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Basketball Thread
- Thread starter Maaaaaaaaaan
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soap
Smash Hero
He was lookin like Kobe out there hitting those turnarounds and fadeaways.
Very few players in the league today can hit those kind of shots all night.
Short list: Kobe, Lebron, Wade, Dirk
Durant has more of a super quick pullup
I enjoy watching bron play like this. But the boy did not just say "I am very good at math"
Stephen A. after the game was crackin me the **** up too
Very few players in the league today can hit those kind of shots all night.
Short list: Kobe, Lebron, Wade, Dirk
Durant has more of a super quick pullup
I enjoy watching bron play like this. But the boy did not just say "I am very good at math"
Stephen A. after the game was crackin me the **** up too
The Real Gamer
Smash Hero
Stay classy Boston.
soap
Smash Hero
if that was Metta gettin hit in the head with that ball..
theeboredone
Smash Legend
LeBron can only do it when he's hot though lol. On a regular night out basis...don't count on him to do that.
soap
Smash Hero
ya ur right, I'm just saying being able to do it all. Lots of phenomenal players that can get hot and still can't knock those down consistently.
Kobe/Jordan are in a league of their own for nightly consistency with that shot.
Kobe/Jordan are in a league of their own for nightly consistency with that shot.
shadrach kabango
Banned via Warnings
hahahahahaha
how big a playoff game is this? top 3? best?
MJ's line v '86 Celtics:
53 MIN, 22-41 FG, 19-21 FT, 63 PTS, 5 REB, 6 AST, 5 TO's
LBJ's line v 2012 Celtics:
44:49 MIN, 19-26 FG, 5-9 FT, 2-4 3FG, 45 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 TOs
Jordan's game had approximately 124.7 possessions
LeBron's game had approximately 86.8 possessions
Also, maybe I should be harsher on the refs. A LOT of people are *****ing that Game 6 OKC/SA was rigged. And it's not like the NBA doesn't have a history of this. Here's one fan's opinion:
priy good points imo
theeboredone
Smash Legend
Sizzle
I paint controllers
Skip Bayless is such a little *****.
D
Deleted member
Guest
lebron doing his best tim duncan impression
stoic lebron is pretty amazing
Joe Posanski is a great sports writer. y'all should check out his blog.
here are two articles on lebron. one before last nights game, and then the follow up.
http://joeposnanski.blogspot.com/2012/06/lebron-talk.html
[COLLAPSE="Lebron Talk"]LeBron talk begins, of course, with “Aladdin.” The Disney movie. Well, where else would we begin? You might remember -- especially if you have children and have been pressed to watch Aladdin 284 times -- that there’s a scene where Genie explains a few things he cannot do. These were the provisos and quid pro quos. Rule No. 1: Genie can't kill anyone. Rule No. 2: Genie can't make anyone fall in love. And …
“Rule No. 3: I can’t bring people back from the dead. It’s not a pretty picture. I don’t like doing it!”
OK, so when you’ve seen this movie 284 times something about this scene is troubling. Genie says at first that he can't bring people back from the dead. That seems clear enough. But then he explains that it’s not a pretty picture, suggesting he actually has brought people from the dead, or at least tried to do it. He then says that he doesn’t like doing it, which suggests he absolutely can do it, but it’s a dark place and he doesn’t like to go there.
So this connects with LeBron … how, exactly? Let’s go back a few days. In the Sunday game of the Miami-Indiana series, LeBron played one of the greatest games I’ve ever seen anyone play. The Pacers unexpectedly led the series 2-1, we who stand United Against LeBron (UAL)* were huddled close to the television rooting for a Pacers team few of us had even thought about since Reggie Miller fought with Spike Lee. And LeBron was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. He scored 40 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and dished out nine assists. Do you know how many other people in the last 25 years have pulled off that combination in a playoff game? Nobody. Not Bird, not Magic, not Barkley, not Karl Malone, not Shaq, not Duncan, not Jordan. Nobody. He also had two steals and two blocks … but it wasn’t just the numbers because, let’s face it, LeBron’s remarkable talents often lead to remarkable numbers. It also wasn’t a single-handed effort -- Dwyane Wade made like 48 shots in a row. Still, it was the possession-by-possession will LeBron showed that game that stuck with me most of all, the way he backed down anyone guarding him, the way he dominated the glass, the way he found open teammates all over the floor, the way he -- in announcer speak -- refused to let the Heat lose. It was breathtaking stuff.
*I readily admit that my continuous hope for LeBron to fail says some bad things about me. LeBron was an amazing basketball player for the Cavaliers. He brought me years of joy as a Cleveland basketball fan. He had every right to leave and try something new. Yes, he left in a low-rent way, but at some point you have to get over such things. He was young. He was full of himself. He didn’t commit any crimes against humanity. He’s an extraordinary player who does extraordinary things. I consider myself a fan of the game, I should be willing to just enjoy the wonder of it all. But, you know what? I like rooting against LeBron. It’s not a noble endeavor, I realize, but we all need our hobbies.
When that Indiana game ended, I wondered: Why don’t we see that LeBron more often? Isn’t that the question everyone asks? Yes, LeBron is a great basketball player almost every night he plays. It’s too easy for people like me to forget just how amazing LeBron was when he lugged a bagful of Larry Hughes, Eric Snow and Donyell Marshall to the NBA Finals by averaging 25 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and nearly two steals along the way. It’s too easy for people like me to forget that in the Cavaliers' heart-wrenching seven-game loss to Orlando in the 2009 conference finals, LeBron scored 49, then 35, then 41, then 44, then 37 (that was his crazy 37-point, 14-rebound, 12-assist game) before struggling for a mere 25 in the final loss. The guy does extraordinary things, and he does them with regularity.
But, as a longtime LeBron observer I can say that Game 4 against Indiana looked fundamentally different. He was so charged on every possession, so locked in, so relentless, so Jordan-like. Why can’t he do that all the time?
And then this idea struck me. Maybe he can go there. But it’s not a pretty picture. He doesn’t like doing it.
I think to play at that level, to be at that level, an athlete has to go to a pretty dark place. It isn’t just athletes. I think it’s a place great writers go, great performers, great composers, great scientists, great doctors, great lawyers and so on. I’ve never been there myself, but I imagine it to be a place where nothing else matters, where no one else matters, where there is one overpowering goal and that goal drives every action, ever move, every inspiration. I think it’s a place Michael Jordan loved going -- a place he desperately misses going now that he spends his days tearing tags off the back of underwear and building the worst team in NBA history. I think Tiger Woods loves going to that place. Kobe Bryant. Joe Montana. Tom Brady. Mark Messier. I know Roger Clemens loved going there.
LeBron? Obviously, I’m making this all up as I go along but … no, I don’t think so. I think LeBron loves playing basketball for the fun of it. You know when LeBron looks happiest? When his team is up by 20 and he can pass the ball behind his back. I don’t mean that as a knock -- well, OK, maybe I do -- but did you see the joy he felt at the end of Game 1 of this series when the Heat were destroying the Celtics? This, I believe, was why he came to Miami to play with D-Wade and Chris Bosh in the sun -- to destroy teams and have some fun doing it.
“Not 1 [championship],” he famously told that Miami crowd in the afterglow of "The Decision." "Not 2. Not 3. Not 4. Not 5. Not 6. Not 7. And when I say that I really believe it. … The way we’re going to challenge each other in practice, once the game starts it’s going to be easy. I mean with me and D-Wade running the wing, I mean Pat [Riley] could come back and play like he was in his Kentucky days. Just throw it up there and we’re gonna get it."
Obviously that moment has been relived again and again as LeBron has found the waters choppier than he expected -- and it’s probably a moment LeBron regrets. But it might get us as close to LeBron’s mindset as anything else. He likes when it’s easy. I don’t think this makes him a bad guy or takes away from his remarkable skills as a basketball player. I don’t deny having some of these tendencies. I used to play this computer game "Civilization" -- which I’m sure is still around and much more complicated -- and after a while I decided I liked it better in cheat mode, when I could become an advanced Civilization and have helicopters and guided missiles and the most advanced weaponry while other tribes were still fighting with sticks. I’m not proud of what that says about me, but hey, it was just a game.
And I think LeBron has that in him. I just think he likes playing basketball. He likes dunking, likes running a player down and blocking shots from behind, likes throwing beautiful passes through tiny cracks of air that only he and maybe Rajon Rondo can see. I think it means LeBron sees basketball as a chance to display his wonderful talents. It’s a game to him in a way that it probably wasn’t to Jordan or Magic or Bird. They obviously liked it when the game got hard. LeBron might like it but it sure doesn’t look that way. Dragging that sorry team around in Cleveland for so long while trying to win a championship for a hometown that hasn’t won anything since ’64; LeBron was eager to head down to South Beach, join other great players who might make some game-winning shots, and just play ball again.
Tuesday was a banner day for those of us in the UAL. More or less everybody expected the Heat to win -- most figured they would win convincingly. The game was in Miami. The Heat were getting Bosh back. The Celtics are ancient. I ended up watching a few minutes of ESPN’s pre-game show and watched with awe as they went around the table and all four panelists picked the Heat. I’m not saying any of them should have picked the Celtics to change things up -- though that might have made for, you know, actually interesting television -- but I am wondering why they would go to each person individually to have them say exactly the same thing. They couldn’t just say something like, “OK, is anyone here brave or crazy enough to pick the Celtics?” and then condensed their identical picks into one cohesive segment. Instead they went around the table like there was drama involved:
“I think Miami is awesome. They will win. What do you think?”
“Well, I hate to disagree with you, but I think Miami is formidable and fearsome. They will win.”
“Look, both of y’all are wrong. Miami is stunning and magnificent. They will win big.”
“OK, well, I guess I have to be the one then. I say the Heat are awe-inspiring, dazzling, glorious, impressive, majestic, monumental, striking and superb. The Celtics might as well not even show up.”*
*This little production led to one of my favorite moments of the year so far, when the game ended and the ESPN crew savaged the Heat for being a bunch of poorly coached losers who have no team chemistry and have no idea how to win big games. At least Magic apologized for his pick first.
Then the game began, and the Heat played pretty well for a while -- LeBron dominated for a while. The Celtics kept finding ways to come back. This did not seem to fit the Heat’s plan. LeBron was more than just good this game. He scored 30 points, grabbed 13 boards, played 45 minutes. To say he choked or did not play championship basketball is to take for granted his remarkable ability to play this game. But it is true that after his three-pointer early in the fourth quarter to give the Heat a two-point lead, he kind of disappeared. He missed a three-pointer. He drove to the basket and got his shot rejected by Kevin Garnett. He was the defender when Paul Pierce stuck the dagger three-pointer that gave the Celtics control.
Blame LeBron for the loss? No. Celebrate him for a “good job, good effort,” the way that enthusiastic kid did after the game?* Well, also: No.
*I love that kid -- he was yelling “Good job, good effort” the Heat as they walked off the floor in dismal defeat. The kid was a Twitter sensation immediately, and I imagine he will be discussed often if the Heat get knocked out of this series -- kind of like that famous USC Song Girl who was signaling a touchdown when Vince Young scored the game-winner against USC in the Rose Bowl. But, hey, I love kids who love their teams, and let’s face it -- it isn’t like Erik Spoelstra said anything different in his press conference afterward.**
After the loss, according to the incomparable Adrian Wojnarowski, LeBron said: “We played good enough to give ourselves a chance to win. That’s all you can ask for.” This, I have to tell you, is much more gripping than the “Good job, good effort” kid. All you can ask for? A chance to win? LeBron went to South Beach to get himself eight championships, and it led to him being thrilled about a chance to win at home against a prehistoric Celtics team. By the way, what chance was that? What chance did the Heat have to win? They would have won had Pierce missed that three-pointer? Is that what LeBron meant? They would have won had the Celtics missed free throws down the stretch? What chance? They lost by four. They spent the last minute fouling and hoping for a miracle. What chance?
**Spoelstra deserves special recognition for his charge to the team to think of this as only a loss -- no more and no less -- and “to fight any kind of noise from the outside or any human condition.” Human condition? Really? I actually like Spoelstra, and I recognize that he’s been given a ridiculous job where he can’t really succeed but he absolutely can fail. Still, let’s face it, this whole speech felt like a concession. Human condition? “Hey, fellas, we just need to remember that this series isn’t over yet! Don’t listen to the mean old cynics out there. Fellas! Guys! Hey, Udonis, put Mario on your shoulders. Their basket is 10 feet high! I think you’ll find its exact same measurements as our gym back in Miami!”
There’s no telling what we will see in Game 6 from LeBron. Oh, he will play well -- that’s almost a certainty. He will score 25 or 30, almost guaranteed, and he will grab some rebounds and make some nice passes. He will block a shot or two. He’s simply too good not to do those things. But will he go deeper, will he go beyond, will he take on the rugged Celtics, the fans and his own doubts? Will he play the sort of basketball that he played that day in Indiana, when he went to that place where nothing, absolutely nothing, could discourage or detour him?
He can go to that place, I think.
But, like Genie from "Aladdin," I just don’t think he likes to do it.[/COLLAPSE]
http://joeposnanski.blogspot.com/2012/06/serious-lebron.html
[COLLAPSE="A Serious Lebron"]Last time, I compared LeBron James to Genie from “Aladdin.” This time, I’m thinking about the end to “The Hustler.” I’ll have to give you a bit of a rundown of that movie to get to the point, so let’s just say SPOILER ALERT for those of you who have not seen “The Hustler.” And if you have not seen it, well, go. Now. The older I get, the more I think it is the best sports movie ever made.
The movie is about a pool shark named Fast Eddie Felson played, of course, by Paul Newman. Fast Eddie is kind of a genius and also kind of a knucklehead. He’s charming, and goofy, and he believes he can sucker anybody, and he’s probably right. His genius is pool. It’s clear that he can play the game the way Greg Maddux could pitch, that is to say on a level above. He has been using that genius by traveling from pool hall to pool hall with his partner, Charlie; together they work many different kinds of hustles. But Fast Eddie -- though he has a hard time explaining it -- wants something bigger than money. He believes that his goal is to be the greatest pool player in the world. And he knows the only way to do that is to beat the best, Minnesota Fats, as played by Jackie Gleason.
Fast Eddie shows up at the pool hall, and plays an epic match against Fats. He drinks, and he plays, and he gets up $18,000. He’s so brilliant that at some point Fats considers quitting. But a shady gambler named Bert Gordon (played by George C. Scott) tells Fats to stick with it. “He’s a loser,” Bert announces. Fats washes up, straightens up his clothes. powders up his hands, walks over to Fast Eddie and, as fresh as morning, announces: “Fast Eddie, let’s play some pool.” Fast Eddie starts laughing -- a sad, drunk, uncontrollable laugh. He loses everything. And he’s left a broken man, begging for one more game at the end.
Fast Eddie: “You can’t run out on me.”
Fats: “You watch me.”
The movie, then, is about Fast Eddie’s efforts to get another game with Minnesota Fats. The journey back involves involves a break with Charlie (“You still don’t see it, do you Charlie? You are nothing but a small-time Charlie!”), a lame prostitute named Sarah who has delusions of grandeur, the shady Bert character and a memorable scene involving broken thumbs. There’s also perhaps my favorite ever movie sports soliloquy; Fast Eddie had just demolished another hustler by running the table in a matter of seconds. He had broken the hustler code, showing his full powers in full public view. That’s what led to his broken thumbs. He tried to explain to Sarah:
“Why’d I do it Sarah? Why’d I do it? I coulda beat that guy. I coulda beat him cold. He never woulda known. But I just had to show him. I just had to show those creeps and those punks what the game is like when it’s great, when it’s really great. You know, like anything can be great. Anything can be great. I don’t care: Bricklaying can be great … if a guy knows. If he knows what he’s doing and why, and if he can make it come off.
“I mean when it’s going, when I’m really going, I feel like … like a jockey must feel. He’s sitting on his horse, he’s got all that speed and that power underneath him. He’s coming into the stretch, the pressure’s on him -- and he knows, just feels, when to let it go, and how much. ‘Cause he’s got everything working for him -- timing, touch. It’s a great feeling, boy. It’s a great feeling when you’re right, and you know you’re right. It’s like all of a sudden I got oil in my arm. Pool cue’s part of me. You know it’s … pool cue’s got nerves in it. It’s a piece of wood, but it’s got nerves in it. You feel the roll of those balls, boy, you don’t have to look. You just know. … You make shots that nobody’s made before you. And you play that game the way nobody’s ever played it before.”
I think this is Newman’s greatest performance in a lifetime of great performances. When he’s giving that speech, you can tell how amazed he feels to be saying those words, how he may have thought them before but had never dared say them. It’s self discovery. He doesn’t want to just be the best. That’s too bland. He wants to play pool like no one has ever played it before. He wants to make shots that nobody’s ever made before.
But as the movie goes on, he comes to realize that this is not what the real world is about. Reaching for that peak gets your thumbs broken. Over time, Bert gets his hooks in him. He plays a drunken millionaire in a game of billiards and sees what it means to destroy someone. And finally, most dramatically, Sarah comes to a terrible end.
Last, we’re at the final scene, and Fast Eddie is no longer a knucklehead. He’s no longer charming and goofy, no longer believes he has the ability to fool people. He’s without illusions. He shows up at the pool hall, challenges Fats to a match for $3,000 a game, every penny he has. “You were right Bert,’ he says bitterly. “It’s not enough to have talent. You gotta have character, too.” And then, he seriously and without any apparent joy takes apart Minnesota Fats. It’s a destruction -- a joyless, vacant and resolute destruction. No liquor this time. No joking around this time. No hustling. He is focused entirely on the game, entirely on crushing Minnesota Fats and winning. That was all. Winning.
After a short while, Fats just says: “I quit, Eddie. I can’t beat you.”
I thought about that scene again and again while watching LeBron James on Thursday in Boston. James’ performance was astounding enough -- he broke the Celtics all by himself. He scored 30 in the first half, 45 points in all, grabbed 15 rebounds, dished out five assists. But again, bigger than numbers, he broke the Celtics. For an extended period of time, he simply did not miss a shot. On one follow up, he jumped so high he seemed to dunk the ball with his elbow. The Celtics kind of hung around, but you could feel it: With LeBron playing like this, they had no chance to actually win the game. They knew it. They could plug away and hope the winds shifted. But mostly, it was hopeless. They could put two or three or four men on him, but there was no stopping this LeBron. He was inescapable.
“I quit, LeBron. I can’t beat you.”
Beyond that, though, there was LeBron’s demeanor. You saw it. Everybody saw it. There was no smiling. There was no joking. There was no complaining to the officials on every play. There were no celebrations after made shots. The halftime interview was blunt and without emotion. The interview after the game blunt and without emotion. There was just … cold and steel.
I think this is what I meant about that dark place people must go to bring out the extremes of their talents. LeBron had come to Boston to conquer, and I would say he looked, acted and played fundamentally different from any time I’ve ever seen him. The fact he scored 30 points in a half was not the telling point -- he’s done that before. The fact he scored 30 points in a half in Boston, in Game 6, with the season at stake, with the dream on the line -- no, he’s never done that before. And it was clear from his demeanor, his purposeful glare, his unsmiling face that this was exactly what he had come to Boston to do.
A few readers have written in to say that the expectation of LeBron James is ridiculous -- nobody is good enough to just go out and score 45 points and dominate a great basketball team based on sheer will. I think that’s right. LeBron scored 45 on Thursday in large part because his outside shots went in. Other nights they will not go in. But I will say that I don’t think there has ever been a basketball player -- not Jordan, not Magic, not Bird, not Oscar, not anybody -- who can dominate a game as many different ways as LeBron. When he’s driven like that, when he’s locked in and focused and aggressive and impossible to distract, I think he’s as close as we have ever seen to limitless. Is that unfair? Sure it is. But this is also a man who calls himself King.
I remember when Cleveland was playing Boston in the playoffs in LeBron’s last year there, it was my deepest ambition to see this serious and adamant version of LeBron. He would not or could not go there. He played the worst game of his playoff life; he was a barely recognizable version of himself. After the game, he complained that people wanted too much from him. His next time out, he had a triple-double, which included 19 rebounds, but there were other numbers like 8-of-21 shooting and nine turnovers. The Cavaliers surrendered in the final 90 seconds. LeBron took his talents to South Beach.
Last year, when I was desperately rooting against LeBron for the fun of it, it was a serious worry that we would see this adamant version of LeBron in the Finals against Dallas. He would or could not go there. He played an even worse game than he had in Game 5 against Boston on Tuesday, then had another triple-double that didn’t feel like a triple-double until you saw the box score, then he did not want to shoot the ball at the end.
Thursday, he showed the adamant and serious LeBron. He was terrifying in his single-mindedness. I always thought the wonder of “The Hustler” was the way it fused and separated winning and losing. At the end, Fast Eddie won the game while he lost his wonder. I don’t think it’s that stark for LeBron, but I also say that something in him shifted Thursday.
When LeBron has played beautiful basketball, it always looked like so much fun. He has that gift of transmitting joy and happiness; nothing in the world looks more fun than playing basketball like LeBron at his best. Thursday, did not look fun. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t, but in the end that was entirely irrelevant. The Heat won big. The series is going back to Miami. LeBron had imposed his will. And fun had nothing to do with it.
[/COLLAPSE]
stoic lebron is pretty amazing
Joe Posanski is a great sports writer. y'all should check out his blog.
here are two articles on lebron. one before last nights game, and then the follow up.
http://joeposnanski.blogspot.com/2012/06/lebron-talk.html
[COLLAPSE="Lebron Talk"]LeBron talk begins, of course, with “Aladdin.” The Disney movie. Well, where else would we begin? You might remember -- especially if you have children and have been pressed to watch Aladdin 284 times -- that there’s a scene where Genie explains a few things he cannot do. These were the provisos and quid pro quos. Rule No. 1: Genie can't kill anyone. Rule No. 2: Genie can't make anyone fall in love. And …
“Rule No. 3: I can’t bring people back from the dead. It’s not a pretty picture. I don’t like doing it!”
OK, so when you’ve seen this movie 284 times something about this scene is troubling. Genie says at first that he can't bring people back from the dead. That seems clear enough. But then he explains that it’s not a pretty picture, suggesting he actually has brought people from the dead, or at least tried to do it. He then says that he doesn’t like doing it, which suggests he absolutely can do it, but it’s a dark place and he doesn’t like to go there.
So this connects with LeBron … how, exactly? Let’s go back a few days. In the Sunday game of the Miami-Indiana series, LeBron played one of the greatest games I’ve ever seen anyone play. The Pacers unexpectedly led the series 2-1, we who stand United Against LeBron (UAL)* were huddled close to the television rooting for a Pacers team few of us had even thought about since Reggie Miller fought with Spike Lee. And LeBron was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. He scored 40 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and dished out nine assists. Do you know how many other people in the last 25 years have pulled off that combination in a playoff game? Nobody. Not Bird, not Magic, not Barkley, not Karl Malone, not Shaq, not Duncan, not Jordan. Nobody. He also had two steals and two blocks … but it wasn’t just the numbers because, let’s face it, LeBron’s remarkable talents often lead to remarkable numbers. It also wasn’t a single-handed effort -- Dwyane Wade made like 48 shots in a row. Still, it was the possession-by-possession will LeBron showed that game that stuck with me most of all, the way he backed down anyone guarding him, the way he dominated the glass, the way he found open teammates all over the floor, the way he -- in announcer speak -- refused to let the Heat lose. It was breathtaking stuff.
*I readily admit that my continuous hope for LeBron to fail says some bad things about me. LeBron was an amazing basketball player for the Cavaliers. He brought me years of joy as a Cleveland basketball fan. He had every right to leave and try something new. Yes, he left in a low-rent way, but at some point you have to get over such things. He was young. He was full of himself. He didn’t commit any crimes against humanity. He’s an extraordinary player who does extraordinary things. I consider myself a fan of the game, I should be willing to just enjoy the wonder of it all. But, you know what? I like rooting against LeBron. It’s not a noble endeavor, I realize, but we all need our hobbies.
When that Indiana game ended, I wondered: Why don’t we see that LeBron more often? Isn’t that the question everyone asks? Yes, LeBron is a great basketball player almost every night he plays. It’s too easy for people like me to forget just how amazing LeBron was when he lugged a bagful of Larry Hughes, Eric Snow and Donyell Marshall to the NBA Finals by averaging 25 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and nearly two steals along the way. It’s too easy for people like me to forget that in the Cavaliers' heart-wrenching seven-game loss to Orlando in the 2009 conference finals, LeBron scored 49, then 35, then 41, then 44, then 37 (that was his crazy 37-point, 14-rebound, 12-assist game) before struggling for a mere 25 in the final loss. The guy does extraordinary things, and he does them with regularity.
But, as a longtime LeBron observer I can say that Game 4 against Indiana looked fundamentally different. He was so charged on every possession, so locked in, so relentless, so Jordan-like. Why can’t he do that all the time?
And then this idea struck me. Maybe he can go there. But it’s not a pretty picture. He doesn’t like doing it.
I think to play at that level, to be at that level, an athlete has to go to a pretty dark place. It isn’t just athletes. I think it’s a place great writers go, great performers, great composers, great scientists, great doctors, great lawyers and so on. I’ve never been there myself, but I imagine it to be a place where nothing else matters, where no one else matters, where there is one overpowering goal and that goal drives every action, ever move, every inspiration. I think it’s a place Michael Jordan loved going -- a place he desperately misses going now that he spends his days tearing tags off the back of underwear and building the worst team in NBA history. I think Tiger Woods loves going to that place. Kobe Bryant. Joe Montana. Tom Brady. Mark Messier. I know Roger Clemens loved going there.
LeBron? Obviously, I’m making this all up as I go along but … no, I don’t think so. I think LeBron loves playing basketball for the fun of it. You know when LeBron looks happiest? When his team is up by 20 and he can pass the ball behind his back. I don’t mean that as a knock -- well, OK, maybe I do -- but did you see the joy he felt at the end of Game 1 of this series when the Heat were destroying the Celtics? This, I believe, was why he came to Miami to play with D-Wade and Chris Bosh in the sun -- to destroy teams and have some fun doing it.
“Not 1 [championship],” he famously told that Miami crowd in the afterglow of "The Decision." "Not 2. Not 3. Not 4. Not 5. Not 6. Not 7. And when I say that I really believe it. … The way we’re going to challenge each other in practice, once the game starts it’s going to be easy. I mean with me and D-Wade running the wing, I mean Pat [Riley] could come back and play like he was in his Kentucky days. Just throw it up there and we’re gonna get it."
Obviously that moment has been relived again and again as LeBron has found the waters choppier than he expected -- and it’s probably a moment LeBron regrets. But it might get us as close to LeBron’s mindset as anything else. He likes when it’s easy. I don’t think this makes him a bad guy or takes away from his remarkable skills as a basketball player. I don’t deny having some of these tendencies. I used to play this computer game "Civilization" -- which I’m sure is still around and much more complicated -- and after a while I decided I liked it better in cheat mode, when I could become an advanced Civilization and have helicopters and guided missiles and the most advanced weaponry while other tribes were still fighting with sticks. I’m not proud of what that says about me, but hey, it was just a game.
And I think LeBron has that in him. I just think he likes playing basketball. He likes dunking, likes running a player down and blocking shots from behind, likes throwing beautiful passes through tiny cracks of air that only he and maybe Rajon Rondo can see. I think it means LeBron sees basketball as a chance to display his wonderful talents. It’s a game to him in a way that it probably wasn’t to Jordan or Magic or Bird. They obviously liked it when the game got hard. LeBron might like it but it sure doesn’t look that way. Dragging that sorry team around in Cleveland for so long while trying to win a championship for a hometown that hasn’t won anything since ’64; LeBron was eager to head down to South Beach, join other great players who might make some game-winning shots, and just play ball again.
Tuesday was a banner day for those of us in the UAL. More or less everybody expected the Heat to win -- most figured they would win convincingly. The game was in Miami. The Heat were getting Bosh back. The Celtics are ancient. I ended up watching a few minutes of ESPN’s pre-game show and watched with awe as they went around the table and all four panelists picked the Heat. I’m not saying any of them should have picked the Celtics to change things up -- though that might have made for, you know, actually interesting television -- but I am wondering why they would go to each person individually to have them say exactly the same thing. They couldn’t just say something like, “OK, is anyone here brave or crazy enough to pick the Celtics?” and then condensed their identical picks into one cohesive segment. Instead they went around the table like there was drama involved:
“I think Miami is awesome. They will win. What do you think?”
“Well, I hate to disagree with you, but I think Miami is formidable and fearsome. They will win.”
“Look, both of y’all are wrong. Miami is stunning and magnificent. They will win big.”
“OK, well, I guess I have to be the one then. I say the Heat are awe-inspiring, dazzling, glorious, impressive, majestic, monumental, striking and superb. The Celtics might as well not even show up.”*
*This little production led to one of my favorite moments of the year so far, when the game ended and the ESPN crew savaged the Heat for being a bunch of poorly coached losers who have no team chemistry and have no idea how to win big games. At least Magic apologized for his pick first.
Then the game began, and the Heat played pretty well for a while -- LeBron dominated for a while. The Celtics kept finding ways to come back. This did not seem to fit the Heat’s plan. LeBron was more than just good this game. He scored 30 points, grabbed 13 boards, played 45 minutes. To say he choked or did not play championship basketball is to take for granted his remarkable ability to play this game. But it is true that after his three-pointer early in the fourth quarter to give the Heat a two-point lead, he kind of disappeared. He missed a three-pointer. He drove to the basket and got his shot rejected by Kevin Garnett. He was the defender when Paul Pierce stuck the dagger three-pointer that gave the Celtics control.
Blame LeBron for the loss? No. Celebrate him for a “good job, good effort,” the way that enthusiastic kid did after the game?* Well, also: No.
*I love that kid -- he was yelling “Good job, good effort” the Heat as they walked off the floor in dismal defeat. The kid was a Twitter sensation immediately, and I imagine he will be discussed often if the Heat get knocked out of this series -- kind of like that famous USC Song Girl who was signaling a touchdown when Vince Young scored the game-winner against USC in the Rose Bowl. But, hey, I love kids who love their teams, and let’s face it -- it isn’t like Erik Spoelstra said anything different in his press conference afterward.**
After the loss, according to the incomparable Adrian Wojnarowski, LeBron said: “We played good enough to give ourselves a chance to win. That’s all you can ask for.” This, I have to tell you, is much more gripping than the “Good job, good effort” kid. All you can ask for? A chance to win? LeBron went to South Beach to get himself eight championships, and it led to him being thrilled about a chance to win at home against a prehistoric Celtics team. By the way, what chance was that? What chance did the Heat have to win? They would have won had Pierce missed that three-pointer? Is that what LeBron meant? They would have won had the Celtics missed free throws down the stretch? What chance? They lost by four. They spent the last minute fouling and hoping for a miracle. What chance?
**Spoelstra deserves special recognition for his charge to the team to think of this as only a loss -- no more and no less -- and “to fight any kind of noise from the outside or any human condition.” Human condition? Really? I actually like Spoelstra, and I recognize that he’s been given a ridiculous job where he can’t really succeed but he absolutely can fail. Still, let’s face it, this whole speech felt like a concession. Human condition? “Hey, fellas, we just need to remember that this series isn’t over yet! Don’t listen to the mean old cynics out there. Fellas! Guys! Hey, Udonis, put Mario on your shoulders. Their basket is 10 feet high! I think you’ll find its exact same measurements as our gym back in Miami!”
There’s no telling what we will see in Game 6 from LeBron. Oh, he will play well -- that’s almost a certainty. He will score 25 or 30, almost guaranteed, and he will grab some rebounds and make some nice passes. He will block a shot or two. He’s simply too good not to do those things. But will he go deeper, will he go beyond, will he take on the rugged Celtics, the fans and his own doubts? Will he play the sort of basketball that he played that day in Indiana, when he went to that place where nothing, absolutely nothing, could discourage or detour him?
He can go to that place, I think.
But, like Genie from "Aladdin," I just don’t think he likes to do it.[/COLLAPSE]
http://joeposnanski.blogspot.com/2012/06/serious-lebron.html
[COLLAPSE="A Serious Lebron"]Last time, I compared LeBron James to Genie from “Aladdin.” This time, I’m thinking about the end to “The Hustler.” I’ll have to give you a bit of a rundown of that movie to get to the point, so let’s just say SPOILER ALERT for those of you who have not seen “The Hustler.” And if you have not seen it, well, go. Now. The older I get, the more I think it is the best sports movie ever made.
The movie is about a pool shark named Fast Eddie Felson played, of course, by Paul Newman. Fast Eddie is kind of a genius and also kind of a knucklehead. He’s charming, and goofy, and he believes he can sucker anybody, and he’s probably right. His genius is pool. It’s clear that he can play the game the way Greg Maddux could pitch, that is to say on a level above. He has been using that genius by traveling from pool hall to pool hall with his partner, Charlie; together they work many different kinds of hustles. But Fast Eddie -- though he has a hard time explaining it -- wants something bigger than money. He believes that his goal is to be the greatest pool player in the world. And he knows the only way to do that is to beat the best, Minnesota Fats, as played by Jackie Gleason.
Fast Eddie shows up at the pool hall, and plays an epic match against Fats. He drinks, and he plays, and he gets up $18,000. He’s so brilliant that at some point Fats considers quitting. But a shady gambler named Bert Gordon (played by George C. Scott) tells Fats to stick with it. “He’s a loser,” Bert announces. Fats washes up, straightens up his clothes. powders up his hands, walks over to Fast Eddie and, as fresh as morning, announces: “Fast Eddie, let’s play some pool.” Fast Eddie starts laughing -- a sad, drunk, uncontrollable laugh. He loses everything. And he’s left a broken man, begging for one more game at the end.
Fast Eddie: “You can’t run out on me.”
Fats: “You watch me.”
The movie, then, is about Fast Eddie’s efforts to get another game with Minnesota Fats. The journey back involves involves a break with Charlie (“You still don’t see it, do you Charlie? You are nothing but a small-time Charlie!”), a lame prostitute named Sarah who has delusions of grandeur, the shady Bert character and a memorable scene involving broken thumbs. There’s also perhaps my favorite ever movie sports soliloquy; Fast Eddie had just demolished another hustler by running the table in a matter of seconds. He had broken the hustler code, showing his full powers in full public view. That’s what led to his broken thumbs. He tried to explain to Sarah:
“Why’d I do it Sarah? Why’d I do it? I coulda beat that guy. I coulda beat him cold. He never woulda known. But I just had to show him. I just had to show those creeps and those punks what the game is like when it’s great, when it’s really great. You know, like anything can be great. Anything can be great. I don’t care: Bricklaying can be great … if a guy knows. If he knows what he’s doing and why, and if he can make it come off.
“I mean when it’s going, when I’m really going, I feel like … like a jockey must feel. He’s sitting on his horse, he’s got all that speed and that power underneath him. He’s coming into the stretch, the pressure’s on him -- and he knows, just feels, when to let it go, and how much. ‘Cause he’s got everything working for him -- timing, touch. It’s a great feeling, boy. It’s a great feeling when you’re right, and you know you’re right. It’s like all of a sudden I got oil in my arm. Pool cue’s part of me. You know it’s … pool cue’s got nerves in it. It’s a piece of wood, but it’s got nerves in it. You feel the roll of those balls, boy, you don’t have to look. You just know. … You make shots that nobody’s made before you. And you play that game the way nobody’s ever played it before.”
I think this is Newman’s greatest performance in a lifetime of great performances. When he’s giving that speech, you can tell how amazed he feels to be saying those words, how he may have thought them before but had never dared say them. It’s self discovery. He doesn’t want to just be the best. That’s too bland. He wants to play pool like no one has ever played it before. He wants to make shots that nobody’s ever made before.
But as the movie goes on, he comes to realize that this is not what the real world is about. Reaching for that peak gets your thumbs broken. Over time, Bert gets his hooks in him. He plays a drunken millionaire in a game of billiards and sees what it means to destroy someone. And finally, most dramatically, Sarah comes to a terrible end.
Last, we’re at the final scene, and Fast Eddie is no longer a knucklehead. He’s no longer charming and goofy, no longer believes he has the ability to fool people. He’s without illusions. He shows up at the pool hall, challenges Fats to a match for $3,000 a game, every penny he has. “You were right Bert,’ he says bitterly. “It’s not enough to have talent. You gotta have character, too.” And then, he seriously and without any apparent joy takes apart Minnesota Fats. It’s a destruction -- a joyless, vacant and resolute destruction. No liquor this time. No joking around this time. No hustling. He is focused entirely on the game, entirely on crushing Minnesota Fats and winning. That was all. Winning.
After a short while, Fats just says: “I quit, Eddie. I can’t beat you.”
I thought about that scene again and again while watching LeBron James on Thursday in Boston. James’ performance was astounding enough -- he broke the Celtics all by himself. He scored 30 in the first half, 45 points in all, grabbed 15 rebounds, dished out five assists. But again, bigger than numbers, he broke the Celtics. For an extended period of time, he simply did not miss a shot. On one follow up, he jumped so high he seemed to dunk the ball with his elbow. The Celtics kind of hung around, but you could feel it: With LeBron playing like this, they had no chance to actually win the game. They knew it. They could plug away and hope the winds shifted. But mostly, it was hopeless. They could put two or three or four men on him, but there was no stopping this LeBron. He was inescapable.
“I quit, LeBron. I can’t beat you.”
Beyond that, though, there was LeBron’s demeanor. You saw it. Everybody saw it. There was no smiling. There was no joking. There was no complaining to the officials on every play. There were no celebrations after made shots. The halftime interview was blunt and without emotion. The interview after the game blunt and without emotion. There was just … cold and steel.
I think this is what I meant about that dark place people must go to bring out the extremes of their talents. LeBron had come to Boston to conquer, and I would say he looked, acted and played fundamentally different from any time I’ve ever seen him. The fact he scored 30 points in a half was not the telling point -- he’s done that before. The fact he scored 30 points in a half in Boston, in Game 6, with the season at stake, with the dream on the line -- no, he’s never done that before. And it was clear from his demeanor, his purposeful glare, his unsmiling face that this was exactly what he had come to Boston to do.
A few readers have written in to say that the expectation of LeBron James is ridiculous -- nobody is good enough to just go out and score 45 points and dominate a great basketball team based on sheer will. I think that’s right. LeBron scored 45 on Thursday in large part because his outside shots went in. Other nights they will not go in. But I will say that I don’t think there has ever been a basketball player -- not Jordan, not Magic, not Bird, not Oscar, not anybody -- who can dominate a game as many different ways as LeBron. When he’s driven like that, when he’s locked in and focused and aggressive and impossible to distract, I think he’s as close as we have ever seen to limitless. Is that unfair? Sure it is. But this is also a man who calls himself King.
I remember when Cleveland was playing Boston in the playoffs in LeBron’s last year there, it was my deepest ambition to see this serious and adamant version of LeBron. He would not or could not go there. He played the worst game of his playoff life; he was a barely recognizable version of himself. After the game, he complained that people wanted too much from him. His next time out, he had a triple-double, which included 19 rebounds, but there were other numbers like 8-of-21 shooting and nine turnovers. The Cavaliers surrendered in the final 90 seconds. LeBron took his talents to South Beach.
Last year, when I was desperately rooting against LeBron for the fun of it, it was a serious worry that we would see this adamant version of LeBron in the Finals against Dallas. He would or could not go there. He played an even worse game than he had in Game 5 against Boston on Tuesday, then had another triple-double that didn’t feel like a triple-double until you saw the box score, then he did not want to shoot the ball at the end.
Thursday, he showed the adamant and serious LeBron. He was terrifying in his single-mindedness. I always thought the wonder of “The Hustler” was the way it fused and separated winning and losing. At the end, Fast Eddie won the game while he lost his wonder. I don’t think it’s that stark for LeBron, but I also say that something in him shifted Thursday.
When LeBron has played beautiful basketball, it always looked like so much fun. He has that gift of transmitting joy and happiness; nothing in the world looks more fun than playing basketball like LeBron at his best. Thursday, did not look fun. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t, but in the end that was entirely irrelevant. The Heat won big. The series is going back to Miami. LeBron had imposed his will. And fun had nothing to do with it.
[/COLLAPSE]
theeboredone
Smash Legend
Just to play Devil's Advocate, I sort of do wonder what would have happened had the Celtics come back. Would LeBron take over in the last 3 minutes or still hand it over to the struggling Wade? I mean, that is his biggest criticism.
D
Deleted member
Guest
i think lebron didnt give a **** yesterday. he had his sociopath face on. he was obviously in cleveland mode.
when lebron is in the zone
he looks like that 6'3" guy at the park, bigger, stronger, faster, and just clearly more MAN than all the little 5'7" kids hes playing with.
i think Heat fans should be a little worried on saturday.
i looked at the box. if you take away miami's and boston's best shooter on the night (lebron and rondo)
miami actually played worse (36% vs 39% shooting)
on how many nights is lebron going to be their best scorer, with the rest of the team having an off night? often enough. but how often are KG, pierce, and allen all going to be worse than Rondo??
i expect some heavy *** regression to the mean
lebron will NEED another huge game
when lebron is in the zone
he looks like that 6'3" guy at the park, bigger, stronger, faster, and just clearly more MAN than all the little 5'7" kids hes playing with.
i think Heat fans should be a little worried on saturday.
i looked at the box. if you take away miami's and boston's best shooter on the night (lebron and rondo)
miami actually played worse (36% vs 39% shooting)
on how many nights is lebron going to be their best scorer, with the rest of the team having an off night? often enough. but how often are KG, pierce, and allen all going to be worse than Rondo??
i expect some heavy *** regression to the mean
lebron will NEED another huge game
theeboredone
Smash Legend
Pierce has been shooting around 30% this series, and has just been flat out terrible. Hell, it's not even LBJ who's been guarding him on D. They've stuck Battier, and even when Pierce gets space, he just misses. The guy's legs are burned out. Whether that's cause he's guarding LeBron, in a slump, or age.
We still have to remember Ray needs surgery on that ankle. He really hasn't gotten many shot attempts because at this point, he just runs around as a decoy.
That just leaves Rondo and KG as the main guys.
And Bass' J is STILL MISSING. What happen to this guy? Ever since he erupted for 30 some points I think against Phili, he's been lost.
I think Wade will have a resurgence game. Overall I think it will come down to the Heat roleplayers to hit 3's, and Bosh to at least give them 10-10.
We still have to remember Ray needs surgery on that ankle. He really hasn't gotten many shot attempts because at this point, he just runs around as a decoy.
That just leaves Rondo and KG as the main guys.
And Bass' J is STILL MISSING. What happen to this guy? Ever since he erupted for 30 some points I think against Phili, he's been lost.
I think Wade will have a resurgence game. Overall I think it will come down to the Heat roleplayers to hit 3's, and Bosh to at least give them 10-10.
The Real Gamer
Smash Hero
@Brownsheep That's the only thing that still scares me about last night's game. Once again Wade is practically a complete no-show. I still can't tell if it's Boston's defense really clamping down on him, Wade just having a bad series, or if he's really starting to regress before our very eyes.
With Bosh still not 100% Wade is going to really need to step up his game if the Heat want a legitimate shot at the Thunder (if they can get past Boston).
EDIT: Really good article on Game 6 by Bill Simmons
With Bosh still not 100% Wade is going to really need to step up his game if the Heat want a legitimate shot at the Thunder (if they can get past Boston).
EDIT: Really good article on Game 6 by Bill Simmons
You know what happened by now. LeBron strolled out with a creepy look on his face, a relaxed, detached expression that said … well … we didn't know. Was he pissed off? Had he checked out? Had he finally turned on his teammates? He was barely interacting with them, lost in his own little world, like he was wearing headphones we couldn't see. He was definitely playing hard, but you couldn't interpret what the overall vibe meant. Was this like a Dwight Howard thing? Like, "I'm here to do my job, and I'm going to try hard, just know that I'm here because I have to be?" Had the pressure finally broken him? Was he feuding with Wade? What was his agenda?
And then … the shots started going in. Swish. Swish. Swish. It's like Miami realized, "Oh yeah, the Celtics don't have anyone who can guard LeBron James," and more important, LeBron realized it. He stopped worrying about sharing the ball, getting teammates involved, swinging it to the open man, being liked. Maybe LeBron said to himself, "**** it, I'm playing all 48 minutes, I'm scoring at least 50 points, and if we still blow this game, nobody can blame me." Maybe he said, "Wade already has a ring, it's time to get mine." Maybe someone (Wade?) said to him, "Enough with this me-then-you-then-me crap, it's your team, hog the ball, do your thing and take us home." Maybe Game 5's embarrassing defeat, as well as the humiliating "Good Job, Good Effort" kid and 36 hours of "Should they break up the Heat?" stories pissed him off. Maybe Worldwide Wes gave him an awesome pregame speech along the lines of the chef from Vision Quest.
I don't know what happened. I just know the shots wouldn't stop going in. After about the fifth dagger in a row (he made 10 straight), the crowd started groaning on every make — shades of Philly's Andrew Toney ripping our hearts out 30 years ago. If you've ever been in the building for one of those games, you know there isn't a deadlier sound. He single-handedly murdered one of the giddiest Celtics crowds I can remember. Thirty points in the first half. Thirty! All with that blank look on his face. It was like watching surveillance video of a serial killer coldly dismembering a body and sticking the parts in the fridge. Only we were right there.
You can't imagine what this was like to witness in person. I know Michael Jordan had similarly astonishing games, and others, too, but not with stakes like that. This wasn't just an elimination game. This was LeBron James's entire career being put on trial … and it only took an hour for him to tell the jury, "Go home. I'm one of the best players ever. Stop picking me apart. Stop talking about the things I can't do. Stop holding me to standards that have never been applied to any other NBA player. Stop blaming me for an admittedly dumb decision I never should have made. Stop saying I'm weak. Stop saying that I don't want to win. Stop. Just … stop."
As a Celtics fan, I was devastated. As a basketball fan, I appreciated the performance for what it was. One of the greatest players ever was playing one of his greatest games ever. He swallowed up every other relevant story line. Needless to say, the Celtics couldn't match him — especially Pierce, who's worn down from four weeks of battling Andre Iguodala, Shane Battier and LeBron on one leg and appears to be running on fumes of his fumes' fumes at this point. The fans were so shell-shocked that many (including me and my father) filed out with three minutes remaining, not because we were lousy fans, not to beat the traffic, but because we didn't want to be there anymore. We wanted to get away from LeBron. He ruined what should have been a magical night. We never really had a chance to cheer, swing the game, rally our guys, anything. He pointed a remote control at us and pressed "MUTE." It was like being in a car accident. LeBron James ran over 18,000 people.
And then … the shots started going in. Swish. Swish. Swish. It's like Miami realized, "Oh yeah, the Celtics don't have anyone who can guard LeBron James," and more important, LeBron realized it. He stopped worrying about sharing the ball, getting teammates involved, swinging it to the open man, being liked. Maybe LeBron said to himself, "**** it, I'm playing all 48 minutes, I'm scoring at least 50 points, and if we still blow this game, nobody can blame me." Maybe he said, "Wade already has a ring, it's time to get mine." Maybe someone (Wade?) said to him, "Enough with this me-then-you-then-me crap, it's your team, hog the ball, do your thing and take us home." Maybe Game 5's embarrassing defeat, as well as the humiliating "Good Job, Good Effort" kid and 36 hours of "Should they break up the Heat?" stories pissed him off. Maybe Worldwide Wes gave him an awesome pregame speech along the lines of the chef from Vision Quest.
I don't know what happened. I just know the shots wouldn't stop going in. After about the fifth dagger in a row (he made 10 straight), the crowd started groaning on every make — shades of Philly's Andrew Toney ripping our hearts out 30 years ago. If you've ever been in the building for one of those games, you know there isn't a deadlier sound. He single-handedly murdered one of the giddiest Celtics crowds I can remember. Thirty points in the first half. Thirty! All with that blank look on his face. It was like watching surveillance video of a serial killer coldly dismembering a body and sticking the parts in the fridge. Only we were right there.
You can't imagine what this was like to witness in person. I know Michael Jordan had similarly astonishing games, and others, too, but not with stakes like that. This wasn't just an elimination game. This was LeBron James's entire career being put on trial … and it only took an hour for him to tell the jury, "Go home. I'm one of the best players ever. Stop picking me apart. Stop talking about the things I can't do. Stop holding me to standards that have never been applied to any other NBA player. Stop blaming me for an admittedly dumb decision I never should have made. Stop saying I'm weak. Stop saying that I don't want to win. Stop. Just … stop."
As a Celtics fan, I was devastated. As a basketball fan, I appreciated the performance for what it was. One of the greatest players ever was playing one of his greatest games ever. He swallowed up every other relevant story line. Needless to say, the Celtics couldn't match him — especially Pierce, who's worn down from four weeks of battling Andre Iguodala, Shane Battier and LeBron on one leg and appears to be running on fumes of his fumes' fumes at this point. The fans were so shell-shocked that many (including me and my father) filed out with three minutes remaining, not because we were lousy fans, not to beat the traffic, but because we didn't want to be there anymore. We wanted to get away from LeBron. He ruined what should have been a magical night. We never really had a chance to cheer, swing the game, rally our guys, anything. He pointed a remote control at us and pressed "MUTE." It was like being in a car accident. LeBron James ran over 18,000 people.
theeboredone
Smash Legend
@TRG, I just think Wade sucks against good D's. He struggled against Boston last year along with Chicago. But he turned it up vs Dallas and NY.
The Real Gamer
Smash Hero
I've just never seen him play this consistently bad for an entire playoff series before.
I guess we'll see what happens tomorrow.
I guess we'll see what happens tomorrow.
theeboredone
Smash Legend
I'm pretty sure Wade shot around 30% against the Bulls last year. I could be mistaken.
As of right now, Wade is shooting 47% in the post season. Last year he shot 49%.
As of right now, Wade is shooting 47% in the post season. Last year he shot 49%.
shadrach kabango
Banned via Warnings
127 points on 109 shots v the best defense in the nba. wade is fine. they've missed bosh.
D
Deleted member
Guest
Wade is on the wrong side of 30, but he's been the best 2 for maybe 5 years now?
Someone look that up for me
Wins produced likes wade better since 2006. Statistically he's been better. Who wants to tell me why he hasn't been the best sg since 06?
Wins produced likes wade better since 2006. Statistically he's been better. Who wants to tell me why he hasn't been the best sg since 06?
ThaRealSKWEEZY
Smash Cadet
Yall just lucky lakers aint in this heat goin cold celtics gettin ****ed.
Next year aight next year you gonna c
Next year aight next year you gonna c
Malice Chains
Smash Journeyman
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2011
- Messages
- 429
Miami by 12
ThaRealSKWEEZY
Smash Cadet
I can agree wit that assesmint i think miami got sumthin 2 prove an a boost in momentum goin in2 this game. An lebron is ****in on fire like i was at that bbq last week but lets not get into that. He aint no kobe but he a playa i gotta admit, gonna make sumthin happen
D
Deleted member
Guest
miami by 4
ThaRealSkweezy
Join Date: June 2012
Location: LA reprazent!!
Posts: 9
"...he aint no kobe but...."
i already hate this account.
ThaRealSkweezy
Join Date: June 2012
Location: LA reprazent!!
Posts: 9
"...he aint no kobe but...."
i already hate this account.
shadrach kabango
Banned via Warnings
SG is real weak. Kobe ain't even the 2nd or 3rd best SG on a per-minute basis. That said I can make a case that Ginobili's > than Wade on a per-minute basis.
D
Deleted member
Guest
ginobli per minute > wade per minute but
wade's total contribution > ginobli's total contribution
kobe's per minute is pretty damn awful.
HERE WE GO TIPOFF BABY GO BRON
uh oh bass hit a J. Ray hit a 3, and looks quicker than usual.
battier x factor?
wade's total contribution > ginobli's total contribution
kobe's per minute is pretty damn awful.
HERE WE GO TIPOFF BABY GO BRON
uh oh bass hit a J. Ray hit a 3, and looks quicker than usual.
battier x factor?
D
Deleted member
Guest
wade is the strongest mother****er. best at finishing through contact for sure.
shadrach kabango
Banned via Warnings
allen drawing so much attention
lolhollins
lolhollins
Masmasher@
Smash Lord
lol good game but some bull**** calls already
liking bosh back though dynamic looks good for both teams
it least the ball going in for boston
liking bosh back though dynamic looks good for both teams
it least the ball going in for boston
D
Deleted member
Guest
awful awful awful awful awful awful passing
lebron is going to take over in the 2nd half
lebron is going to take over in the 2nd half
Masmasher@
Smash Lord
you cant look at it this way
10 turnovers and you only down by 6
on the other hand
boston hitting
and they outhustling the heat
and other player stepping up
the heats team has to show up if they want to win
boston holds on and the game is close like they want it they could pull this off
at the end of the day both teams would lose to the thunder
10 turnovers and you only down by 6
on the other hand
boston hitting
and they outhustling the heat
and other player stepping up
the heats team has to show up if they want to win
boston holds on and the game is close like they want it they could pull this off
at the end of the day both teams would lose to the thunder
D
Deleted member
Guest
not necessarily (regarding the thunder)
this series speaks more to the matchup than the quality of the heat team.
finals could be close with the heat, but i think the C's would get killed.
this series speaks more to the matchup than the quality of the heat team.
finals could be close with the heat, but i think the C's would get killed.
Heart Break Kid
Smash Lord
That'll do it...heres to OKC washing the miami cavaliers in the finals though
Masmasher@
Smash Lord
celtics would not get killed this series is evidence of that
with that said looking like thunder vs miami (miracles aside) bosh made the difference
with that said looking like thunder vs miami (miracles aside) bosh made the difference
theeboredone
Smash Legend
I honestly think their age caught up to them similar to how it happened in the 2010 finals in Game 7. Heavy minutes for the "Big 3" which caused them to start missing shots. So many missed fundamentals like missing box outs and what not. Give credit where credit is due though. Bosh and Battier played big time. Someone outside LBJ and Wade had to step up. Nice to see it was Bosh cementing himself once again as clutch and part of the Big 3.
LBJ I think got an assist at the end, but geez....he had 0 going into the fourth.
I think Miami beats OKC in 6. Not sayin cause of this moment, but I know Westbrook historically struggles bad against the Heat, and I don't think OKC is disciplined enough on D to contain Wade and LBJ. It's gonna be a tall task. Both are gonna be shooting 50% or better in the series, and with Bosh spacing the floor again...tall task for OKC. Durant, WB, and Harden are gonna have to be solid while getting a fourth guy like Ibaka involved.
LBJ I think got an assist at the end, but geez....he had 0 going into the fourth.
I think Miami beats OKC in 6. Not sayin cause of this moment, but I know Westbrook historically struggles bad against the Heat, and I don't think OKC is disciplined enough on D to contain Wade and LBJ. It's gonna be a tall task. Both are gonna be shooting 50% or better in the series, and with Bosh spacing the floor again...tall task for OKC. Durant, WB, and Harden are gonna have to be solid while getting a fourth guy like Ibaka involved.
ahchoomattchu
Smash Ace
NBA Finals Prediction = Referees in 7
D
Deleted member
Guest
nah theyd go down a lot easier than the heat
celtics were 3-1 vs the heat this year in the season. im personally convinced its just a matchup thing, and that this series really undersells the heat.
if i'm going to vegas, i'd seriously consider betting on the heat as a high value bet. everyone thinks the heat are more overmatched than they are.
rondo is just so much smarter than westbrook, i dont think WB can carve up the heat D as well
im gonna wait for boredone to come in and check that. knowing my luck wb probably dropped 40 on them at some point
shadrach kabango
Banned via Warnings
i think it was a chris bosh being injured thing
healthy bosh = heat in 5
what are the vegas odds? heat/thunder is a coin-flip
healthy bosh = heat in 5
what are the vegas odds? heat/thunder is a coin-flip
The Real Gamer
Smash Hero
Holy **** that was too close for comfort... BUT HOT DAMN THE HEAT ARE BACK IN THE FINALS!
At this point I'm just thankful to be going back after being down 2-3 I seriously thought that was the end. Also thought the same when they were down 1-2 to the Pacers after Bosh went down. I guess I just need to have more faith in my team... Well just not to the point where if they lose I'm emotionally upset about it for days.
I'm finally getting the Durant/LBJ match up I've been craving since the beginning of this year. The only comfort I have going into this series is that the Thunder play more up tempo which plays into the Heat's hands (or do the Heat play into the Thunder's hands?). I think the team that takes care of the ball better wins the series. Both teams thrive off of points off of turnovers. Also much will depend on which Big 3 can out-perform the other of course. The Heat's will need to really step up because I don't see their role players out-playing OKC's.
With that being said... Heat in 6 hard fought games. I think LeBron might be for real this time, and Bosh seems to be playing really well in the time he has been back so hopefully that will carry over into the next series. I'm also expecting Wade to have a much better series than he did against Boston.
At this point I'm just thankful to be going back after being down 2-3 I seriously thought that was the end. Also thought the same when they were down 1-2 to the Pacers after Bosh went down. I guess I just need to have more faith in my team... Well just not to the point where if they lose I'm emotionally upset about it for days.
I'm finally getting the Durant/LBJ match up I've been craving since the beginning of this year. The only comfort I have going into this series is that the Thunder play more up tempo which plays into the Heat's hands (or do the Heat play into the Thunder's hands?). I think the team that takes care of the ball better wins the series. Both teams thrive off of points off of turnovers. Also much will depend on which Big 3 can out-perform the other of course. The Heat's will need to really step up because I don't see their role players out-playing OKC's.
With that being said... Heat in 6 hard fought games. I think LeBron might be for real this time, and Bosh seems to be playing really well in the time he has been back so hopefully that will carry over into the next series. I'm also expecting Wade to have a much better series than he did against Boston.
Masmasher@
Smash Lord
boston sanbagged the playoffs until the heat.
they would give the thunder a run too.
originally before all the injuries albeit to both team they had the celtics beating miami.
they just took them to game 7 and to gloss over that is ignorance.
the heat undersold themselves having problem even with indiana.
i wouldnt even look at prior history with the thunder ether.
they underwent the changing of the guard with the spurs and westbrook played smarter.
the only stretches he played dumb is when they practically had the game in the bag.
and wade is hurt
thats why he has been coming on late in games he has to sit back for a sec
and derek fisher will get another ring
he thanks the lakers for trading him to the premier team
more rings then kobe= better then kobe
theeboredone
Smash Legend
In the two games this season, Wb went 4/16 and 9/26 against them. Last year, the guy went 7/22 and 5/16. I think it has something to do with Wade checking him, while sticking Chalmers on Sefolosha. However, WB had 8 free throws both games last year against Miami. This year, he had around 6 per game. Wade can contain him, and given WB's shaky J...well the way I see it...if he tries to shoot a lot, OKC will lose.