Heat-Bulls G4: Done! Now what?

     Win or out Sunday. And it was out, 92-79. Sweep.

     What must the Heat do to be title contenders again? Is it as simple as getting Dwyane Wade healthy or are significant changes needed?

     Comments welcome on why this series was lost so resoundingly, and on the state of an unceremoniously dethroned champion. You'd find today's game column by me here.

     Say you have Pat Riley's ear for 30 seconds. What you tell him?

Comments

[David Tucker]

Its not over until someone wins 4. Do I think the Heat will do it? No, I can't say that I do.

But do I think they can? I have faith. 8)

[JC]

Win or lose I love the Heat....the Bulls have something to prove and the Pistons will slap the snot out of them and then Phoenix or San Antonio will take the title West...

It would be awesome to see the Heat go 4 - 0, but I feel rest is bett now for Wade and O'Neal after naggin issues all year...

Wade, O'Neal, Haslem, Kapono, Quinn, and others will come back (or not) with a vegeance next year...

Go Heat! We love ya and the title...now if the Canes, Panthers, and Dolphins could bring one home ...whew

[Pistoneon]

You don't want to make excuses but you keep reminding us how many games that shaq, wade, and riley have missed this seasaon. Didn't this same group of guys win the NBA championship last year? Don't you guys already know how to play together? Didn't your teammate zo comment that you guys were ready to compete in the playoffs? Will you old geezers shut up and play ball and stop making excuses. Just admit it, you're getting your butts whupped

[james]

if we lose this series it'll be 2001 all over again:

best player gets injured, comes back late in the season after team finds a way to succeed without him, then team loses badly in first round. remember zo coming back from the kidney injury late in 2001 after he wasn't expected to come back at all? remember losing to charlotte in the first round that year after winning 50 games around a core of anthony mason and eddie jones? the team just couldn't switch gears fast enough and get back on track with zo back in the lineup that year. commendable for zo to come back, unfortunately the team couldn't adjust in time.

as great a player as wade is, team chemistry is a fragile thing. after winning with shaq as the focal point during february and march, it ain't that easy to simply change back to the winning formula from last year's playoffs with wade as the focal point. wade not being 100% after sitting out 6-8 weeks can't help.

bottom line: wade should be commended for gutting it out and coming back. the heat had no chance of winning a ring this year without him. that the team couldn't get its chemistry back in time is just bad timing. had wade's injury happened in january or december we would have been better off, but that's luck and nothing more. remember zo's calf injury late last year? he got back to full strength just in time for when we needed him in the playoffs and his stellar peerformance in game 6 at dallas is a major reason why we won it all in that game. last year we had good timing with injuries, this year we had bad timing. if we don't make a miraculous comeback in this series, chalk it up to "not meant to be."

losing in the first round will never take away last year's ring. and if it does happen, you better believe it will leave a bitter taste and get us geared up for next year hungrier than ever.

yes, winning after being down 3-0 has never been done. but does the past equal the future? over 95 percent lost a series after being down 2-0. didn't stop us from winning 4 straight vs. dallas. yes, that was last year and this year is a whole different story. but that should just show that statistics describe the past, not the future. in 1994 the denver nuggets went down 3-0 and actually forced a game 7 in utah. two of the next 3 games are at miami (games 4 and 6), so to force a game 7 all it would take is 1 road win. as unlikely as it is, it's not impossible.

one last thought: roll the dice and put dorel on deng. something to mix things up to try to slow him down.

[Rafael]

If the Heat win today's game by at least 15, and if they can steal one in Chicago, I smell a comeback. They are a team based on MOTIVATION and MOMENTUM. If they play with some heart, they will do it. If they win this series though, I doubt they will be well enough to face Detroit.

[tcdtcd]

now I see why you guys put those gay white sheets on every seat - to disguise the fact that the stadium is HALF EMPTY! Can't wait to hear what the real attendance figures are for today - pathetic.

What a bunch of fair-weather bandwagon jumpers. More evidence that Miami is a joke as a sports town.

[tcdtcd]

now I see why you guys put those gay white sheets on every seat - to disguise the fact that the stadium is HALF EMPTY! Can't wait to hear what the real attendance figures are for today - pathetic.

What a bunch of fair-weather bandwagon jumpers. More evidence that Miami is a joke as a sports town.

[Peter Gibbons]

This series was over when it started. Good Riddance losers.

[tcdtcd]

Where are all the big talkers???

BUH - BYE HEAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You looked like a junior high team in this series. Pathetic!

[yeyo2nite]

No heart, whatsoever. Eddie Jones did his usual disappearing act in the playoffs. The most defining thing this whole series was how the Heat just quit with 3 minutes to go.

Man, what a painful series to watch.

I hope the Bulls take it to the Pistons. They deserve it.

It'll be interesting how this offseason plays out.

[312.fan]

CLASS. Total class.
That's all I need to say about the Heat players and coaches at this time.

The way they interacted after the game showed me something that I've long thought was lost (going back to the Piston-Bulls of the early 90's). I've always thought that Shaq, Wade, Riley were, but now they've proven it.

Congrats to the HEAT. They are a great team, and they made us PROUD last year, bringing it back to the EAST, taking out those Dallas ninnies!

[hey there, how's your steak?]

The Bulls were like the janitors, they saw garbage on the floor and swept it up. The Heat are probably conjuring up excuses and waaaaaa-ing and looking for sympathy and comfort, but the truth is, the truth is they got waxed ... outplayed out-coached. Hey Pat, don't hang your head in sadness because the majority of this is your fault, yeah, your fault and Shaq's. Hey Pat, why don't you give up your useless motivational techniques and stress the importance of the regular season. It matters. It's a team game Pat, Wade ain't Jordan. Trade Shaq? He doesn't care?

[dean]

silence is golden.

chicago - vs - detroit is a tradition miami will never know.

roots never take hold in sand. one bulls' hurricane and miami is back to being a minor league sports town.

*** selling unused tickets to today's game for $5.00 each. face value $25. - $300.

[jc]

Yes, the Heat team are total class. I loved how they congratulated the Bulls after the game. Very nice to see. I am very disappointed in the outcome today, although I was expecting the worst, I'm not the optimistic sort I guess.

It's a shame that Wade came back for this....I'm so mad at the freethrows today and Sat., especially today, Shaq and Mourning pitiful! Shaq, "Mr. I Make Them When I Need Them", haha.... not a one today! Sinful!

To the rest of the team, good luck next year, although I hope some of you guys either retire and are traded. Love you Dwyane, the heart and soul of this team...
He was expected to do it all and that's just not fair.

[the shadow knows]

rafael,

thanks to today's heat "effort", you can use your nose for smellling other more desirable scents than a , pardon me while i laugh, HEAT "COMEBACK"!! HARDEE HAR HAR, roars the busdriver from bensonhurst, mr. r. kramden

[tcdtcd]

Despite the little bit of smack I've talked here - Yes, I agree about the classiness shown by the Heat after the game (unlike alot of the posters here!). Well done, Pat, DWade, Shaq, etc. That was great sportsmanship.

[Drew]

The bulls just shocked the world. Nobody thought they could beat the heat but not only did they beat them they swept them.
NBA Champship 2006-2007 still up for grabs.

[dkzz]

a lot of miami fans probably do not have the motivation to log back onto this forum. the truth is the bulls out played them in every way this series and miami needs to re-tool their team. the Bulls were due, they are an up and coming team that play very hard. detroit vs chicago is going to be a great series. go bulls.

[Chicago's Jem James]

From Chicago to Miami, on behalf of all the LOYAL fans of our now GROWN BULLS, I would like to thank the Heat on showing up, coming out, stepping on the floor, and getting their azz carried away!!! LOL, now that the throne is vacant, time to get rid of a few Motor City old chumps and prepare to bring back the East to the Windy. Oh, if you didnt know, Bulls will beat Phoenix, Dallas, San Antonio, Denver, Houston, Pistons, .............. I mean it really doesnt matter. We have a goal to accomplish and its about to be fullfilled slowly but surely.

[yeyo2nite]

I hope the Bulls stick it to the Pistons.

That series is going to be a dogfight.

[Nando]

First of all Congrats to the Bulls you won a sweep from the Pistons, Next to my hometown team Thank you Alonzo Mourning for all the years of playing with heart. Next D-Wade hold your head up you have many years to win championships, now to Jason Williams ,Dorell Wright, Jason Kapono, Eddie Jones, Gary Payton, Siemien, Doleac, Keep Posey at least he will put a Body On someone, Also Quinn didn't forget about you and also The 7'0 nobody Earl Baron. All these Bench warmers that we pay all this money to that PAT will never play get rid of and lets build around D-wade and get him some Help. Shaq I love you man but that was pure Shit you put up today , Please take the next two Months to make up your mind if you want to be the best center or a 7'1 Liability. Also keep Antoine Walker because he can atleast scare others teams.

To next season Bitches
Lets GO HEAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mike1]

this time, where's the photo of the girl holding up the 4 sign?

[Dana]

The two things that were different from last year Finals and this year playoffs were the Heat's health and refs. I will admit the Heat wasn't 100 percent, but what team is at this point. Second, this year the refs were not giving Wade every single call. It amazing that a teams that consist of Shaq, Wade, Zo, GP, and Toine couldn't win at least one game against a team that only won 49 games. Kobe won at least won game by himself against a team that won 60 games. To a poster before me that said the Heat shown class by congratulating the Bulls: Isn't that what you supposed to do? However, I didn't see Shaq on the floor shaking hand with the Bulls.

[heat101]

How many players in the league today have single handedly won an NBA championship and been crowned NBA finals MVP in their third year? not that many...he has one bad series coming off a potential season ending injury and now every one wants to bash Wade and he still played alright...Chicago is pretty good and I give them credit but if Wade was healthy it was have been just like last year...the proof = he was healthy last year and they beat Chicago in 6,..Its as simple as that..

Anyway you can't take anything away from Miami and their championship last year...In fact who really cares about this year, it would have been nice, but as long as Zo got his championship and Shaq backed up his promise..thats all that matters to Miami fans..plus who wants to play watch or play basketball anymore if you live in Miami...I just visited Chicago(Damn!) and now I know why they are such big sports fans...Sports is secondary down here in Paradise..and I think it affects the players on the pro teams also...u can only stay focused so long..and one championship is good enough..now its time to chill on south beach with the most beautiful women in the world...damn it sucks to be a Miami fan, right?..:)

[dean]

summer vacation?

* shaq - twinkees, wings, and playing po po.

* d wade - going home to chicago to hone his michael jordan wannabe skills.

* posey - drinking, driving, and eating his dinner alone in restaurants.

* j will - a new tatoo and trying to figure out how to become black.

* alonzo - hanging out at the juice bar with his buddies mark mcgwire, floyd landis, rafael palmiero, and jose canseco.

* two face riley - figuring out how to blame this mess on a rothstein or van gundy.

[Heat]

JC said it best. Wade and Shaq will get the rest they need, then come back next year with a new team with a vengence, you could see the look on Wade's face that he was PO'ed. Pistons will slap the snot out of the Bulls, and PHX will be the new NBA champs. The Mavs dont have a chance, and dont be surprised if GS takes them out!! Would love to see Mark Cubans face when that happens. Miami Heat..... we love ya, we are behind you no matter what, and we are looking forward to next year with the Heat, I know, I just know we will redeem ourselves. Wade will be Flash again, Shaq will be the Disel, and the rest of the team will be back in effect. Way to Go Heat!!!!

[JC]

Lets cheer for one banner in Miami that shocked the world last year...we see a team last year and we see a team this year that tried so hard....would we go to work with a busted arm and take the abuse like that? It is ok....we love ya...Chicago played the series of its life to prove it could get out of the first round...you think the Pistons are hurting and in pain like the Heat...Nope...enjoy the second brief round Bulls and some point Henrich needs to stop being a dirty defensive player....The Pistons are about to payback Ben Wallace for leaving.....it will be quick and over....say hello to Golf Baby Bulls because you are still far from a championship team since you can not score in the paint against a wounded and tired Heat team....

[Ariel]

BOTTOM LINE. INJURIES(Especially to Wade! & J. Will who?!?), non-existent chemistry and MOST importantly they weren't as hungry as LAST YEAR! After they won it last year, they had the who REALLY cares if they won it this year underlying mentality. THis was a great wake up call! Riley will make a couple of tweaks in the offseason(they better bring back POSEY, the only one that TRULY gave 110% effort!!) and they will comeback strong like last year. Guess they needed an early summer vacation especially WADE. This old team needs the rest and THEY will COME back much stronger next year!!!....

[Heat]

The Bulls second round tenure will be brief.. not to take anything away from them, but they will not match up with the Pistons. To be honest, the Bulls are "Flop Artist" and that wont work against the Pistons, plus all Rip has to do is frustrate Kirk, and he's done... however the one thing I love about the Heat is the fact that they are a team of CLASS!! Even throughout the Finals last year, they had class, and even today with a disappointing season ending loose they still had class. We'll be back!!!! and you can count on that!

[d.andrew.i]

ONE TIME 2 ALL my DIE-HARD Heat fans!!!
The Heat are STILL the best team in my book!
Yeah they may not have showed up to the Chicago series, but they had a lot of issues this year, so to all the Heat haters out there,
**** YOU ALL! If your favorite team had all the issues we had this year, you'd be "complaining" too! So shut the hell up and go rub your asses on some barbed wire or something. Don't talk bad about the Miami Heat. What we did last year, your team didn't do. Especially you, tcdtcd, you bastard! You're an ass! You need to be burned alive! Don't talk bad about my team! You don't like the Heat, then you NEED to LEAVE MIAMI! Move to Timbuktoo or something!

[Mr. Reality]

D. Andrew......give your "Best team although they got swept" trophy after their parade through your neighborhood tomorrow. Get Shaq to rap for you as he accepts it.

[DING DONG DENG]

We came, we saw, we conquered! Dirty foul from Miami couldn't stop the Baby-Bulls. Miami Heat players were too old to run and catch us. Detroit bad boys, here we come

[DING DONG DENG]

Florida is the retirement home of America and the NBA. D-Wade must feel lonely playing with grandpas'.

[tcdtcd]

To d. andrew,

I "need to be burned alive"? Wow.

Sounds like you might need to visit the local psychiatrist.

To everyone else here,

Enjoy your summer with the Marlins.

GO BULLS! GO CUBS! GO SOX!

[d.andrew.i]

Oh, yes, congrats to the Chicago Bulls. You guys aren't babies anymore. You guys make me and Michael Jordan proud (if he even cares).
Yall beat a good Miami Heat team. Well, good but injured, tired and quite frankly, old Miami Heat team. I'm a big Heat fan, but we need some younger players. Can we get Lamar Odom back? Caron Butler? Rafer Alston? Please?
Since you no-longer-Baby Bulls tipped the crowns off our heads, now the title's up for grabs. Yall should do us a favor. Grab that title. Yall beat us. Keep the title in the EAST! Don't let the west get it. They think they're so much better than us. How the hell? We the EAST have more title wins over the last 19 years than they do.

Now on to some of these certified idiots that are dissing the Miami Heat on this page! Let's see........

"the shadow knows"? What kinda loser name is that? And what you know about basketball? Shut the hell up! And what, "hey there, how's your steak"? Hey, ***hole, how's your cholesterol?! Dumbass!

Once again, BIG Ups to all my Heat fans! We're gonna make some trades and fix up a new roster in the offseason and we'll be back DEEP in the playoffs next year.......... i hope.

[Heat]

You know I am hurt at the loose of the Heat, but I will be real... The Bulls will not beat the Pistons.. that's just that.. I am not a Pistons fan, but I give credit were credit is due, and the Pistons are not to be taken lightly. Your Bulls just beat a unhealthy, not together Heat (Defending Champs) that is not the Pistons problem... they are healthy, firing on all cylinders... so if the Bulls beat the Pistons then we can no longer call them the "Baby Bulls" see right now they just learned to crawl by beating the Heat, but until you can say you knocked off the Pistons then you graduated to "Walkin" we can say that we put the Pistons out, your team can not claim that just yet, and the year before that we took them to a game 7 so until you can come through the guadians of the gates.... you cant toot your horn yet!!!

[i hate chichago fans]

GO Cubs... ha ha...

I guess the Bulls winning one series is enough to make you guys proud. I think one thing everyone is not looking into was the rules change. Chicago was still given homecourt advantage even though they were a five seed. I understand the Bulls had a better record, but winning your division should be rewarded regardless of record.

The Bulls are streaky. Detroit still is the team to beat and you have to win on the road the opening two games.
Goodbye Bulls.

[jimsr]

To Riles,
Heat fail to score in the last 2:32!
It's time for some of your overpaid
millionaires to retire to south beach.
Trade everybody else but Wade and start
over. Good Luck in the draft. jimsr

[d.andrew.i]

Wait a minute, hold up.
You're rooting for the Cubs and I'M the one who needs the local psychiatrist? Oh, dear. Aren't they cursed? Jeez, where's YOUR head at?

I wonder what "tcdtcd" stands for?
Totally certified delusional twisted cracked-out dumbass?!
I think I got it right.

[tony]

injuries took this team from being together all season. bulls were just to quick all series pat has to get us younger on the perimeter, stronger at the power forward position. well be back, true heat fan...........

[RR]

I was hoping for a Pistons-Heat rematch, but I guess it was not meant to be. Scott Skiles is so full of himself he thinks he's the 2nd coming of Red Aurbach. But my Pistons will put him where he belongs; on vacation. Wade should have had shoulder surgery when he was first injured.What did the Heat gain by him coming back early? Now he's gonna be 2-3 months behind rehabing.
DEEETROIT BASKETBALLLL!!!

[Bob]

Tough week-end guys. First you reached for Ginn way too early. Then the Bulls swept. There will be better years .....

[ken]

The Bulls beat the heart 3-1 in the regular season and now they are gone. The Bulls beat the Pistons 3-1 in the regular season. I expect it to be a seven-game series with the Bulls stealing Game 7 on the road for the win.

[Sam]

Congrats to the Bulls.
The number one thing that the Heat needs to do for some reason has been widely accepted as something that can't be corrected. Why is it okay to shrug off the fact that the Heat is such a bad FREE THROW shooting team. (the worst in the league).
I'm not quite sure if this Heat team is better or would have beaten the Bulls but there is one guarantee, and hindsight is 20/20, this cannot be disputed, the Heat would be going back to Chicago for Thursday nights game 4 tied 2-2 in the series if they had merely shot even barely below their already league worst FT%.

SHAQ suppress your ego and call Rick Barry.
The rest of the team need to go to FT shooting camp or something.

Make a few moves to get younger, improve your FT% to league average, get rest over the summer and we will be okay next year.

[Heat]

hey..... Give Teddy Ginn a chance... as a Columbus Ohioian..... You may be surprised!

[Cover me in Miami sand]

Man, if we get into the playoffs next year I hope we have a totally different look. No more overworked Dwayne Wade with an old "tongue on the floor" Shaq in the 4th quarter.
Congrats to the Bulls but it's time to get Richard Jefferson or Rashad Lewis. Goodbye Jason Williams, hello, to anyone who can make a shot. Heck, I'd even try Sebastian Telfair if he's cut loose by the Celtics. Shaq looks really low on juice. Time to load up with a younger team with Dwayne as the leader. In other words, next years should be Shaq's goodbye tour.

[Kenny Dolfancane]

Well, I am happy Miami won the title last year.Been a Heat fan since I was 5 years old back in 1988. I think Miami should see if some of the aging players like Payton or Williams will retire to save the Heat money. I like these players but the Heat need to get young. Keep a hold of shaq and Mourning for at least one more year, draft a Center this year and a few more impact players. Go Miami!

[Julius]

Pat, Get GASOL or GET J. O'Neal. WOrk out whatever you have to workout since both of teams are eitehr rebuilding or have a cheap owner (Grizz) but do whatever (except trade Wade) to get one of those two guys down here.

[Choy]

Posey and Kapono are free agents while Walker and Williams aren't. It might be hard to sign back Posey and Kapono and get some quality talent. They desperately need to get rid of Walker but who will take him with his production and salary? Williams just needs to get healthy. Payton should retire, Zo can still pay especially if its just a backup role. They need to get more players who can hit the open perimeter jumper. Wright should be good trade bait.

[Heat]

I like Posey.... I think Posey should return... I mean dang... he pulled 18 boards today so you know he is capable of being more. Go after VC.. HEE HEE YEAH, Can you see VC,D-WADE, Shaq, playing together... that would be nice, they need a perimeter player that can knock down shots, plus some other things, I know Riles will put together something b/c he is not happy with how things ended just like he wast happy b4 he took over.