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The Days of Old?
The New York Knicks roll into town tonight to face the struggling Miami Heat. And Heat fans, as well as Knick fans – most of whom are ‘trapped’ in South Florida these days – can’t help but think about the old days of those Heat and Knicks rivlaries. The ones that left us with images of flying elbows and stifling, physical defenses. Of Jeff Van Gundy clinging to Alonzo’s ankle – who now plays for the other Van Gundy. Or Thunder Dan sticking the three from downtown Miami. Or Allan Houston tipping in a game winner with a fraction of a second left to break everyone’s heart in South Florida.
Now Larry Brown has taken over in New York City. The last time Brown and the Heat met was in the Eastern Conference Finals last season. You may remember, there were diatribes exchanged in the media from Stan Van Gundy and Brown. It only heightened the games as both went back in forth speculating about the tactics of the other team’s coach. As fans, we can only hope that this continues and helps to renew the rivalry of these two franchises – even though the only player left from those days is Alonzo Mourning.
But Van Gundy has come to the defense of Larry Brown recently, questioning Stephon Marbury’s dissatisfaction with the new system that is being implemented in New York. So, perhaps the poison from this rivalry is gone forever. Not to mention the key ingredient, Pat Riley, is up in the sky boxes these days and far from view of the fans and the media.
To boot, the two teams are no longer in the same division, but instead head up seperate divisions since the realignment. One can only hope that something sets off this rivalry of old, but at the same time we are reminded that these two teams are so far apart that there is no need for a rivalry either.
Too bad, as fans, we always look for these kinds of matchups. Instead, we will have to look to Indiana or Detroit for this kind of heated exchange. But who knows, maybe in a few years, we will see, once again, a Heat and Knicks rivalry.
Future, believe it or not, is bright for the Marlins
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Mike Lowell, Josh Beckett and Carlos Delgado are all gone. And they are only the beginning of the gutting of this team as the Marlins finally do the sensible thing and start spending money within the confines of their budget.
They have the worst lease in all of sports, thanks to the criminal act of Wayne Huizenga and the naivete’ of John Henry – who now owns the Boston Red Sox. (Funny how a guy can’t afford to build a stadium but can afford to buy one of the most lucrative sports franchises in all of sports.) The Marlins also have a fickle fan base that can’t seem to consistently support young stars like Miguel Cabrera or Dontrelle Willis or even the talent the likes of Carlos Delgado. Rain and weather scare Marlin fans away? Possibly. That and an area for the game that offers very little short of traffic jams and a long commute.
And now the OB plan has been scrapped because the Marlins and the officials of Miami couldn’t figure out a way to fund the $30M gap. The Marlins were offereing $212M to throw into the pot that was going to cost around $350M (but probably closer to $400M when all is said and done).
But this is all good. This is all progress. The only way the Marlins can be taken seriously is to take serious measures. They don’t have the money, so they have to make the moves to free themselves from “financial irresponsibility” that has occurred with them trying to enliven this South Florida fan base. They tried to spend like a big franchise, but lacked the money and the support. Such shrewdness most dont display – especially at this time of year.
There will also be a ripple effect in place. These moves the Marlins are making look eerily similar to those made after the ‘97 season. But this is almost 10 years later and the Marlins still don’t have the financial flexibility in place they need. Perhaps this is more than just posturing, perhaps the Marlins are serious. And maybe now the politicians will start to think about some real and tangible alternatives to get this franchise not only what it needs, but what it deserves.
The future is bright for the Marlins no matter what, even in this bleakest hour. There will be a day of resolution ahead – either the Marlins will get the facility they need here in South Florida or they will find it somewhere else. Because there will be other suitors. For a franchise that has been able to win two championships in less than 10 years, there is always some interest. And with the most recent moves that may even set the Marlins back a few years, they will have the talent in a couple of years to be a very scary and dangerous team. Much like in ‘98 when the baby Marlins came together with loads of talent – they managed to win it all with that core in ‘03. This team, however, may have a shorter turnaround with talents like Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis being the established ‘vets’ on this team while only being in their ealry 20’s. Adding to that top prospects Jeremy Hermida – who has the 5 tool talent to be a huge star in this league – along with Mike Jacobs and Hanley Ramirez, this team has the young talent on offense to make a splash as early as next season.
It may look bleak, but there is hope.
Heat still adjusting
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Here we are 10 games into the season. A loss to the Raptors – previously the team with the worst record in the NBA – might send some into shock. Or make the bandwagon sputter a little bit.
Truth be told, this is a good thing for the Heat.
Coming into yesterday’s game, the Heat had won 4 straight and just beat Philadelphia at home. They moved into first place atop the Southeastern division at 6-3. Things were looking good. Too good. No Shaq? No problem. JWill goes down with a knee bruise? Oh, we’ll just make a minor change to the roster – welcome aboard Mr. Fitch, see you around Mr. Walsh – and things will be fine.
Not quite.
30 points in the 2nd quarter for the Raptors? 40 more in the 4th quarter?
The Heat are far from fine – and this is good. Dwyane Wade is playing like he is supposed to – trying to carry the load for the missing Diesel. He also seems to have enough humility to know what Kobe did not, that he cannot carry this team deep into the playoffs without the Big Sprain.
The supporting cast of this Heat team, the Paytons and Walkers of the bunch in particular, know this as well. So everyone is on the same page – win as much as you can right now and even still expect to win, but realize that this team is far from complete at this point. From the roster to the play on the court, there are still some elements missing.
Losing to the Raptors was good in that it will grant the Heat the proper perspective it needs to remain focused on its goal. They need Shaq. They need Jason Williams. And they need to listen more closely to Stan Van Gundy and the rest of the coaching staff. This team isn’t ready.
At least, not yet.
Flame Head Coach Jeff Malone on NBATV
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This was my first time hearing Coach Malone speaking to NBA TV. Jeff Malone still sounds like the veteran player on the bench who gives his all, but he has the ability to communicate the essential messages that a head coach needs to send to a young player in need of direction. He has a calming and supportive tone in his voice and an instructive ability to go along with it.
When people ask why young players should be in the D-League over playng abroad for more money, you can point to Jeff Malone as one of those folks who has been to the mountain, climbed to the peak, and made it back down to lead those daring enough back up again.
The Flame and Malone are joining for their first year together, and even if they lose every single game, every player knows they will have a good man leading them out every game with an keen instinct for the game and the abilities to share that instinct with those willing to learn.
I know Malone wants to win, but with the coaching abilities he has, his main problem may be keeping talent at the D-League level long enough to form the chemistry and plain old feel for the game that team units form in the minor leagues of baseball and hockey. I’m sure Jeff won’t be too upset to see some of his Flame become this year’s big D-League surprise. Hopefully it will be one of our Baby HEAT players.
Fitch signs with Heat, Walsh waived
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In an effort to cut down on the W’s on the roster, the Heat signed Gerald Fitch – the former Kentucky PG – and waived Matt Walsh, another SEC grown player. Fitch is expected to give the Heat some more depth at guard while Jason Williams recovers from a bruised knee which he suffered against Chris Andersen of the NOK Hornets.
Fitch, 6′3″ 188, harvested a 39.6 career 3pt% while at Kentucky. He was first team all-SEC in his senior season in 2003-2004 and finished his career as UK’s 22nd all time points scorer. Seen as an undersized 2 guard that can defend and stick the three. He saw some time with the Heat in training camp and impressed coaches, but there just wasn’t room at the time for Fitch to stick with the team.
Now, with Williams’ injury, Fitch’s skills are more needed than Walsh’s, who doesn’t seem to have the ball-handling skills to play point guard or even shooting guard at this point. This also leaves Walsh’s future in doubt, at least with the Heat. Walsh signed a guranteed deal with the Heat to make the roster for the season. Will he return? It may depend on how well Fitch plays.
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