One thing the Miami Heat and head coach Erik Spoelstra must adjust and do in Game 2 in San Antonio is get Mario Chalmers going. Sharpshooter Ray Allen had 10 points and Chris Andersen had his share of defensive intensity and rebounds in Game 1. If Chalmers scores over 10 points, I guarantee you Miami will have a chance to win the ball game and Game 2 and have the advantage for home court for Games 3 and 4 in Miami.
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Spurs win Game 5/Heat advance to NBA Finals
The Spurs returned to their dominant selves in Game 5 in San Antonio. They routed the Thunder in every single aspect of the game. No excuse for the Thunder’s chance to win. Kevin Durant couldn’t come up big to win. Now, the Thunder have to win Game 6 in order to win Game 7 in San Antonio. In Miami, the Heat advance to win 117-92 and now await the winner of the Oklahoma City Thunder-San Antonio Spurs West finals. It was a team game for the Miami Heat. Chris Bosh had 25 points and Rashard Lewis and Mario Chalmers had 13 as Miami continued its rout over Indiana.
NBA Finals 2013 Game 5: San Antonio 114, Miami 104
The Spurs are one win away from winning the NBA title again. The Miami Heat are one loss away. What’s missing from these NBA Finals? The capacity to play spectacular defense by either team. We haven’t seen a close game since Game 1 of the 2013 NBA Finals in which the Spurs won 92-88. The Heat will need to play catch-up and have to play angry for Game 6 in order that they survive their elimination game. Lebron James will have to play the game of his life, although that will be 50% unlikely, because the Spurs defense has nothing to do with Lebron James, it’s on Lebron James. Give the San Antonio defense credit for hounding Dwyane Wade and Lebron James, but don’t give Wade and James credit for trying to score points, because it’s their offense that is stalling, not the Spurs defense causing them to miss shots. What’s left to do? James and Wade must ignite their two-man fast break and when they do that, Miami perimeter shooters like Ray Allen, Mario Chalmers, and Chris Bosh make their shots. Any way to win Game 6 for Miami? They must play like there is no tomorrow. They made mince meat out of the Milwaukee Bucks and the Chicago Bulls for the first round and second round and had to survive seven games with the Indiana Pacers in order to move on. The Heat have to impose to play their brand of basketball in which James and Wade run their two-man fast break in which they did so well against Milwaukee and Chicago in the first and second round. What do the Spurs need to do in order to win Game 6? Play exactly like the way you did to win Game 5. Danny Green must continue to make three-pointers, Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobli must continue to step up like always and make the Miami Heat bleed with their continued consistency of points and steady defense. I’d say that the Miami Heat aren’t closing out the Spurs perimeter players on defense in Games 2 and 4, in which they won, because they aren’t running Danny Green or Gary Neal or any one who is threatening to shoot the long ball out of the arena.
What to expect in Game 5 now: San Antonio Spurs vs. Miami Heat
1. Manu Ginobli gets going and he gets hot with his perimeter shooting.
2. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan contribute in big ways to the Spurs’ game plan, whether it be scoring, assists, rebounds, or defense.
3. Watch out for the Lebron James-Dwyane Wade fast break.
4. Mario Chalmers, Chris Bosh, and Ray Allen shoot the lights out of the gym.
What to watch for in Game 3 of the 2013 NBA Finals
1. See that the Spurs try to set screens for Tony Parker so he can get open and hit his shots.
2. See to it that the Heat continue their success in denying Parker’s penetration and ways to the hoop.
3. Watch for the Lebron James-Dwyane Wade fast break.
4. Tim Duncan gets going with his post play.
5. The Heat outside shooters (Ray Allen, Mario Chalmers) get open and make shots.
NBA Finals 2013 Game 2
The Miami Heat win this game 103-84 behind strong defense and a balanced offense that had role players like Mario Chalmers stepping up and making big shots. When that happened and Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, and Lebron James were making their shots, everything went Miami’s way. The Heat ran rampant over San Antonio. The Heat disrupted Tony Parker penetrating when he picked-and-rolled and made turnovers on points whenever he tried to make a play. It was a smart move by Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, because the Heat needed to find a way to contain Parker’s penetration into the passing lanes and where he gets easy points. Tony Parker was the reason why Miami lost control of Game 1. The Heat let up and Parker got his points. I think most importantly of all, the Heat took Game 2 very seriously because they lost Game 1 and some momentum into Game 2. Look to see the San Antonio Spurs review plays where they couldn’t recover on the pick-and-roll because the Heat burned their opponents on open plays and wide open jump shots and three pointers. San Antonio wasn’t expecting to see Miami opening up on three pointers and jump shots whenever Wade or Chalmers were trying to get open. Congrats to Miami for opening up opportunities on their perimeter game. Now San Antonio goes home with a split and figure out how they won Game 1, because they need to duplicate their success like they did in Game 1 again in Game 3. They need Parker at his best, making layups and open jump shots and Ginobli and Duncan doing well again in order to win Game 3.
Miami vs. Indiana Preview Game 6
What to expect in Game 6 tonight:
1. See that the Indiana Pacers take care of the basketball.
2. Lebron James has another breakout game.
3. Dwyane Wade contributes in some way to help Miami win.Â
4. Roy Hibbert has a big game against Chris Bosh and Joel Anthony.
5. See that Dwyane Wade and Lebron James run their patent fast break.
6. See that the Indiana Pacers run their offense with balanced scoring.
7. Watch and see if the physical Roy Hibbert and David West do try and take Lebron James out with their bigger frames.
8. Mario Chalmers, Shane Battier, and Ray Allen need to step up and hit their outside shots in order Miami wins Game 6.
9. Lebron James and Dwyane Wade playing outstanding perimeter defense so the Heat can generate fast break points.
10. D.J. Augustin and George Hill must have good games for Indiana to force a Game 7.
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Game 5: Miami wins 90-79 against Indiana
Lebron James did it all in Game 5. He scored 30 points as Miami took over in the third quarter. There’s no stopping James’ quest for his second NBA title. What stops him? Lebron James. Whatever shots he makes and misses and decisions he makes in his head determines how the outcome of a basketball game goes. He got no help from his teammate Dwyane Wade or Chris Bosh or Mario Chalmers. Udonis Haslem contributed 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting and had a good game. In the end, I think what determines a Heat victory or loss stays on Lebron James’ shoulders.
Indiana Pacers versus Miami Heat Game 4
The Indiana Pacers gave the Miami Heat a beating last night. I didn’t watch the whole game fortunately, because I didn’t want to expect to see Lebron James give out an awesome performance. It turns out that the Indiana Pacers kept charging at Lebron James and made him pick up six fouls and James fouled out of the game. The Pacers win this game 99-92 because they did not get rattled when Miami made their scoring runs. The Pacers expected the Miami Heat to get their points in spurts and it showed. Indiana made sure they would stand the scoring runs made by Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat and absorbed the hit. Then Pacers coach Frank Vogel had his Pacers squad slowly build up their lead again until all 48 minutes were run out. It is a smart strategic play on Frank Vogel’s part because Erik Spoelstra doesn’t know what to expect from playing with a balanced and scoring Indiana Pacers team. Sometimes I wonder if Heat coach Erik Spoelstra knows its five-on-five basketball. With a star studded cast with Dwyane Wade and Lebron James and Chris Bosh scoring all the major goodies, you have to wonder, how are the other supporting role players contributing to the Miami offense and on defense. How is Miami defending the titan 7-2 giant Roy Hibbert and Lebron James expanding energy to chase down Paul George and Dwyane Wade running on defense against Lance Stephenson? Miami started the game slowly and they let up. They let the Pacers have the first go at scoring. The Heat didn’t score first. Starting game 5, the Miami Heat must get their scoring up in order to win the game. They must start the game with defense, because when Lebron James gets up and down the court with those chase-down blocks and Wade does the same with steals, the Heat are unstoppable. Ray Allen gets open looks at the basket, Shane Battier will be able to make perimter shots, and so does Mario Chalmers. We haven’t seen a Miami onslaught since Game 3 when the Heat won the game 114-96.
I have to say, the series is far closer than it is 2-2. I think the Pacers have a slight upper hand at this series, than the Miami Heat do, because the Pacers have a bench mob that is able to defend Ray Allen consistently and making sure that the Heat shooters like Mike Miller, James Jones, and Rashard Lewis do not get open looks consistently all night. Except for Games 1, 2, and 4, the Heat broke out with a flurry of three pointers in a convincing win in Game 3. Paul George uncharacteristically showed he was angry after a foul he made in the third quarter. The Pacers want this game. Indiana wants Miami to know that they are for real. Now, the Pacers have the Heat’s number. Can Miami answer the call in Game 5?
Miami Heat vs. Indiana Pacers Game 3
The Heat went back to their game of fast break basketball with Lebron James and Dwyane Wade passing the ball to each other. The Heat are the victors of Game 3, because they imposed their will and presence over the Indiana Pacers and they made their perimeter shots and Chris Bosh and all the Heat role players like Mario Chalmers, Shane Battier, and Ray Allen hit down open shots in transition. When all was said and done, the Pacers were unable to comply with the Miami offense, because the Heat were hitting on all cylinders. The Heat defense was subpar at best, because they rely on Lebron James and Dwyane Wade’s athleticism and speed to help them generate steals and blocks.
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