Two great wins in a row for the Miami Heat as they came home after a long road trip to face the Spurs and now the Los Angeles Lakers. The scoreboard blazed 98-87 but the game was not nearly as close as the score would indicate.
The Heat got 31 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists from Lebron James – who was scratched from the pregame shootaround due to flu symptoms. Didn’t seem to matter tonight as James relished the opportunity to take on Kobe Bryant, a player, he admits, he admired “back in high school”. Seems kind of odd to think that James is either that young or that Kobe is now that old.
Bryant was held to 6 points on 1-7 shooting in the first half by a melange of Shane Battier and Mike Miller. Bryant ended up with 24 points trying to stuff the basket when the game was pretty much determined, but for the most part was kept under control for the Heat defense.
Some other positive developments for the Heat – Eddy Curry makes his debut on the game after Mike Miller made his. Although not as immediately impactful as Mike Miller’s entrance, Curry flashed abilities on the offensive side of the ball depositing 6 points in 6 minutes. He did, however, leave Pau Gasol open to drain a three and it was Curry’s defensive rotation that still needs work. He obviously has come a long way just to get onto the floor, but the next goal for him will be to solidify himself into game shape and get after it on both ends of the floor. Curry has always been a gifted, offensive big man and his defense is mostly relegated to patrolling the paint and using his size. He was a factor, when he did play, on Andrew Bynum, matching him size for size.
Lebron James also showed more poise and comfort running the team and setting up his teammates. James, ultimately, will leave a legacy as a facilitator in his uncanny ability to make plays and set up teammates and this is where he will need to focus to become more successful for the Heat. One sequence tells all – after hitting a three and things were getting chippy with Kobe, who wanted to play through his frustration and chose to defend James tightly all of a sudden, James didn’t force up a jumper but instead threaded a pass on the wing to a waiting Battier who drained the three. If James can stay ultra competitive but focused on the task at hand, that shows tremendous growth.
Right now, Dwayne Wade is the league leading scorer at 28.0 PPG to go along with 5.1 RBs and 7.2 ASTs. He is bent on proving his elite status among the game’s guards and is living up to his charge right now improving the Heat’s record from last year’s miserable 15 win season.
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Ricky Davis and Chris Quinn Are Miami
Shaq’s stupid comments have lead to much discussion. I have been putting off commenting on his comments for a reason – others have been doing it while scrambling for a spotlight on the situation.
This is how it is with Shaq. He transcends the sport so much that even a little mumbling on his part can lead to a big “to-do”. Well, it really is much ado about nothing.
Of course Shaq is going to bash the Heat. He, believe it or not, has a right to do so. And no, I am not talking about his constitutional right but rather his personal right. As a professional, he definitely overstepped his bounds by singling out Ricky Davis and Chris Quinn. Yet his frustration is nothing unusual here – most Heat fans would agree in a sense that some bad roster decisions were made.
The discussion calls for us to consider Shaq’s perspective – what about his promise from Pat Riley and Mickey Arison about making a consistent championship run each year with the roster? The Heat had invested heavily in Shaq in that 2004 offseason by dealing away Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, Brian Grant and a draft pick and Shaq actually could have opted out and not returned to Miami if he so desired.
Miami took a risk. They saw it payoff in 2006. So did Shaq. It was argued that he was too old and fat and lazy and that he was incapable of helping a team win another championship. That is why the Lakers opted for Kobe over Shaq. They were mistaken at the time, but they are winning the war these days with the Lakers rising again and Miami falling back in the pack with Shaq’s departure.
It didn’t have to end this way. Riley made some bad decisions this past offseason but it was also Arison’s fault in not letting Riley spend the money he needed to keep the championship caliber team stitched together for a few more seasons while Shaq’s massive contract was on the books.
Maybe that is what Shaq is whining about. Maybe he had a gentlemanly promise with Riley that he thought meant he would be contending every year while in Miami – not trying to skate by on fill-ins.
Yet make no mistake – there is no one more Miami Heat these days than Ricky Davis and Chris Quinn. Both have been playing their hearts out in a season where the rest of the team has found numerous ways to quit – including Shaq. I think Ira Windeman said that best.
Shaq never gave this season a chance. He basically shut it down from the get-go. Wade did his best to try and put a face of effort on this season but you can’t blame him for wanting to shut it down with the pain he endures both physically and mentally. His efforts are not adding up to wins which made it worse. And Shaq, meanwhile, was out in LA getting his “alternative treatments”.
Shaq may have had an argument and professionally, he may not wish to disclose the entire matter but his criticism is well-noted. Still, when you are past your prime and relying on a young talent like Dwyane Wade to look good, you don’t have as much credibility as you think you should to call out players like Davis and Quinn.
Both of them have something Shaq doesn’t have anymore – heart, humility and desire. They don’t need a giant chip on their shoulder to come out and play motivated each night. They do it because they just do. Shaq needs an adversary to get his big ass moving – he needs a Kobe, a Phil Jackson, a Pat Riley and now a Chris Quinn or Ricky Davis?
It is said that a man is defined by who his adversaries are. If that be the case, let all of mankind oppose Shaq as he has melted into a spoiled, whiny, egotistical has-been.
Too bad, too. Because I really liked the Suns and their style of basketball. I was rooting for the good guys like Nash and Stoudamire. And now I find myself in the same position that Lakers fans were in back in 2004 – they hate on Shaq for being Shaq. Still, to dis players like Quinn and Davis is low and reveals what kind of person Shaq has now become.