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38 posts from December 2013

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Revisiting LeBron's Christmas miracle of an off-handed alley-oop

LOS ANGELES -- The first alley-oop was a gift-wrapped present under the tree. The second, well, the second reality-bending alley-oop dunk from Dwyane Wade to LeBron James on Wednesday at Staples Center felt more like a Christmas miracle.

Running at full speed in the second quarter, James delivered one of the signature highlights of his time with the Heat when he caught a lob off the backboard from Wade and dunked it with his left hand. The play sent the crowd into a frenzy and inspired one of the Lakers’ most iconic figures to take to Twitter.

“The lob D-Wade threw to LeBron was one of the greatest plays I’ve ever seen!” wrote Hall of Famer Magic Johnson on Twitter.

Since James arrived in Miami, the Heat has always delivered the goods on Christmas — winning five in a row on the holiday — and this latest day of basketball celebration was every bit of the best in showmanship and entertainment the NBA could hope to offer its fans.

The Heat defeated the Lakers 101-95 for its sixth win in a row, but the score was secondary to the pair of alley-oops from Wade to James.

“It was like watching the video game NBA Jam,” Shane Battier said.

In that classic video game, players perform flips, twists and spins during dunks that defy physics. That’s an apt comparison of Wade and James’ alley-oops.

“When I see LeBron put his head down and start sprinting up the court, that’s when I know something special is about to happen,” Battier said. “What can you do if you’re a defender? You just get out of the way.”

Said James: “I just tried to beat the defender down there. I feel like in a footrace I can beat a lot of people down the court.”

And if that doesn’t work, he can just jump over people just as easily.

In the Heat’s recent home stand, James blew through a pair of defenders for amazingly athletic dunks that highlighted his physical prowess. The alley-oops highlighted a different aspect of his immense gifts.

“Anytime D-Wade gets on the break I just try to chase him down,” James said. “I’m not sure if he’s going to go in for it or throw the lob to me, but I had no idea what he was going to do with it. He was looking at me. I didn’t know where he was going to go with it — if he was going to bounce it to me or throw it up.”

Wade said the first lob was actually his favorite of the two.

“I like those, the ones where [James] jumps past the ball and then comes back and gets it,” Wade said. “Those are good. It’s not going to look as good if you throw it right in front of the rim. Now, if Chris [Bosh] was coming, and I threw it to him, I would throw it right in front of the rim.”

To that, Bosh offered a dose of his timely deadpan humor.

“I just would let it sail over my head,” Bosh said.

Wade and Bosh both finished with 23 points to lead the Heat in scoring. Wade was 11 of 17 from the field after sitting out the Heat’s overtime victory against the Hawks on Monday. He also had six rebounds and seven assists.

Bosh, who went 0 of 6 from the field to begin the game, finished 9 of 18 overall to go along with 11 rebounds. James finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

A three-pointer by Heat reserve Rashard Lewis with 1:31 left in the third quarter put the Heat ahead by nine points, but the plucky Lakers, playing without Kobe Bryant, wouldn’t go away so easily. Nick Young, who has turned into something of a fan favorite in Los Angeles with Bryant out of the lineup, drained a three-pointer at the end of the third quarter cut the Heat’s lead to 76-73.

Young led the Lakers with 20 points off the bench. Guard Jodie Meeks had 17 points. The Lakers shot 41.8 percent.

The team’s traded leads throughout the first four minutes of the fourth quarter before the Heat distanced itself. Led by Wade, the Heat shot 10 of 16 from the field in the final period. The Heat shot 51.3 percent overall.

The Heat (22-6) — winners of six straight — scored 58 points in the paint and had 29 assists.

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Wade and LeBron give fans a pair of Christmas gifts in first half against Lakers

The Lakers' lack of star power on Christmas did little to detract from an exciting first half at Staples Center, which was highlighted by a pair of unforgettable alley-oops from Dwyane Wade to LeBron James.

The first lob from Wade, which he executed without looking: 

 That alley-oop was somehow topped in the second quarter by this lob off the glass, which LeBron dunked with his left hand: 

Here's your Heat-Lakers preview; Lakers starting five a Christmas joy

HEAT AT LAKERS

When/Where: 5 p.m. ET, Staples Center

LINK TO STORY

TV/Radio: ABC/AM 790, FM 104.3 and AM 710 (Spanish)

Series: Lakers lead 30-20.

Line: Heat by 9.

Officials: Tony Brothers, Leon Wood, Haywoode Workman

Of note: The Heat (21-6) has won five games in a row and is off to its best start to a season in franchise history. Miami is 7-2 on Christmas Day, including 4-0 against the Lakers. Dwyane Wade, who sat out Monday’s overtime victory against the Hawks, is ninth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list on Christmas Day. He has scored 204 points on Dec.25 throughout his career. LeBron James is 12th on that obscure list with 196 points. Kobe Bryant, who is not playing Wednesday due to a fracture in his knee, leads all Christmas Day scorers with 383 career points on the holiday.

Lakers projected starters: PG Jordan Farmar, SG Jodie Meeks, C Pau Gasol, F Shawne Williams, F Wesley Johnson

Heat projected starters: PG Mario Chalmers, SG Dwyane Wade, C Chris Bosh, F LeBron James, F Shane Battier

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Momentous home stand for Miami Heat highlighted by colossal dunks

It was a momentous home stand for the Heat, which went 5-0 at AmericanAirlines Arena after sputtering through the first two weeks of December.

Dwyane Wade was named Eastern Conference player of the week during the stretch, Shane Battier regained his form from three-point range and Michael Beasley returned from injury. But all those things were secondary to LeBron James' two colossal dunks against the Kings and Hawks. James laid to waste Ben McLemore of the Kings on Friday with this dunk and then put to poster Chris Millsap of the Hawks on Monday: 

The Heat's dunk fest during the home stand began against the Jazz. Led by a pair of unlikely dunks from Ray Allen, the Heat had a season-high 11 dunks against Utah. In all, the Heat had 36 dunks during the five-game home stand and shot 55 percent from the field overall despite a drop in the team's three-point shooting percentage. The Heat has shot less than 36 percent from distance in its last five games despite 10 three-pointers against the Hawks.

Monday, December 23, 2013

Stunningly comprehensive preview of tonight's game: Heat at Hawks

HAWKS AT HEAT

STORY LINK

WHEN/WHERE: 7:30 p.m., AmericanAirlines Arena

TV/RADIO: Sun Sports/AM 790, FM 104.3 and AM 710 (Spanish)

SERIES: Heat leads 56-40.

LINE: Heat by 8.5

OFFICIALS: Michael Smith, Steve Anderson, Mark Ayotte

STREAKS/STANDINGS: Heat has won four in a row; second in the East (-1.5); first in the Southeast/Hawks have won three in a row; third in the East (-7.0); second in the Southeast (-5.5).

INJURY REPORT: Greg Oden (knee rehabilitation, out), Michael Beasley (strained left hamstring, probable), Ray Allen (undisclosed soreness, probable); Gustavo Ayon (left ankle sprain/left leg contusion, questionable), Cartier Martin (sprained left ankle, questionable).

OF NOTE: The Heat has won four in a row after its early December struggles. Chris Bosh has shot at least 50 percent from the field in his last five games and the Heat has shot over 60 percent from the field in two of its last three games. Miami (20-6) would set a franchise record for best start in franchise history with a victory tonight. The Heat has won eight in a row against Atlanta and its all-time record of 100-48 (.676) against teams in the Southeast Division is the highest winning percentage in the NBA since the league re-aligned the divisions in 2004...The Hawks have won three in a row. Kyle Korver’s streak of 96 consecutive games with at least one made 3FG is the longest in NBA history.

HEAT

Screen Shot 2013-12-23 at 7.50.09 AM

HAWKS 

Screen Shot 2013-12-23 at 7.43.45 AM

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Michael Beasley injury news

Cleared for contact after being sidelined for 2 ½ weeks with a strained hamstring, Michael Beasley participated in the Heat’s practice on Sunday.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra would like Beasley to play against the Hawks on Monday before flying to Los Angeles, but the team’s training staff will evaluate Beasley one final time before signing off on the small forward. Beasley last played on Dec.5 against the Bulls. He has missed seven consecutive games.

“You never know what the right plan is, but we all were on board with the plan that our training staff and medical staff had for Michael,” Spoelstra said. “He was anxious to come back over a week ago, but there are a series of tests and progressions to make sure his hamstring was getting stronger and healthy.”

If not treated properly, hamstring injuries can linger throughout an entire season and lead to other injuries. To avoid complications, the Heat’s training staff has been overly cautious with Beasley’s health.

“He has been going more full speed on the court, not full contact, the last five or six days and [Sunday] was his first full-contact practice and I was encouraged,” Spoelstra said. “We’ll have to see how he feels and responds [Monday].”

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Presented without comment: Chris Bosh's Christmas sweater

Screen Shot 2013-12-21 at 8.58.20 PM

From the team's holiday party. Fa-la-la.

Dwyane Wade presents teammates with green championship jackets

It was a big night for Dwyane Wade. Not only did he propose marriage to his girlfriend at the Heat's annual holiday party, he also surprised his teammates of the 2013 championship team with green jackets similar to the iconic sports coats winners of The Masters receive.

From LeBron James' Instagram account: 

Screen Shot 2013-12-21 at 8.37.26 PM

James posted this picture on Saturday night of current teammates who were on the 2013 championship team:

Screen Shot 2013-12-21 at 8.36.50 PM

 

Dwyane Wade: 'She said YES!!!'

Dwyane Wade apparently asked Gabrielle Union to marry him on Saturday night, and, according to Wade's Instagram account, it went well.

"She said YES!!!" Wade said on Instagram, alongside this picture.

Screen Shot 2013-12-21 at 8.06.53 PM

Wade and Union began dating in 2007. This would be the second marriage for both celebrities.

LeBron poster right here by Herald photographer David Santiago

"It sucks that it's him. I like him."

—LeBron James

Screen Shot 2013-12-21 at 1.09.22 AM


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