6 Thoughts
1) How many years did that game set back basketball? Ten? Twenty? One thousand? Miami in New Jersey in front of a robust few hundred fans - there presumably to watch Dwyane Wade, rather than the 5-48 Nets - only to watch Wade limp out for the night with a strained calf only 7 minutes into the game. Not only that, Miami's second best player, Jermaine O'Neal, jumped into the air for the one of the first times all year, was undercut by a sprawling Rafer Alston, and crashed down directly on to his back, limiting him to only 22 minutes. Without those two guys, the Heat are the Nets - and the game was on!
2) Ever since he arrived in Miami, folks have been screaming for Mike Beasley to step up, to win a game for the team, to do it when it counts. With six minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Mike re-entered the game with the Heat down 1, and clearly was going to have to deliver for the Heat to have a chance. Annnnnd, he immediately caught the ball at the top of the key and threw a forty mile an hour line drive off the backboard; followed by knocking down Net Kris Humphries 60 feet away from the play; followed by getting doubled-teamed 25 feet from the hoop, and committing a ghastly turnover leading to a Net fastbreak and-one layup. Oh no. Get your mind right, Mike! And then, suddenly, there was Mike driving and scoring in the paint over Brook Lopez; and there was Mike making a tough little fallaway over Yi; and there was Mike getting beat off the dribble, but busting his ass to get back to the rim and come up with an incredible game-winning block on Kris Humphries. 21 points and 11 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. I'm gonna say it - Mike won the game. Other guys helped - but Mike won the game. Not only that, after the game, an area where Mike has particularly struggled, he said all the right things to sideline reporter Jax: "I just wanted to show my team that they could trust me." It warmed my heart!
3) No DWade, but plenty of QRich - 14 rebounds for the Pres, one huge three, and two big free throws down the stretch amongst his 16 points.
4) Nets point guard Devin Harris - there is a kid who needs to get his mind right. Devin. Devin, can you stop bouncing the ball for a second? Devin. DEVIN!!! I think if it were more socially acceptable, he would never let anyone else on the team ever touch the ball. Devin - Brook Lopez? The huge 7 footer that Miami hasn't stopped all night long? - for God's sake, whatever you do, don't let him touch the ball in the last five minutes of the game. I think we are all starting to understand how an NBA team gets to be 5-49...
5) The NBA's trade deadline is tomorrow afternoon. Miami has supposedly been in pursuit all week of malcontent Phoenix Suns forward Amare Stoudamire. It appears that their main competition for Stoudamire, the Cavaliers, just dropped out of the running by opting to trade for Wizards forward Antawn Jamison - and I think they are going to win the title. This would seem to increase the likelihood that Miami gets Stoudamire - which they are apparently trying to do without putting Mike Beasley, or either of their first round draft picks, into the deal. That would be great. I've advocated making the deal all week even if Mike had to go to Phoenix - but now, I don't know. The kid is now 1-0 as a crunch-time go-to scorer! Mind is right - let's just hope that on Friday, Memphis plays as poorly as the Nets did tonight!
6) Someone just texted me to ask me what my thoughts were on the upcoming Tiger Woods apology press conference this Friday. Look, surprisingly I don't have any advance insight into what he is going to say, but he might want to study the Jersey Shore tapes. Like The Situation says: "five 2s equals a 10!" What? Oh - he's apologizing for the infidelity? Oh, oh, I misunderstood - I thought he was apologizing for the cheesy "hostesses" he was booty-bootying. Got it. Okay, great. I'm gonna watch. Let's hope Tiger is getting his mind right, because I think Mike Lupica is still really, really mad about all this...
