6 Thoughts
1) Due to a dvr snafu, I joined this game 6 minutes into the second quarter with the Heat down by 16...and they instantly went on a huge run, and outscored the Sixers 25-8 for the rest of the quarter: I won this game with the reverse jinx! You're welcome!
2) Play of the game: After Philly took a 7 point lead early in the 4th quarter, Dwyane Wade capped a 7-0 run by slapping a Thaddeus Young layup off the backboard from behind, gathering the rebound, motoring down court weaving through the other 9 players on the court - and the three referees - and finished to tie the score, leading to hyper-frenetic Sixer coach Doug Collins' fourteenth timeout of the game! How many timeouts are they allowed? Wade controlled the game from there, as the Heat won going away: 18 for Dwyane in the 4th, to go with 19 in the second. 39 total for Dwyane, along with 11 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, and 5 - five - blocks! That's a full night's work, right there - Doug Collins is probably still trying to call another time out right now to stop him...
3) LeBron was also excellent with 32 points and 10 rebounds, and the Maitre d', Chris Bosh, had an efficient 20 and 10. It was the first game all year that each had a double-double in the same game. Key moment: after the Sixers had taken the aforementioned 7 point fourth quarter lead on the strength of a Lou Williams 8-9 shooting performance, LeBron demonstratively asked to guard him in the huddle during a timeout. And. He. Shut. Him. Down. LeBron is always solid defensively, in a quiet, but efficient way, cranking it up only when necessary. Wade, LeBron, and Bosh have been excellent lately - they are playing off each other more effectively, using screens amongst the three of them, moving without the ball, and getting to the rim more frequently (though LeBron still can't get a call!). If the season has been slightly underwhelming - and keep it in perspective, because they are going to win 55+ games - it hasn't been their fault...They can't get consistent help from the other guys, especially the bench...
4)...and that was an ongoing problem tonight. UD: still missing. Mike Miller: is either still nursing a sore thumb, or is on the world's longest-ever "Karl Malone" (hand feels fine when he makes a play; but when a shot misses, a lot of massaging the 'hurt' digit). Either way, can make one shot in a row, but not two. James Jones: can make a shot, but gets picked on defensively. Eddie House: insane. Spo is just rotating them in and out, and then in again, searching for someone to make two jumpers in a row. It's frustrating: you can't ask for much more from the three main guys - they just need a little bit of help from everyone else. James Jones' late three tonight iced the game, but if these guys helped in the first 47 minutes, it would never even come to that. Eric and Tony love to talk about "bench scoring," which is an absurd stat - if you have to get a lot of scoring off the bench, guess what? You stink! But Miami's bench is comprised almost entirely of shooters, and right now they aren't getting consistent shooting from those guys: 4-15 tonight...
5) Budding NBA fan O.Minutos hadn't really seen Elton Brand play before - the other Sixer games this year must have been school nights. Trying to describe Brand's game to him, the closest I could come up with is if you took one of the big blue mailboxes that they have outside of the post office, dragged it into the middle of the lane, filled it with super-heavy mail, and then nailed it to the floor, but not with regular nails - with big, huge industrial spikes. "His arms are essential, too," pointed out M.Minutos, "Because he needs them to foul people." Yes, yes he does. A solid 8 points on 4-10 in 39 motionless minutes for Brand tonight. The Sixers are the most probable first round playoff opponent for the Heat, so I apologize now for the monster series Brand is going to have against them...By the way, it warrants a brief mention that somehow Boston lost at home to Charlotte tonight: they've lost to Charlotte, the Clippers, and New Jersey, amongst others, in the past couple of weeks, and Miami is only 1 loss behind them in the standings. Does it matter? Not really. Why? Because as I've mentioned before, even if Miami passes them, Baby Davis is still going to end Miami's season by ripping a rebound out of Chris Bosh's hands and laying it in the basket at the most crucial of moments. Baby's not going to care whether or not Miami passes Boston to get homecourt advantage for that series...
6) Text from R.Minutos yesterday:
“I am having a debate with Thor regarding washroom attendants. I tend to shell out a buck, then raid the “three c’s:” candy, cologne, and condoms. Thor takes the 'no tip' approach, pulls out his hand sanitizer from his pocket, announces in a mumble that he is 'good,' then dismisses the attendant. Please advise in your next post the proper washroom attendant protocol…”
Another great question from R.Minutos. Thor is clearly wrong in his approach – I would never pull out hand sanitizer in the washroom, or anywhere else, because I am a man, and men don't carry around their own bottles of hand sanitizer. That’s absurd, and I don’t even have a man purse to carry it in…But R.Minutos is even more wrong. Dude: you are wearing condoms and eating candy THAT CAME FROM THE TOILET!!! EWWWWWW!!! So, I guess Thor is the winner! First prize: two large, homemade R.Minutos’ signature Cajun Blue Cheese pizza pies. Second prize: a set of steak knives. Third prize: you’re fired…
Next game is Sunday against Houston - the first game, in Houston, was one of the season's most entertaining. Until then if you need me, I'll be rooting against John Calipari in the NCAA tournament. Remember - the greatest trick the devil ever played was making people think he didn't exist...
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