Players such as rookie guard Norris Cole are providing quality depth for the Heat.
Dwyane Wade is doubtful tonight vs. Indiana
MIAMI – The zone defense is killing the Miami Heat. OK, it’s not really killing the Heat. After all, they won 58 games and went to the NBA Finals last year, and so far they’re 5-1 this year. But you know what I mean. The zone is hurting the Heat badly when applied correctly by good teams. Dallas did it in the Finals last year. Boston did it this year. And on Monday, Atlanta did it well enough to defeat the Heat,
// There are five NBA teams that have played three games in the first four nights of the season. Two of them (Miami and Oklahoma City) are 3-0. Another, the Boston Celtics, are 0-3. The two others are the Lakers (1-2) and the Warriors (2-1). Undefeated records for those first two teams should come as no surprise. Pretty much half the staff at SheridanHoops.com predicted they would met in the finals. But then we have the third team, the Celtics, who were known
// That calming breeze you feel outside is the collective sigh of relief coming from the West, originating in Los Angeles. Unless the wind is blowing from the Northeast, near Boston. Then it’s cold and bitter. The folks who sit in the front row and wear their sunglasses indoors had a little extra bounce in their step as they strode to the valet stand last night, a measure of normalcy having returned to the Staples Center as the Lakers — the first team
MIAMI — The first thing you notice about Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem is his hair. The trademark braids he wore for his previous eight NBA seasons are gone. Spending two hours a week getting his hair done finally got to be too much. But after you get over that initial shock of seeing Haslem wearing a medium-sized afro, you notice the rebounding, the toughness, the willingness to take charges, to get on the floor after loose balls. You see the art
MIAMI — Midway through the third quarter of the Miami Heat’s 118-85 victory over Orlando on Sunday, second-year center Dexter Pittman got right in Dwight Howard’s face as though he wanted to start something. The result of the altercation was a double foul — one on Pittman, one on Howard — and a measure of respect. But it didn’t answer any questions about the Heat’s toughness in the middle. Miami’s four-headed center — starter Joel Anthony, Pittman, and power forwards Chris Bosh
MIAMI – Take one look at Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh – the Miami Heat’s Big Three – and you can tell they’re more relaxed this year. That’s because the focus of the season is different, it’s more about the Miami Heat than the Big Three. That’s a liberating feeling for all involved. “I feel this year we’re head above heels from where we were last year,” James said. A year ago the Big Three were the talk of the nation.