NBA Finals Game 5

[Dynasty]

Heat starting out with a sense of urgency. Where was this in game 3 and 4?

 

[Hoophound]

I actually think the Heat can win 2 and maybe even 3 in a row, despite what's happened so far. I'm probably crazy but I just have trouble believing the Heat will go down so easily.

 

[Scoe]

Even with the fast start the Spurs are still right there, Lebron obviously was gonna go into beast mode.

 

[JaYnYcE]

go spurs go

 

[Dynasty]

Heat would be getting whooped if it weren't for LeBron.

 

[Gurleyman]

If this is the last game for Ray, ugh. Looks every bit his age.

 

[jibsey]

If this is the last game for Ray, ugh. Looks every bit his age.

Besides LeBron, what are the other player's excuses?

 

[JaYnYcE]

Heat getting burned. This is great.

 

[Dynasty]

I looked away for 5 minutes and the lead went from 10 to 21... The Heat are finished.

 

[Scoe]

Did you know that in the last 2 national championship years for Uconn the Heat have lost the NBA finals, assuming of course the Spurs hold on here.

 

[JaYnYcE]

Did you know the Spurs won their first title the same year UCONN won their first title?

 

[Scoe]

now the Heat's season relies on Beasley lol

 

[huskyharry]

The Spurs are clearly the better team at both ends of the court and their style of play with good ball movement and outstanding interior passing is quite enjoyable to watch.

Leonard is a special talent and plays a hard, clean game. The shooting coach for the Spurs must be one of the best in history with how much improvement players have made after arriving at the Spurs.

However, I just cannot stand the way they get away with flopping (Ginobili, Diaw, Patty Mills and Parker are blatant about it and the zebras just continue to reward them). Duncan also gets away extra contact on almost every defensive play (often the off hand pushing the shooter's hip or his off arm bumping the lower arm of the non-shooting hand). Parker and Diaw also often get away with an extra step when making a pass and they take full advantage by using that step to get a better passing angle. These things make it very easy for me to root against them and makes me have a much lower degree of respect for Coach Pop, a former USAF Officer.

 

[Horatio]

Love it. Nows there's excitement / drama in the NBA starting tomorrow . Wade needs to become the teams 6th / 7th man and Ray might be meeting with Spike Lee or some director by the end of the week.

 

[Scoe]

If this is the last game for Ray, ugh. Looks every bit his age.

A week ago Ray was ageless and now he's done, Ray and father time decides that.

 

[Dynasty]

The Heat need a bench. They can't depend on 3 stars on the wrong side of 30. It wouldn't be popular but the Heat need to hope that Wade opts out and let him go.

 

[JaYnYcE]

The Spurs are clearly the better team at both ends of the court and their style of play with good ball movement and outstanding interior passing is quite enjoyable to watch.

Leonard is a special talent and plays a hard, clean game. The shooting coach for the Spurs must be one of the best in history with how much improvement players have made after arriving at the Spurs.

However, I just cannot stand the way they get away with flopping (Ginobili, Diaw, Patty Mills and Parker are blatant about it and the zebras just continue to reward them). Duncan also gets away extra contact on almost every defensive play (often the off hand pushing the shooter's hip or his off arm bumping the lower arm of the non-shooting hand). Parker and Diaw also often get away with an extra step when making a pass and they take full advantage by using that step to get a better passing angle. These things make it very easy for me to root against them and makes me have a much lower degree of respect for Coach Pop, a former USAF Officer.

 

[UConn990411]

However, I just cannot stand the way they get away with flopping (Ginobili, Diaw, Patty Mills and Parker are blatant about it and the zebras just continue to reward them). Duncan also gets away extra contact on almost every defensive play (often the off hand pushing the shooter's hip or his off arm bumping the lower arm of the non-shooting hand). Parker and Diaw also often get away with an extra step when making a pass and they take full advantage by using that step to get a better passing angle. These things make it very easy for me to root against them and makes me have a much lower degree of respect for Coach Pop, a former USAF Officer.

Haha.

 

[huskyharry]

By no means was I defending LBJ or the Heat...but the Spurs flopping is pervasive throughout multiple players and makes me not like their team.
The only reason I root for the Heat is Walter Ray Allen.

 

[JaYnYcE]

By no means was I defending LBJ or the Heat...but the Spurs flopping is pervasive throughout multiple players and makes me not like their team.
The only reason I root for the Heat is Walter Ray Allen.

My post was just to show that pretty much every team does it, even the Heat.

 

[Gurleyman]

Besides LeBron, what are the other player's excuses?

Wade aged too quickly - his game is now reduced to an old man game of making tough twos and that's hard to live on - they couldn't use him as a creator or a No. 1 option when James went to the bench. Bosh maybe needed to step up as a No. 2 option - he had flashes, but needed to be more consistent and generate some plays on his own besides spotting up.

Organizationally, they were flawed in not finding/developing some youth in supporting roles. Chalmers and Cole didn't get better, and Beasley/Oden/Douglass were unused. Ray, Battier, Haslem, Lewis are all on the verge of retirement - perhaps right now. The Spurs developed Green/Leonard and now Mills (and added Belinelli to fill a weakness). I know Kemba was one of the guys taken over Kawhi Leonard, but damn a lot of teams missed the boat on him.

Clearly the Spurs were just a better team - whoever they put out there from their 10 rotation guys, you had to guard everyone on the floor and they all could score or pass. All 10 guys had stretches when they took games over. Even Splitter had a brief stretch in Game 2 when he was scoring down low at will.

 

[Dynasty]

My post was just to show that pretty much every team does it, even the Heat.

Just because every team does it doesn't mean you have to like it.

 

[JaYnYcE]

Just because every team does it doesn't mean you have to like it.

You don't have to like it. I didn't say you did.

 

[champs99and04]

If this is the last game for Ray, ugh. Looks every bit his age.

Ray can still be a contributor, just not as a 20+ minute guy. Spo was forced to play him 30+ minutes in the finals, and he's clearly not capable of managing that type of workload anymore. He's still good for 10-15 minutes off the bench, but I wouldn't blame him if he retired.

 

[Strummer]

I can't believe how bad the Heat were. Just awful. It looked like one on five out there the whole game. Literally James was the only player on the Heat who could find his own shot. Outside of James, it was wall to wall awful for the Heat. Ray picked up momentum killing fouls, missed wide open shots, and got abused on D. Wade looked like he used his last remaining bit of athleticism in the last series. He simply cannot create a shot like he used to, and when your entire offensive game depends on you using your athleticism to create space and open looks, it's a bad sign for your career when you look slow and earth bound.

The rest of the guys? Awful. The Turdman gave it some effort, but just a unnatural defender with zero offensive game. Getting pump faked by a 38 year old Duncan from 8 feet out? Come on.

Cole and Chalmers are both awful. Neither one can create his own shot. Neither one is much of a deep threat when wide open.

Battier? Haslem?

Most disappointing was Bosch. Guy comes out and guarantees a win and then goes 0 for 5 from 3. Problem with his game is that he's simply not consistent enough of a shooter to be the 6/9 guy who makes your big guard him closely, and he's not passionate enough to be an inside force, which he could if he was dedicated to it.

Lord, what an awful team. Was the East really that piss poor this year that Miami looked good handling all the trash on the way to the finals?

Spurs were the best-looking championship team I have seen in a long time - maybe ever. Were they very good and simply played out of their minds for 3 games? Hard to tell. Seemed like they hit a huge number of contested shots at big moments to extend leads/kill comebacks. Leonard's series was a star's coming out party. From crap to snap in 2 games. Looked great.

Lebron is awesome. A veritable one man gang. Never has one man done so much with so little. This is the second finals he's been to (Cleveland) where it was him and 9 scrubs. Couple posters on this board gave him crap for not bringing it early in the last game "when his team needed him to set the tone" or some such bunk, notwithstanding the fact that he was the only guy on the team with good stats when the game ended. So last night he comes out a one man gang again. And gets zero help. I mean his team was awful. Up 16 and his teammates miss virtually every open look they get. So it becomes James having to score on every possession or the lead shrinks. Not possible. Great effort. Needs a new team - either a massive house cleaning in Miami or sell your wares elsewhere. Bosch and Wade are done - there never was a big 3. There was a big 1 with 2 pretty good supporting roll players.