6 Thoughts
1) Umm - that didn't go well. Smmmmoked by Boston, got down 20 in a first quarter that seemed to take approximately 3 days to complete. Second quarter saw Eddie House revisit the city of his NBA birth and go bananas: 6-8 threes for 20 points in the second quarter. By the way, he averages 7 points a game. Heat never really challenged in the second half. Got it down to 11 a couple of times, but it was just window dressing. The qualitative difference between these two teams was on display tonight. Change has come to America; but not that much change - Boston is still way better than Miami.
2) Boston was able to enter the ball to the post with the pass, and penetrate to the middle off the dribble, usually kicking out to wide open jumpers. Ended up 15-25 from three. That's absurd. Ray Allen was 5-6, and House finished 7-11. That alone is too much to overcome.
3) And yet, there's more. Boston is the best defensive team in the league. Two intimidating interior presences in Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins. Two savvy veteran positional defenders in Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, who know how to force ball handlers to help. And one perimeter menace in Rajon Rondo. All great defensive teams have one characteristic in common: when the ball penetrates to the lane, they converge - yet, the ball doesn't come out to open shooters. Too many arms, too many legs, too many bodies in the way, and too much anticipation. All great defensive teams look alike: dribblers get swallowed up, and the ball disappears...This is how Boston plays. They are a great defensive team.
4) In a first quarter shot clock situation, off an inbounds pass, Dwyane Wade received a pass, double pumped, and launched a 14 footer from the wing clear over the backboard. That prompted a call from Dos Headquarters to Plumber. Out of deference to the hour, a message was left on his office machine. There is one - and only one - hard and fast rule at Dos Minutos: any time we see a game when someone shoots a ball over the backcourt, we call the Plumber immediately. This hearkens back to our Boston College days together when, one innocuous afternoon, during a pickup game, either Plumber or myself came down the court handling the ball in a two on one situation. The lone defender back in transition was Boston College player Darrell Michaels, a 6'8" backup power forward who had transferred to BC from Utah. Michaels had the approximate game of current Celtic Brian Scalabrine, except that he was approximately 70% less athletic, and 100% less skilled. Did I mention he was white? The ballhandler - again, either Plumber or myself - began to pull up at the foul line intending to shoot the jumper if Michaels retreated, or drop the ball off to the cutting wing player if Michaels looked to stop the jumper. The ballhandler took his eye off Michaels for a moment to check the cutter, then went up in the air to shoot the jumper, intuitively sensing that Michaels had dropped back in to the lane. He sensed wrong. Michaels had jumped all the way out to contest the shot. No matter how unathletic he was, he was still 6'8". I'm 6'1" - Plumber even smaller. For one horrible moment it appeared that I - I mean, I or the Plumber - was going to have his jump shot batted to Kingdom Come by the stiffest Big East player of all-time. At the last instant, the shot was adjusted to account for Michaels' length, and it sailed in a high arc towards the basket. A high, high arc. So high that it cleared the entire backboard with room to spare. After a stunned moment of silence, someone retrieved the ball, and the game resumed. But for Plumber and myself, basketball would never be the same. Let's be honest - it doesn't really matter which one of us shot the ball over the backboard that day. What really matters is that every time it has happened since in a game that I was watching, I call the Plumber.
5) Plumber is optimistic about the Nets' difficult road trip out West, which began tonight with a loss in New Orleans to the Hornets, who were without David West and Tyson Chandler: "I think we can lose every game and get Lawrence Frank fired." It is good to set goals.
6) Finally, an update on the Tom Cruise-Hitler situation. It turns out his desire to kill Hitler is not a recent development. Not at all. From MSNBC.com:
Cruise says he grew up wanting to kill Hitler
‘Valkyrie’ star inspired by those who tried to take down Nazi leader
I always wanted to kill Hitler, I hated him," the Hollywood star of such major blockbusters as "Top Gun" and "Mission Impossible," told the press during a visit to Seoul to promote his latest film.
"As a child studying history and looking at documents, I wondered, why didn't someone stand up and try to stop it?
Some kids grow up loving Scooby Doo and making mud pies. Not young Tom Cruise, who grew up with an absolute passion for murdering already-dead, totalitarian dictators. I mean, along with his passion for criticising women who are suffering from post-partum depression. Oh, and his hatred of kids who take Ritalin...I can't wait for his next movie where he goes back in time and tries to take out Red Auerbach...
