Tonight in Miami, LeBron James has another “Decision.” This one is not about where James is going to play, however. Tonight is about how he is going to play. And this decision is tougher, because he doesn’t have days to think about it. He has about an hour, tops. [Read more…]
Thursday night the Miami Heat took the advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals after defeating the Indiana Pacers 90-79. After the game, while most of the media hoopla was about the Chris “Birdman” Andersen flagrant foul on Tyler Hansbrough (for which he was recently suspended), LeBron James’ takeover in the third quarter and the health of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. [Read more…]
This Eastern Conference finals between Indiana and Miami could go down as one of the best in the past decade. It has been filled with drama and great action. With the Pacers tying the series with a home win in Game 4, it has become a best-of-three to decide which team plays San Antonio in the NBA Finals. Below are the five keys for tonight’s Game 5 in Miami, the potential swing game. [Read more…]
The refs gave this game to the Pacers? Why, because LeBron James fouled out for the second time in 128 career playoff games? That’s a convenient excuse. Miami was called for just five more fouls than Indiana and only attempted six fewer free throws in the game. If you look a little deeper, Indiana reversed three key trends in this series and helped the team get an enormous 99-92 win in Tuesday night’s Game 4 to help even the Eastern
One year after falling two games short of the NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs found redemption in the Western Conference Finals after sweeping the Memphis Grizzlies 4-0 Monday night. Tony Parker, frequently lauded as the league’s most forgotten superstar, scored 37 points in the clinching game, which the Spurs won 93-86. Nobody believes he’s a star, but game-after-game, year-after-year, these Spurs are still riding him into the final days of May. [Read more…]
The Memphis Grizzlies undoubtedly had a successful season, but a sweep at the hands of the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals leaves at least several questions that need to be answered and addressed. Should Memphis do anything with Zach Randolph? His playoff numbers declined pretty dramatic over Memphis’ three postseason rounds, leaving the team with an incredibly sour taste about ZBo going into the future. Randolph Min FG % Points Rebounds FTA FT % 1st Round vs LAC 33.7 56.8 20.8 8 5.7 73.5 2nd Round vs OKC 39.6 44.6 18.4 10.8 7.2 72.2 Conf. Finals vs SA 38.5 30.2 11 12 6 50 How can a shooting slump like
Sometimes, it’s difficult to assess where blame ends and where giving credit begins. This is especially true when breaking down a lopsided sports contest, in this case the Miami Heat’s 114-96 blowout of the Indiana Pacers in Sunday’s Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Should blame be placed on Indiana for allowing 70 first half points, or for shooting under 40 percent from the floor at home? Or should Miami be lauded and praised for committing just five turnovers and
When was the last time you saw Udonis Haslem have a game like that? The oft-criticized Miami forward had his best game of the entire season — and the postseason — in shooting 8-for-9 from the field and scoring 17 points, leading the way during Miami’s 70-point first half as the Heat regained control of their Eastern Conference finals series with Indiana by crushing the Pacers 114-96 Sunday night in Game 3. Haslem’s previous season-high was 13 points — done once in