) are going to be on Biscayne with a sign asking for some Change to get out of town, While the rest of Us enjoy the Parade.

[heatnationdjb]

For all who dis like the heat, Watch golf.... As much as you want OKC to win. Won't happen in 2012!

I have a question, Who will gaurd Bosh in the first qtr, Lebron in the 2nd qtr, and the BIG L,B,W second half??

Difference between these two teams are the bench, while OKC rely heavily on bech production (scoring), Miami doesn't, only defensive production, any points scored from bench amounts to a blowout, not a close game...

Plus in the NBA finals, 7-8 man rotation anyway......

Heat in 5.... Bet on it :-| <~~~~~ Lebron FACE (Gm 6 & 7) lmao

[derbani1976]

OKC is a great team individually but not as a TEAM like Boston and the Heat will exploit that......
Who can guard LBJ, Wade, Bosh????
Please don't tell me Selfalosha, Perkins or Ibaka lol

[black the trucker]

The time has come.... Get ready... These first two games will be very physical and we have to bring it... We really need at least one, but let's try to get twoo.... tbc... 007....

[taheati]

Dear Okies,

Ain't no Thunder without lightning, ain't no lightning without Heat.

We OWN you.

So suck it.

[Mark]

seriously!? Are there any men on this blog who can discuss basketball without resorting to namecalling and vulgarity? Try showing soe intelligence and class.

Heat in 6

[taheati]

Lighten up Mark.

"Suck it" isn't necessarily "vulgar." Depends on where YOUR mind is.

ibid. Easy A, PG-13, about 2:55 in the following clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MaCp4jIwyI

[Dashi]

???? Stop looking to pick-up men on this site. Not Cool

This will be a great series. We better Win this series or else. I'ma try and keep quiet until the end about that Amateur who coaches the heat. I'll give him his proper respect for winning 1 Title, when it happens. Til then?

I just can't and won't compare him with All-Time Greats like some do, without the clown ever winning anything in his coaching career College, Pro, Over-Seas, Etc. That Guy needs to win at least 2 for me to fully respect him as a coach. Look at his team any coach will trade for his job, even OKC. Why do U think Phil is still waiting for a job? He's waiting for the right 1 to open up.

I'ma try and play nice this series, But if not then U already know what I say should happen in My 1 page Book. Yes, I'm looking at U

http://basketball.realgm.com/images/nba/4.2/wiretap/photos/2006/Spoelstra_Erik_mia_090403.jpg

Put The Guns Down. U don't have to do that, Buddy. Just Yet

[jpejeff]

The Heat is gonna kill Okc. Bury them thUNDERGROUND now.

[Michael]

Dashi, what do you mean he hasn't won anything, have you been sleeping the last 2 years. What is an Eastern Conf Championship, and out coaching Doc this year and last. This isn't a perfect team as constructed, and he has made adjustments, and won. In fact the 2 years without the big 3; that is Wade and very little else he took them to the play off. You sound like you know little of basketball.

[manteca33149]

We need to look at why we lost to OKC in March and whether our game plan - and outcome - would have been different had LBJ not been playing with a bum finger. Our victory against them in April may be a better indicator of how we should prepare - at least for game 1.

[greg gembe]

Michael with an early round TKO of Dashi.

GOOD MONDAY MORNING, HEAT NATION!!!

[db7578]

If the Heat match their intensity this should be a win for the heat. Were equally as athletic and much more experienced in the finals. Wade 3, Lebron 3, Bosh 1, compared to Fisher about 7 and Perkins 2. The Heat will be much better prepared for the circus than OKC will and Spo won't get out coached this series. I say the Heat in Seven winning twice in OKC. This series will come down to the heat roll players stepping up and our defense making life tough on OKC. Make OKC grind and not flow smoothly.

[Gr1mR34p3r221]

James Harden isn't really at the same level of play as Miami's Big 3 or OKC's Big 2.

[db7578]

Correction Fisher 8 Perkins 3 including this finals. I say the Heat will steal game 1 as OKC will be to excited and nervous.

[greg gembe]

Harden is for real, don't sell him short. Nobody is on LBJ's level right now, but Harden must be accounted for on both ends of the court.

[Heatup]

I'm not gona get into all the banter on this one...i'm just gona watch and enjoy a great series.

The Heat have a couple holes and so do the Thunder. I would say the thunder don't really have a scoring big and we have Bosh...Miami doesn't really have a strong punch off the bench, thunder have Harden.

In end game situations, I would like to see Wade guarding Westbrook, Lebron on Durant, Battier on Harden with Bosh and UD in the front court.

We lack girth on the interior so i could see JA playing more minutes...

Only guy i really hate on the thunder is that jerrycurl on his chin Perkins...Wade needs to remember the shoe to the face from Perkins in the regular season and play with attitude, he seems to play better with a chip on his shoulder.

Overall, the time is NOW for Lebron...i'll go with the "its just not Durant's time yet" theory...Heat in 6!!

[energy_bust]

It a fact that Harden hasn't reached DWade's level. It just appears that Wade has regressed to Harden's level.

[Dashi]

Has he ever won a title?
An ECF is not winning in my book. Title or Else

How many ECF/MVP has Lebron Won?
Yet, Everyone says Lebron hasn't won anything. Just stating My Opinion In a Democratic Society, Buddy.

Greg don't throw gas on the Fire. It Heat's up Quick. U and I both know I've never tasted defeat. Lord knows u've tried with the I'm Taking my Ball and Going Home Attitude. I've never even been KO'd much less TKO'd. U've jabbed me up once or twice, But I'm like Money Mayweather Jr.

Some of U guys take a win as out-coaching someone. Maybe U should check Ur Basketball Acumen, Not Me.

That's the easiest way to try and discredit someone's opinion son, Calling them Inept or to DeNigrate them is the easy way out. C'mon Man. I thought U wanted to have an Intellectual Conversation that Stimulate the mind. Smart People don't try and Annihilate Others Opinions, They Discuss them in a Civilized way.

If Slo' would've Out-Coached Doc we would've swept the series. He Under preformed if U ask me. Ur telling Me U expected an Old Undermanned Boston Taking Miami to 7, Not Me. I had the Heat winning in 5, Giving Boston a Game. If Lebron Doesn't do what hasn't been done in 50 years, we lose game 6. Did Slo' have anything to do with that Herculean Effort. Did he motivate Bron into creating that Stoic Face and Demeanor?

[greg gembe]

I'm with you Heatup - Perkins is going to be at the center of some $hit this series, guarantee it!

Here's the matchups I'ld love to see at the end of the game.

Westbrook - Coles
Hardin - Miller
Durant - Jones
Ibaka - Howard
Perkins - Pittman

Hopefully that lineup comes with a 20pt lead for the Heat.

I see our coach changing lineups and rotations, AGAIN! Being that it's a different series, (and Perkins is NOT KG), and we are versatile, I think that's OK. But I'm not sure, will the players be able to adjust to the new strategy, substitution patterns, or will their game be devestated by the switch. Hopefully, the Heat coaching staff guesses right on this one.

Was Boston's Ainge's experiment (well, getting as much talent on your team as possible, seems like it should be a goal for EVERY team) you know, with their Big 3, a success? 5 years - 1 tropy, 2 trips to the finals, and getting bounced by the Heat in the last two years - will History show that as a success? Just trying to judge where the bar is for this Heat team.

[Dashi]

I think Boston Under Achieved. Doc is a great coach, but he's not all-time great. It doesn't help that they were all above 31 when they got together, all past their Prime. We are Younger and Better than they will ever be. We are halfway there, 2 finals appearance, no title just yet. That's why I say if we don't win this year keep the Players get rid of the Amateur.

[greg gembe]

...you really can't make this stuff up.....it's gold Jerry, GOLD!

[Heatup]

Dashi, do you at least see what you're doing here? I'll lay it out for you.

-Heat lose, its the Spo's fault
-Heat win, its the players doing it in spite of Spo.

-Celtics win, Doc did a great job.
-Celtic lose, Doc couldn't overcome age difference.

Do you not see the double standard?? Just want to make sure I got it straight, Spo's in a no win situation in YOUR eyes.

BTW, how was that coaching move to bring Bosh off the bench as i stated before?? How about noticing that the corner 3 has been open in the series and putting bosh out there so that Garnett would have to leave his man or leave Bron/Wade 1 on 1?

[Dashi]

Even if we win I'll FIRE SPO. That's my opinion.
If we win I'll give him his respect. I just won't compare him against Phil or Popabitch. U need to win at least 3 to earn that amount of respect. People didn't fully respect Phil till he won with the Lakers, They say it was Jordan not Phil. How many titles MJ won Before Phil? 0 How About After? 0 What about as an owner? LOL, Jordan runs a team like Shane's shots 3's, just horrible.

The Celtic's winning only 1 title is an Under Achievement. Last year and This year we beat a beat up celtic's team. Doc did a good job making them fight the way they did, but we shouldn't be celebrating beating the Celtics in 7. We are way more talented, We got the Players. That Corner 3 was open cause Shane was shooting it all series. Nobody expected Bosh to make it consistently either. I will still trust Bosh more with that shot or any shot over battier any day.

[Ron Romanowski]

Nostradamus predicted the finals:
I give to you quatrain iv.99

The brave eldest son of a kings daughter will drive the celts back far. He will use thunder, so many and in such array, few and distant, then deep into the west

Clearly this refers to King James!

[Heatup]

I didn't ask if you'd fire spo & you are entitled to your opinion, but you proved my point on the double standard with the following statements:

"Even if we win I'll FIRE SPO. That's my opinion."
"Doc did a good job making them fight the way they did"

Spo can't win in YOUR eyes...he's the goat in this situation and should be fired no matter what. Meanwhile, Doc should be praised for his failure and gets a pass for losing because he "did a good job making them fight"?? WTF? Is it just the fact that he's a young guy who hasn't won a championship YET?? All these great coaches had to start somewhere, no? Phil-Jax wasn't first hired by the bulls with 11 championships on his resume. Personally, i'm rooting for Spo to become the next great coach...he's capable and if we do win a few, he will be considered so.

[Heatup]

I didn't ask you if you would fire Spo, thats obvious, but thank you for proving my point Dashi...

"Even if we win I'll FIRE SPO."
"Doc did a good job making them fight the way they did"

Spo cannot win in YOUR eyes while Doc gets praise for his falure...Wake up buddy, cause you are witnessing Spo become the next "great coach"...don't be too stupid & hard headed to realize it.

[Heatup]

sorry for double post, didn't look like the first one posted.

[miami-water.com/blog]

I like the Heats chances with the perimeter defense of Battier and James. Battier has to be more consistent from 3 though. Miller was MIA last series. Haslem is ok though like Miller had a better series vs Indiana than the celts. Haslem needs to get that baseline jumper hitting again to keep Serge Ibaki honest. I have been more impressed with Chalmers driving the lane though i still feel the heat lack that true point guard who can find james and wade for easy buckets. That's why i would not be surprised that the rumors are true that Steve Nash maybe coming to the heat.
http://miami-water.com/blog/steve-nash-considers-joining-the-miami-heat/

If Bosh continues to hit the 3 at a decent percentage that will be huge. It will be interesting to see what spo will do when they bring in Perkins off the bench. How will spo counter? Could we see more of the younger players enter the rotation?

[More Heat]

All the experts pick the Thunder to win easy. Sometimes I have to wonder what they looking at. The Heat will bring defence that the Thunder hasnt seen yet this post season. When we go big we can switch everything and lose very little. I wouldnt be surprised that if the Heat is focussed from game one, that they sweep the Thunder.

[Dashi]

U did read the line after FIRE SPO

"If we win I'll give him his respect. I just won't compare him against Phil or Popabitch. U need to win at least 3 to earn that amount of respect."

That means yes if he wins 1, Slo' should earn some respect, If not Fire Spo'. When He wins, he will fall in that Doc River, Rick Carlisle Class. They can afford a screw up or 2. Until then He's Rodney Dangerfield to me and that might be giving him to much respect. U have to win more than 3 to be considered great or All-Time. U know Pat, Phil, Red, Pop.

But U guys are Anointing him the Second Coming of Pat Riley. When He's not even a Van Gundy yet. He's only taken this team where everybody's expected them to go, Nothing More. Some of Us were not just expecting to go the NBA finals every year. Lebron could've stayed home and done that by himself. We should be expecting to win a Title Every Year Like MJ in His Prime. Not 1, Not 2, Not 3. That's what this Amateur is Ultimately is going to be rated on. How many titles did he help Lebron and the Heat Win? He better start this Year or else.

I expect Heat in 5. We just have to win 1 at OKC.

[Mr. B]

Joe, I feel like you have the worst blog in the Sports section. You rarely have information, never break any news. You just recycle old info, give pointless analysis, not adding anything. I also think you're a dirt bag reporter, asking stupid, agenda influenced questions in press conferences. The Herald is doing its readers a disservice having you run the blog on probably the most covered team in U.S. sports.

[taheati]

Didn't like Wade on Rondo, DON'T like Wade on Westbrook. Why? Assigning Wade to Rondo was a high cost, little reward, lucky-we-weren't-burned maneuver. Wade used a lot of tread covering Rondo which left him w/wobbly wheels for offense. Wade was a little better than Chalmers, but Rondo still had his way. Net: Rondo was still Rondo but Wade was a little-to-a-lot less Wade.

Worse: Westbrook is even quicker than Rondo, as Tony Parker ruefully discovered. And Spo *is* a creature of habit. So Wade will likely defend Westbrook, Hardin or both when Rio struggles to cover. Meanwhile, Thabo will do his typical defensive number on Wade despite limited mins. (in 12 x head2heads v Sefalosha, the Heat is 3-9 with Wade averaging FG%/43%).

If he assigns Wade to defend Westbrook, it'd surprise no one if Wade continues to struggle (offensively). Of course, if Wade gets off early (against Thabo) & Brooks returns the favor (Westbrook on Wade) -- the reverse is also true (Westbrook expending more energy to put the brakes on Wade).

Overrated: Perkins. Perk is a beast but he's not a shot-blocker, runner, closer or much of a rebounder. The Thunder funnels their d to him betting on collisions.

Harden. In some metrics, Harden is OKC's best player (on/off court @ 82games.com). In others, "merely" 2nd best (postseason WS/48 @ basketball-reference.com). Harden isn't a burner like Westbrook, but he's crafty and deadly from 3. Miller wouldn't be a bad matchup; in 3 x head2heads, both average 40+% from 3 tho' Harden got off more shots. Other options: Terrel Harris. With Bosh coming around, Pittman isn't needed unless you want beef-for-beef perfection matching up against Perkins. Activate Harris and you get another long, athletic body to rotate (defensively) against Harden, Westbrook or even Durant.

[Dashi]

I could see him put Shane on Harden. If he put's him back on the bench where he belong's. We have the players JA, Battier, JJ, Milk, and Cole off the bench looks better than what OKC has. Bosh and UD should be Starting. Wade and Lebron shouldn't be wasting so much energy on Defense trying to lock people down, I agree. If Chalmers can't handle rondo give cole a shot. Westbrook is fast, but I think Little Man can Run him down.

[energy_bust]

Spo does have to show and prove. Again I'm middle line between Dashi (i understand some of his points yet i do see some hate for Spo) and Greg Gemb (loyal to Spo forever). Heatup, once Greg's adversary, has now joined Greg on the Spo side...I never thought I would see that.

[energy_bust]

My take:

Spo has something to prove. I still think and think many would agree that Miami should be DOMINANT and with a coach like Spo they probably would be. I don't think its entirely Spo, but the Riley system. Remember, Riley underachieved in NY and in Miami. His system is a nervous system (no pun intended) that's not made being dominant. His system doesn't blow you out of games like the Chicago system. It keeps you in games and at the end you hope you win by defense. His system promotes dog fights. Spo isn't the only coach to let his team be up by 20 and watch the lead dwindle and not call a time out til the other team takes the lead (i believe you call time out when lead is still 15 pts. Why make your team work double to win a game?). Riley did this all the time. Let his team lose big leads instead of calling a time out and to stop the other team from taking lead.

Ex. 20 point lead -5 lead (Riley calls timeout). This is bad execution.

What bothers me about Spo is he openly tries to be a Riley Clone. He won't go out and learn other styles that may benefit him. He's not Riley. If Spo, like SVG, would have tried to make his own name, I would have rode with him like I did with Sporano. But Spo just doesn't work hard enough for my taste. Its not lineup changes, its not leaning on Lebron and DWade, its bring something to the table also like new strategies and a new culture. He's the coach of a great team. So go out and learn to become a great coach. Otherwise Spo is just like Juwan Howard - riding Lebron and Wade's coattails to a championship. And that's why he's blamed for loses and Lebron is complimented for wins - its because Spo hasn't really done enough homework to make this team great. At least he tried to learn a new offense this year. Now how about the triangle or an offense with movement.

[energy_bust]

^^ with a coach like Spo they probably would be

should be

with a coach like PHIL JACKSON they probably would be

[jpejeff]

Spo is making me eat my words and they don't taste good. It's not the 1st time either. The problem is that the roller coaster ride makes me throw them back up. A championship is the pepto to hold them down and taste good. Nothinf has changed with this team. It's still championship or bust. Just like last year. P.S. IT STILL BEEN 1 HELL OF A RIDE.

[db7578]

I agree that the system Miami has sucks. It depends to much on athletic ability and not a system that allows Miami to be great athletes within a great system. That is the main reason our execution at the end of games is so bad. If Wade or Lebron fails to make acrobatic heroic shots we lose. Boston on the other hand runs a great play and gets an open shot which rarely relies on them being great athletically. Spo will be second guessed until he wins a championship and his strategies give Miami an edge. Spo over analyze often such as coming to a decision not to put our Bigs back in game 5 to control the boards. Our offensive sets are extremely predictable and Boston anticipated our sets all series. They actually ran our plays during the all-star break in front of our Big 3. If Spo improves dramatically Miami wins 3-5 championships over the next 7 years assuming they remain relatively healthy and add a couple of key players. I Miami plays consistent they win the championship. If they lose focus and drift they will get slaughtered.

[Heatup]

Listen as much as you guys don't like it, this team will only go as far as their defense takes them...that is their identity. If they get stops, the other team's defense cant get set and that's when our offense excels.

That's why I'm thinking defensive assignments first...I think Chalmers can only do so much to thwart Westbrook, so you put the bigger/longer wingspan Wade on him...this has been the matchup Spo has used which caused Westbrook to shoot 31% the last 4x they met.

Look those 3 defenders, wade/lebron/battier are very interchangable and versitile...that has to be spo's thinking.

[energy_bust]

Wait, is this the same Chalmers who helped stop Derrick Rose from winning a national title? Why can't Chalmers go out there a play Westbrook then? Is it Chalmers college coach got more out of Chalmers than Spo can? I'm just asking. I don't know what the answer is but Heatup brought it up.

Also, I actually agree 100% that defense HELPS win games. A dominant teams plays executes well on both ends. That's why Miami isn't dominant. Why make excuses instead of demanding Spo fixes this?

[energy_bust]

Imagine a DOMINANT heat team much like 90's Chicago team where even in a shortened, condensed season, since Miami is blowing out teams, your stars get to rest in the 4th quarter. That could have come in really handy in this condensed season especially for Mike Miller, DWade, and the other often injured players.

On rep teams didn't believe they could be Miami because they had two great players and an all-star. But Spo's lack of dominance made teams believe that they could beat Miami. I don't know what would have happened if Chicago had been healthy or what will happen as the Heat play the Thunder. DOMINANCE is like having a 6th man on the court at all times. It makes teams make bad decisions, shoot nervous and with more pressure like - if i miss this shot we will lose. Miami should have this dominance already. ijs

[greg gembe]

Does SPO's Heat team lead the league in points out of timeouts? I overheard someone say that this weekend, but I couldn't believe it, since he either overthinks too much or isn't prepared or doesn't run the triangle offense (but to be fair, only one coach has ever used that extensively in this league and that was Tex Winter - but if it makes SPO look bad, let's throw it out).

^^Anybody got that stat? Sure would like to know where we stand.

[Heatup]

I don't know about dominant, sorry they haven't met your expectations, but they're here now and defense is what got them there...the east has always been a defensive minded, grind it out conference and that is exactly the heat's identity. They rely on defense to spark their offense, we'll see if that's enough to beat the offensive juggernaut Thunder...it didn't work last year but like it or not, that's what this team is.

I'll tell you one thing, if we had Bosh for the entire playoffs, we would've looked a lot more "dominant" if that's what you really need to accept this team as yours...personally, I thought this series vs Celtics was 10 times better than Thunder vs Spurs evidenced by the fact it was the most watched series ever in the NBA.

[energy_bust]

Heatup, my point is you have 2 superstars and an allstar.

1) You should dominant to get into other teams heads

2) Dominant teams execute well on both sides of the ball

3) Miami can stick to Defense wins or to change to Defense/Offense Dominates. That's on Spo.

4) Defense wins and I believe that, but its always a dog fight with that mantra and as some say, the best defense is a great offense.

5) Defense only wins cause more wear and tear on a players body. Taking charges all the time can be painful and cause injuries. It can shorten the a players career. There should be a balance.

The Heat are in the finals. Let's go Heat!

[Heatup]

In a perfect world, yes you want perfect balance...but this is not a perfect world and consistant defensive effort is the only thing that can be consistenly relied on, not a jumper or an offensive set, there are too many variables. This is the Pat Riley way.

Fact is, the Heat on average give up 89 pnts per...Thunder give up 97 per...there's your finals right there. I hope you guys can embrace it.

[hollyhood]

lebron james the truth. he is the real deal what else
heat in 5 i g............. ur on that

le

le

[jpejeff]

Experience and defense outta win this thing for the Heat. I think the Heat's transition D is exceptional. The Thunder will give them plenty of chances to show just how. We should score some easy points off of it. Miami should have commanding lead by the time the Thunder figure out it' s hazardest to your health to run with these guys.

[jpejeff]

Watch out for Cole.....could be a wild card in this kind of series.

[Dashi]

Have Spo call a timeout every time then Greg. What about late-game time-outs? How come we don't score then? That's what they were discussing earlier that when we lead by 20. Why wait for the lead to be down to 5 to call a time-out. Bad Coaching. For every 1 thing Ur boy Spo does Ok they are 20 things he F's up.

"Consistency" is what I want to see out of him. ON EVERYTHING. U can Consistently Score, If U run any basic Offense to perfection(Utah's Pick n Roll). Don't gas up Tex. If Tex was so great he would stayed a head coach not become an Asst. Pimp to the G.O.A.T. Phil is the reason Tex won those titles. The Triangle Offense is a variation of the Princeton offense with an Emphasis in the Post instead of the perimeter. Who ever ur best player(MJ, Shaq, Kobe) is put him in the post and run the Princeton Motion Offense Around Him. It's not Trigonometry.

[black the trucker]

OK, game 1... This is what we have been waiting for... The time has come.. Not only can we redeem ourselves from last year but we can start this journey of a new dynasty.. Listen, now is the time to lock in and really bring everything out and display a great essence of basketball... We can beat this team... Every game, we have to figure out how and get the job done... GAME 1... GAMEPLAN: They will try to make it about KD and BRON... What we have to focus on is winning... Our defense has to be on point... I mean, rotations, rebounding, taking fouls, block shots, guarding the three... We can not let them go runs... Harden is an impoetant element to that teams offense... Can't let him go for 20 plus... Now, Bron, take kd down on the block early... Get to the line, use the pump fake in close... Wade, ATTACK, westbrook can't hold you, get him off the court... Bosh, you will be needed big time in this series, that jumper has to be right, crash the glass hard, solid defense, get to the line when possible... UD, you also will be needed big time, your jumper will also have to be good, try to stay out of foul trouble, their bigs are physical, so be ready... Rio, stay aggressive... Shane, your defense has been huge, need more from you in this one, if your jumpers are falling, that's a plus... We should look to run, this team likes to run aswell but I like our chances in the open court... Their crowd will make it tough, but this is the finals and we come to win... Keep a strong focus because the ref's will be a problem early... We will have to set a tone early.. This is the Finals... Everyone has to come ready to outwork them at everything.. This is the Finals.. 48 MINUTES... THIS IS OUR TIME... WE HERE... LET'S GO GET IT...007...

[db7578]

With smarts we can take Game 1. Being young and athletic has it's pro's and con's. Either OKC will come out in with glazed eyes
frozen in time or over aggressive. If they are glazed we take to them and when they wake up the game is over and they have lost.

If they are over aggressive we should attack the rim and get them into early foul trouble. Once they calm down for the third quarter we
have destroyed their rotation and game plan.
Allow Westbrooke to run crazy and ignore Durant and take charges as he attack the basket without discipline. Let Perkins get physical and draw him into making stupid fouls. Either way we should steal game one and up the pressure on OKC. Experience matters and it should be our edge.

[taheati]

"Does SPO's Heat team lead the league in points out of timeouts? Anybody got that stat? Sure would like to know where we stand."

---

According to Noah Davis, Synergy Sports tracks after-time-out points-per-possession (ATO PPP).

Findings: the Heat are 1 of 4 team with higher APO PPP than their (halfcourt) PPP. The Grizz, Lakers -- and Clippers comprised the other 3 [ http://bit.ly/JSWqN5 .

Largest diffs among the 4 (APO/PPP - PPP):

Clips: +.021, .933-.912
Lakers: +.020, .914-.894
Grizz: +.016, .866-.850
Heat: +.011, .920-.909

The Clippers? Davis explains: "Del Negro might call terrible plays—everyone seems to think so, at least—but Chris Paul makes up for a lot."

The Spurs logged the highest ATO/PPP overall (.939)

[taheati]

"the Heat are 1 of 4 team[s] ..."

[Dashi]

The Clippers? Davis explains: "Del Negro might call terrible plays—everyone seems to think so, at least—but Chris Paul makes up for a lot."

U can say the Same for the Heat. Just add Wade or Lebron in that sentence. How many teams can inbound an Alley-Opp. Those 4

[Dashi]

That article only states Differential from ATO to set Half-Court plays(Transition Points probably Don't count in Diff.). It does show the ATO stats of a couple teams. No the heat don't lead the League in ATO, there behind the Spurs and Clips just to name a few.

It would be nice to win game 1 to set the tone. Let's Go Heat

[taheati]

"U can say the Same for the Heat."

---

Sure. And if that's the case, you could say the same for every team with one or more superstars. Or, you could wonder why those same superstar-equipped teams with their own variations of a "Big 3" and presumably better coaches don't average higher APO-PPPs.

Then again, you could also claim it isn't really Spo calling those timeouts but Ethan Hunt in Spo disguise summoning an MI4 team of HOF coaches to diagram plays.

I mean, that's no less believable, rational or irrational than the sort of mindless Spo Hate that credits players for anything good while faulting coaches -- scuse, THIS coach -- for everything bad.

[taheati]

"That article only states Differential from ATO to set Half-Court plays(Transition Points probably Don't count in Diff.)."

---

Well that settles it.

It's a completely worthless article.

Which you honored with 2 equally worthless replies.

[miaheatblog.com]

I'm not even comfortable enuogh to make a prediction at this point. I do think LeBron has a head-to-head edge on Durant do to Bron's physicality but Durant has stepped it up this playoffs.

This will be epic.

[Dashi]

Buddy he's Not even "good" cause even in "worthless stats", which U are trying to dig up he still doesn't lead the league. 1 stat out of 100, or 1000 category's doesn't make him good. It doesn't even make him Average. Maybe During the timeout it's the only time in the game Lebron gets to catch his breath for 20 seconds and he has a little more energy?

I can make it about the player and the coach sucks cause it's the "Truth". We Under-Achieved Last year. We Under-Achieve During the regular season 2 years in a row. Hopefully we win it this Year.

Hey, the first reply was just to ur post, then i read that Weak article and realized it was about the Differential After the timeout. Not about who leads the League which is what Greg asked? Only 1 line on that info. SA with .939

[miami300c]

OMG @Dashi... Your making a great blog into garbage with your comments. Yes you have a big vocabulary bit this is basketball. You write like your were always a coach and never a player. Using Stats and ATo to prove a point... Bro Doc Rivers only won 1 championship with a team that was brought together to win a championship. This Heat team was brought together to win a championship. In the NbA most coaches are blessed with talent to coach.. Some don't have the talent. Phil Jackson is a smart coach because he only coaches great players.. He's not a great coach, he's a smart coach. He didnt invent or teach his players the tri angle offense.. Tex did that. He didn't help Michael become the greatest scorer in the history of the NBA mike did that himself. Kobe and Shaq were Hall of Fameers before Phil. Coaches are like Kernel Sanders... They are the faces of chicken.. But don't cook the bird.

[greg gembe]

Yes, finishing 2nd and 4th in the regular season is underachieving, even if it leads you to 2 championship series.

It must really pain some of these "Heat fans" to watch them roll into the championship series year after year. To watch them take down the team with the best record in the league last year, with the NBA MVP and the NBA Coach of the Year no-less, to roll through the Pacers with your top post player absent, to take out the Celtics who were trying to squeeze out one more win for their proud careers and franchise, going into Boston to win a closeout game..........it must really be frustrating. Damn imagine if we would have had Phil Jack*** coaching our team, we could have been swept in the second round, getting blown out in Game 4, looking like little angry school boys leaving the court. Or with Phil Jack***, we could get HOFers Gary Payton and Karl Malone to 'chase the ring' with Shaq and KoMe, and get bounced from the championship in (not 7, not 6, but), 5 games by the Pistons.

Oh, how we have selective memory sometimes.

Note to self: never watch a Heat game with 'Heat fans' with this much hate and doubt. There would be blood shed.

As high a standard we put for SPO, I wonder what these haters were saying about supercoolbeas when he was wasting time on our court? I'll bet they were all for that 'newest shiny toy' on the shelf.

[Dashi]

^^^ King of the Blog.

I'm taking my Ball and going Home. WAHHH

My extensive Knowledge of the English Language Only helps me explain my point Mo' Better. Nothing More Nothing Less. If U been ON this Blog "My Greatness" U would know I'm not a Coach or never have been 1. Greg can Vouch for that. I'm not even A player. If u want to be literal none of us are unless U played in the League. Playgrounds, Pro-AM, or Amateur doesn't really count.

[Dashi]

Title or Else
Champ

Anything else is just Uncivilized

[greg gembe]

...short, dark haired fella.....I can see the Ethan Hunt resemblence. Would that make Riley, Jon Voight?

[energy_bust]

Funny, when someone comes up with figures for Spo, no one questions. When Dashi eloquently shows these figures are not what were asked for and offers the real figures, everyone gets offended.

Good point is - with 3 superstars its easier or should be. If someone can write a statement about Del Negro not creating good plays and still being in top because of Chris Paul's compensating for Del Negro's poor play calling, then why can't it be the same explanation for Spo, who has 2 super star players and one all star as opposed to the Clippers 1 and quasi-superstar Griffin (he's not there yet, but he is an all star).

Let's be fair folks. I don't like all of Dashi's comments, but like I once stated about Sledge, its not because of his lack of being an NBA fan and knowing basket ball plays. Maybe it cause they argue nothing more than that Spo is terrible instead of why DWade is playing like he's 35.

[Heatup]

I watched the Bulls vs Utah / Jordan had the flue finals game on NBAtv last night and couldn't help but see similarities between this Heat team and that Bulls team. The game was a total defensive struggle (final score was in the high 80's) where only Jordan & Pippen could score for the bulls and Rodman pretty much held down Malone. There was no consistancy on offense what so ever in that game, Jordan missed a bunch of shots and layups but hit the big 3 at the end. The thing that really stood out was the defensive effort for the Bulls, making steals & blocking shots while contesting everything with crisp rotations...same concepts for this Heat team. Hopefully we have the same outcome.

BTW that was a Bulls team coached by the "great" Phil-Jax...score in the 80's, no consistancy on offense even with the triangle sets, & jordan/Pippen making tough shots at the end...I saw one play where Luc Longly got a dunk off a curl and pass from Jordan and one putback from Rodman. Two baskets from supporting cast, must have been frustratingly maddening for those Bulls fans back then and I'm sure they wanted Phil fired for it.

[Heatup]

Energy, the fact Dwade hasn't been on his game combined with not having a 6 time all-star (bosh) for most of the playoffs and getting this team to the finals speaks volumes for Lebron AND Spo...give em BOTH credit. So its not perfect, but he got them there 2 years in a row...the totally biased bashing that Dashi is doing just underminds the great job Spo is doing. Thats why REAL heat fans are defending their coach.

[taheati]

" Would that make Riley, Jon Voight?"

---

To these nuts, Spo is Jon Voight too cuz Voight was a bad guy and Spo is a bad coach ergo everything bad = Spo. Spo, the serpent of all evil.

[taheati]

"When Dashi eloquently shows these figures are not what were asked for and offers the real figures, everyone gets offended."

---

"Eloquent?" If your definition of "eloquence" is a screaming banshee with a mouthful of feces gurgling I Hate Spo before he swallows, then yes, that's eloquence.

"Offended?" Try bored. And annoyed.

[energy_bust]

Heatup,

I get your point.

Here's one thing though - as you stated Jordan had the flu and the offense was OFF for the Bulls. That was one unusual series and it was an abnormality for the Bulls to only score in the 80's. The discount that Phil Jackson has very good defensive teams without neglecting his offense.

The thing is Chicago had that bad series and it was abnormal. You saw Chicago down by 10, even 20 and expected them to come back.

Its the opposite with the heat. You get some unexpected great games while most games have awkward offensive flows to them. And when Miami is up by 20, you expect the other team to come back.

Miami is the opposite of what the 90's bulls were - I do think it has to do with the gameplan and philosophy in Miami more than the players.

[energy_bust]

^^^
The discount that Phil Jackson has very good defensive teams without neglecting his offense.

should have been:

Dont discount that Phil Jackson has very good defensive teams without neglecting his offense.

[taheati]

A Day in the Life of a Spo Hater Troll

http://www.hallmark.com/ECardDisplay/ECardDisplay/nfz1828_DK

[Heatup]

Energy at least check the history before you type...it was a notoriously low scoring series, in fact that whole playoff run for the bulls only had a handfull of games over 100 points including the Heat/Bulls series. They won that championship with defense first. Check the scores for the Heat Series:

Chicago 84 Miami 77
Chicago 75 Miami 68
Miami 74 Chicago 98
Miami 87 Chicago 80
Chicago 100 Miami 87

Got to 100 in game 5 and scored 84, 75, 74, 87 points while beating their opponent but they were not neglecting offense? abnormal? opposites??

They were focused on defense knowing they had the 2 best perimiter defenders and best interior rebounder in the league and won that way...check your history and check the tape if you wana back up your argument. Not so different than what the heat's doing.

[Heatup]

The offense came from the 2 best scorers in the game at that time taking most of the shots and getting theirs...jordan averaged 30 pts while pippen averaged around 20.

While OKC looks more potent than that Utah team, we have to focus on holding down KD and Westbrook, let the offense take care of itself. Defense is how we win this series.

[Dashi]

I've never said I hate SPO
Fire SPO. Damn even the Easy words get U confused.
It' must hurt having A brain that Small.

"Hire X" is the new campaign, AZZ CLowns.

I've realized Small minded people get blinded When U criticize Their Hero. Apparently After Fire Spo, Everything I Say must be Hate towards the Man. No, Fool I'm Just Pointing Out the Incompetence I see.

Tahiti, I'm sorry I don't want to play ur I'm King Bully Game. I come here to talk sports not Rank and Belittle. I Ponder With My Gift of Gab, Why Exchange Opinions With Such Low-Lives like Urself. Whats Up With the Annoying Clip? Was that Ur attempt at a Joke? Had to cut the Clip Short. THAT CLIP WAS CORNY. Is that a Loved One of Ur's or ur Significant Other? Is that How U whisper Sweet Nothings In Ur Lady's Ear?

[energy_bust]

Heatup - Read carefully.

1) Telling me to know my history as a way to make it seem i'm ignorant to what Chicago did doesn't work. Facts do.

2) I said that was abnormal for the Bulls to score so low and it was. You're naming one year of playoffs, a year where Jordan had the FLU (the real flu) which takes time to recover from.

3) You name me a few games where the Bulls were under 90 points? But how many games were they at 90 or over in their historic playoff runs?

4) You notice under a Riley system, you keep teams close in Grind it out games and lose in the end because the other team are more fluid offensively at the end.

[Heatup]

listen Energy, you need to read carefully as well.

I'm not implying ignorance on your part i'm just arguing my side, but your statements lead me to believe that you didn't check the history of that 97 playoff run which is what i'm talking about...THAT BULLS TEAM, not any other, Jordan didn't have the flu for an entire playoff run. That Bulls team won with defense and 90 pnts is low for an NBA game. If you watched those games or at least took the time to look at the facts, you'd see they were a "grind it out win it at the end with defensive stops and amazing shots by their star players" type of team. but i guess you don't want to...let me make it easy for you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_NBA_Playoffs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_NBA_Finals

[Dashi]

The pace was also a little slower against Utah. The bulls had great defense, but they also rebounded well with the PF and C. That negates a lot of second chance points that hurt the heat right now