MIAMI – Here’s how you know it’s a new day for the Miami Heat: They lead the league in points per game and rank second-to-last in points allowed. “We make our mark defensively,” MVP LeBron James said. He’s right. But maybe that’s about to change a little bit. Maybe. For years and years, the Heat have prided themselves on defense. That’s the culture. This is the team that gets its defensive philosophy from Pat “Contest Every Possession” Riley. It is defensive-minded right down
MIAMI – LeBron James has completed the rarely seen transition from national villain to national darling. For the first time in two years, there’s no over-the-top hatred for James to start the season. There’s no venom or vitriol. It’s been an amazing transition to watch. Kobe Bryant made a similar change/comeback a few years ago. LeBron’s might have been bigger. “Quicker,” Dwyane Wade said with a smile. “But I don’t know about bigger. You can go with quicker comeback.” OK, he’s got a
MIAMI – As LeBron James enters his 10th NBA season, title in hand, the pressure is off – for the most part. The Miami Heat forward is no longer a choker, a fraud, a slacker. Now, he’s The Man. That frees him up to cement his legacy and chase legends such as Michael Jordan (six titles), Magic Johnson (five titles) and, yes, even Kobe Bryant (five titles). His battle isn’t with himself, it’s with all-time greatness. He plans to run the race
MIAMI – From Dwyane Wade’s point of view, the Los Angeles’ Lakers second major acquisition of the offseason didn’t surprise him. Dwight Howard-to-LA was always on the backburner. It was the first one — the acquisition of Steve Nash — that caught him off guard. “They’re making a play for a championship,” Wade told SheridanHoops.com Saturday on his nationwide book-signing tour. “It’s not a surprising move that Dwight Howard went over there. I was kinda surprised to see Steve Nash. That was the
MIAMI — The NBA Finals remain in their infancy, relatively speaking, but here are five things we know for sure, right now, at this moment, after the participants practiced and spoke to the media Saturday on the eve of Game 3 of the best-of-seven series.
James Harden and his never-say-die mentality is a primary reason the Thunder are so relentless.
MIAMI – Crown him again. LeBron James, the most scrutinized athlete on the planet, is, indeed, The King. King of the Miami Heat, that is. He proved it again Saturday while leading his Miami Heat (yes, His Miami Heat) to a 101-88 Game 7 victory against Boston in the Eastern Conference finals. Step aside, Dwyane Wade. This is now LeBron’s team, and that’s not a bad thing. “He’s the best basketball player in the world,” Heat forward Chris Bosh said. James finished Game 7 with 31
It appears Dwyane Wade's status as an elite NBA guard might be slipping a bit.
MIAMI – This one was way too easy for Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, the current Stockton and Malone of the NBA. With well-known headhunters such as Lennox Lewis and Ndamukong Suh sitting in the AmericanAirlines Arena crowd (suspended center Dexter Pittman would have felt right at home), Wade and James put a 93-79 two-man hurt on the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference finals series. And that raises an interesting question… Could this Wade-James duo – in only its