Monthly Archives: December 2010

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12-29-10 Heat v Houston Rockets

25 miles to go, my feet are hurting mighty bad. After a late night and little sleep, Heat don’t fail me now. The team is sweating early in the game – tired from last night’s game. Take time to center, get grounded then shoot. That 3-pointer that rolled around the rim, we had to pray that one in. Houston knows the deal so they are increasing the pace.  Hey, that rushed air ball there was a man wide open. Nice work Bosh with their in-your-face defense. Ilgauska for the rebound, Yea. Bosh and take that, 42-37.  Alright, yes, Wade wants his ball back, a nice move. Hey guys, keep the defense tight 44-46. Looks like a heat wave leaving you wondering what happened.” Flip the script now its a running game. Wake up, put some pressure, shut them down. no one’s moving. 48-52.  Yes, Wade for the basket and the foul taking the score to 53 - but a lot of hesitation.  Hey, over there LeBron is wide open under the basket…  Reach in and tap the ball instead of fouling… What a steal LeBron 74-78, then like a jet picking up speed on the runway with good ball control - two hands. And yep, this time it’s in.  Winning this game will be a nice Birthday gift to yourself.     Jones, LeBron and Z are coming to life and bringing the score with them, from 9 down to 4 up.  Rockets are getting-over with that fast bouncing pass and their anticipation and speed  to steal LeBron’s passes…. Foul not called as Wade goes down but look out; He’s back.  For every step back if you  can advance two steps ahead in the end you wind up a winner. Despite the air balls, turnovers, and fouls Heat ends up ahead. 

Hey, guys Happy New Years. Get some sleep and don’t party too much on New Year’s Eve – Remember Golden State on Saturday.

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12-20-10 Heat v Dallas Mavericks

25 Miles to Go. Heat don’t fail me now.  In the second quarter LeBron with the ball but no Heat jerseys in site. “Oh my God,” where is the team? Did something happen before the game? Turn-overs, fouls and missed shots. It looks like the team had on some of those glasses that Jason Jackson wore during half time to demonstrate drunk driving. With 1:25 left in the 4th quarter and Miami down by 4,  the score 89-85  the ball is up but the players are looking down and miss the rebound. It was a disappointing birthday for me but the highlight was spending the pregame show with Jason Jackson in the Bayside Sun Sports Studio.

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12-15-10 Heat v Cleveland Cavaliers

In an aggressive game the Heat championed its 10th straight win. The Heat had a slow start out of the gate this season with a 9-8 record going into its first game against the Cavaliers but Heat players turned up the temperature and have not looked back leaving a blistering path scorching all 10 teams that have crossed their path. Wade said, “We’re here to win the championship.”  The generousity that Wade, LeBron and Bosh showed in giving up some dollars in order to create an awesome team… They deserve it. Sometimes in life you have to take a step back in order to take two steps forward.

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11-17-10 Heat v Dallas

Watching the Heat play Dallas on November 27, 2010 I heard the lyrics of Edwin Starr’s song “25 miles to go… Feet Don’t Fail Me Now”  With 8 losses I changed the lyrics to ”Heat” don’t fail me now. Send word to the coach… the 3 kings have not yet jelled. They need time to get the plays down. They are not playing in their zone. They are thinking about their plays and thinking is keeping them out of the zone. Too slow moving down the court. Too much hesitation.  Wade doesn’t have that look that, “I’m coming through.” Give them each a quarter with the freedom to play their game. We can’t afford to wait until next year for a ring. Unlike Nike’s slogan, “Just Do It” when time is of the essence the legal term is “Do It Now”!

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12-28-10 Heat v Knicks

Wade starts with a beautiful jump shot. Then a beautiful block by Joel Anthony. Although the ball didn’t quite go in Wade’s pass to Bosh was smooth. Leading 59:71 Wade lets Studemire know, “This is my ball.”  With the score at 61-75 I have to give it to Joel he is playing some serious defense to keep up with the fast pace of the Knicks . And Arroyo, that was a nice field goal to push the lead to 61-77. What’s up with the score board giving the Heat’s 2 points to NY.  63-80 get that straight.  Wade was like the energizer bunny, never stops going.

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12-18-10 Heat v Washington Wizards

Before the game started when I heard, “This game is a given”, that made me nervous. And close it was, too close for comfort. “Defense, defense don’t let them shoot,” but Joel Anthony’s great blocking was not enough. The Heat, like James Jones, got stepped on my McGhee who stepped right into his chest. There was good hustling by the Heat but too much thinking and watching. The Wizards’ defense stayed close and kept at least 3 men in a tight formation under the basket keeping the Heat away from the hoop while the Wizards’ offense made their shots from a distance.  In the 2nd quarter, I wanted to shout, “Shoot, shoot the ball,” while the Heat passed the ball with a “We got this” complancency, missing a couple opportunities to shoot. Chalmers finally makes a 3-pointer that stops my heart from pounding. “Not in this house” Anthony lets them know with an aggressive block that keeps the Wizards only 3 points ahead at 40-43. The Wizards gave Howard a gift leaving him wide open to shoot his 16,000th shot.  Then LeBron said, “Take this,” as he crashes the ball into the basket, leaving the Wizards with a shoe stuck in the stands. You can’t keep a good man down,- LeBron gets up from a trip and fall to tie the score 46-46 shortly before half time. With Miami in the lead 55-53 after half time there is a steal. “Run faster Bosh” I shout as the thief makes off with the goods.  The Wizards then get a 3-pointer and their own rebound. What’s up with that? The ref must have been confused too giving the Heat ball to the Wizards. That’s when I knew karma would prevail despite the Wizards Nick Young who was hot. That offensive foul in the 3rd quarter stops Wade’s drive to the basket. I can hear him thinking, “Losing to the worst team in the Eastern Conference.”  But it’s clear the Wizards are serious about winning this game. Armstrong shuts down Wade and LeBron with his blocking and charging. Jones’ 2-points at the line with 13 seconds stop my heart from breaking; but those must have been the longest 13 seconds in history.  During that time I felt every emotion humanly possible. With seconds left in the game and Wade at the line for the deciding point, I closed my eyes and prayed. Wade with advice from LeBron - takes a deep breath then reaches up to the heavens to get the ball up and over the rim. “Oh my God,” I screamed.  I wanted to high-5 Coach Eric Spoelstra through the television screen. That was the most excited I ever saw him.

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12-17-10 Heat v New York Knicks

Knicks player Felton steps out into the New York lights with his neon orange shoes to tip the first ball of the night. But Bosh adds some spins to the basket that pushes Miami into the lead. With 5:54 left in the first quarter Miami’s defense slows to a dull pace and New York Knicks race to a 16:17 lead. But they can not keep up with Arroyo who was hot with three triples in the first quarter giving homage to his Grandfather whose spirit he carried with him on the court. Stoudemire of the Knicks and Anthony of the Heat duke it out for a ball that takes Stoudemire to the line but he misses both shots. The Knicks’ energy never lets up. The score is like a roller coaster. A pass from Wade into the clouds to LeBron “Skywalker” puts in a dunk that gives Miami a 57-55 lead just before half time.  Miami is leading 93-78 but its hard to keep up with the ball, New York is on the move. Miami is up but Wade is down holding his right wrist. Bosh and Chalmers gives some relief. But don’t count Wade out yet. He steps out of the furnace with his hammer charging Miami to a 21 point lead of 104-83. LeBron, the leading scorer with 32 points proves he can play under New York’s bright lights.

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12-2-10 Heat vs Cavaliers

Miami’s Heat threw their magical dust on the Cleveland Cavaliers with a performance that showed their fans, “This is how we roll.”  Even Ms. Rudolph (Miami’s voodoo lady) had to be impressed. LeBron’s stunning performance with 24 points in the third quarter gave him an opportunity to go back and face the elephant in the room and to find the answer to the question, “What should I do?”  He found the answer… Give a good performance. He showed how to make a reverse shot that reversed the booing and in the Cavalier’s silence helped them to admit that LeBron is now “Miami’s LeBron” but despite their frustration and loss, they still love his swag. LeBron it looks like you used the Flex-Shot Trainer to be a shart shooter. (Remember that article in SLAM Magazine, Nov 01,  Basketball Diary with LeBron James when you were in high school) .