The discussion prior to Game 4 was fascinating. It was basically all about Lebron and why Zeus was not performing at his normal all-star MVP supreme deity level. Amazingly, his Big Three teammates were not getting anywhere near the same amount of heat (small “h”). It was as if people had forgotten about those other two, or more likely, everyone assumed that what we saw in Games 1 through 3 was the most we could expect from them – an inaccurate non-rebounding jump shooting Voldemort, and some first half highlights and a second half fade from the Artist formally known as Flash. Even this fake blogger had this memorable (and now embarrassing) exchange with offensive rebounding savant Glenn Dryfoos, who has lived in Miami for the past decade. Glenn’s comment is first, mine begins with the fateful “Agreed” and finishes with the disastrous “They were right”:
· Wade used to be a good on ball defender…no more…he got beat off the dribble and caught out of position a lot. He’s still pretty good at getting steals and deflections by overplaying passing lanes Agreed. Interesting that the discussion is all about Lebron, as if people have accepted that this is just what DWade is now. People predicted that his style of play would age him prematurely. They were right.
It turns out that the rumors of Flash’s demise were exaggerated. People, including this fake blogger, forgot (1) how great Wade has been and still is, (2) he is still just 31, and (3) what a great regular season he had this year. His stats are below – he averaged 21, 5 and 5, and most impressively, shot 52% from the field, easily the best of his career. And that career probably places him in the top 4 of all time for 2 guards (in no particular order – MJ, Kobe, Jerry West, DWade). So while he is not the same player who averaged 30 per game (when he didn’t have a teammate like Lebron taking most of the shots), 90% of that DWade is still a top 10 player. And on Thursday night, when he had an incredible six (6) steals, possibly a top 1 or 2 player.
Regular season
Year
|
Team
|
GP
|
GS
|
MPG
|
FG%
|
3P%
|
FT%
|
RPG
|
APG
|
SPG
|
BPG
|
PPG
|
61
|
56
|
34.9
|
.465
|
.302
|
.747
|
4.0
|
4.5
|
1.4
|
.6
|
16.2
| ||
77
|
77
|
38.6
|
.478
|
.289
|
.762
|
5.2
|
6.8
|
1.6
|
1.1
|
24.1
| ||
75
|
75
|
38.6
|
.495
|
.171
|
.783
|
5.7
|
6.7
|
2.0
|
.8
|
27.2
| ||
51
|
50
|
37.9
|
.491
|
.266
|
.807
|
4.7
|
7.5
|
2.1
|
1.2
|
27.4
| ||
51
|
49
|
38.3
|
.469
|
.286
|
.758
|
4.2
|
6.9
|
1.7
|
.7
|
24.6
| ||
79
|
79
|
38.6
|
.491
|
.317
|
.765
|
5.0
|
7.5
|
2.2
|
1.3
|
30.2
| ||
77
|
77
|
36.3
|
.476
|
.300
|
.761
|
4.8
|
6.5
|
1.8
|
1.1
|
26.6
| ||
76
|
76
|
37.1
|
.500
|
.306
|
.758
|
6.4
|
4.6
|
1.5
|
1.1
|
25.5
| ||
49
|
49
|
33.2
|
.497
|
.268
|
.791
|
4.8
|
4.6
|
1.7
|
1.3
|
22.1
| ||
69
|
69
|
34.7
|
.521
|
.258
|
.725
|
5.0
|
5.1
|
1.9
|
.8
|
21.2
| ||
Career
|
665
|
657
|
36.9
|
.489
|
.289
|
.767
|
5.1
|
6.1
|
1.8
|
1.0
|
24.7
| |
Another all-time top ten 2 guard played Thursday night, though he had a bottomten night with only one hoop, two boards and two assists. After the game, I wrote the following note to myself:
Manu’s last home game, win or lose?
Manu is an unrestricted free agent after this season. Prior to this series, everyone assumed he would sign a 2 or 3 year extension with the Spurs, giving a slight home team discount to remain with the team. Now? It will be interesting to see what the smartest organization in the NBA does with my man Manu. It may come down to whether the Spurs are more Spock (who would not bring him back) or Kirk (who would). This is not the best clip of the logic vs. emotion battle between the two, but it is cool anyway:
Other thoughts:
1. Interesting stat, stolen from Elias sports:
James shot 15-for-25 from the floor, Wade 14-for-25, and Bosh 8-for-14. There have been only two other games in NBA Finals history in which two players scored 30 points and a teammate added 20, with each of the three hitting at least half of his field-goal attempts: In Game 2 of the 1969 Finals, the Lakers got that kind of contribution from Jerry West, Elgin Baylor and Johnny Egan; and in Game 5 of the 1985 Finals, the Lakers got similar numbers from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy and Magic Johnson.
2. In an earlier fake blog, I credited Spoelstra for devising the less aggressive defense on the Spurs pick and roll which confounded the Spurs in Game 2. After Game 3, in which that defense was less than ideal (to put it mildly), they asked the Heat players whether the softer D on pick and rolls was intentional:
Udonis Haslem agreed. “It wasn’t by design at all. We just didn’t execute.”
Spoelstra also made a change in the starting line-up, starting the red hot Mike Miller in place of Haslem. Miller then went 0 for 1 in 21 minutes, with 1 rebound. Maybe the “hot hand” is a myth, but don’t’ tell Danny Green, 3 of 5 from 3. Of course, Miller’s night was better than Tiago Splitter’s 0 for 3 with 3 turnovers – and Miami guys fighting with each other about who gets to block his next shot.
3. From ESPN’s expert panel before Game 4. As if to prove my point above, none of them mention DWade or Voldemort possibly playing better:
Who wins Game 4?
Abbott: The no-brainer pick is the Heat, and it makes sense. When they play ferociously, they are undefeated and they tend to get ferocious after losses. In the playoffs they have won big. But just for fun, I'll say the Spurs will win, which is really just an expression of belief in Gregg Popovich, home-court advantage and shooting ability.
Adande: Heat. We've come to another crossroads of LeBron's career. It's hard to believe he'd go out quietly right now in the prime of his career and at the peak of his powers. On the one hand, we keep having these make-or-break moments for LeBron. On the other hand, he must be doing something right if we keep having this discussion in June, if you know what I mean.
Arnovitz: Heat. Throughout the playoffs, the recent past for Miami has told us nothing about the immediate future. The Heat haven't lost consecutive games since the Ford administration. With that and Parker's injury in mind, Miami seems poised to bounce back.
Christensen: Heat. LeBron has said he will do whatever it takes to get it going, and although I highly respect Popovich, I wouldn't bet against the best player in the world. The Heat know this is practically a do-or-die game for them. They haven't lost consecutive games since Jan. 8 and 10, and they have shown the ability to bounce back from losses all season.
Pelton: Heat. Until proven otherwise, I'm going with the playoff-long trend that the Heat save their best basketball for the game after a loss. I think they win and turn the narrative of this series 180 degrees yet again.
4. For Game 5 tomorrow night (and what a great Father’s Day gift from the NBA to have a 2 – 2 series Game 5 on Sunday evening), the free market economy has spoken. The Vegas line as of this morningis Miami favored by a point in San Antonio. If that happens, the series is likely over, and the post-Game 1 predictions of the break-up of the Heat Big 3 will be long forgotten. If the Spurs win Game 5 (please, please), everyone will bring their talents to South Beach for an epic ending to the Series. And let’s all hope for at least one more game in which the game is not already decided early in the fourth quarter.
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