Yes, due to the Heat winning their last regular season game. Games 1 and 2 are in MIA, 3-5 in DAL, 6-7 back in MIA.
Where you at R&R? Be gracious...you said that the BOSTON CELTICS and CHICAGO BULLS would kill the Heat in a series. Well, it seems that the Heat beat them both 4-1. SO bow down and kiss all of Our Heat asses publically in this thread. waiting...forever...for sure.
No doubt the Bulls would have played better defensively and held their ground a little better at the end of these games if they would have had the 7 footer Asik in there. Anyways I'm not one to complain about injuries. The Heat just played better and wanted it more. They made the plays. Congrats Heat fans and good luck.
That was such utter and literal flith last night, that was like watching Mariano Rivera throw one pitch for 15+ years, and nobody can figure out how to hit it.... I can't believe Miami has a dynasty and it isnt the Dolphins.....the Dolphins are a godamn trainwreck..... that sound you hear is the rest of the NBA going to BJ's to buy diapers as they just collectively shat in their draws knowing the Heat arent going anywhere for the next ump-teen years.... only thing that stops them is a lockout which is a real possibility Section I got my draft pick for the Heat, will post it on HeatFreak....after they win the trophy Heat win 4-1 in the finals..... /end rant
One of these days the Dolphins will get it together. I would LOVE for it to be during the Heat's run. I'd cease to have a non-sports life.
Not only are they not going anywhere, they’re going to be better next year. This is the worst Big Three roster the Heat will ever field. Next year, Haslem and Miller will be healthy. The Big Three will know how to play with two or all three on the court at the same time. The franchise has the cap space to upgrade at center and maybe point guard as well. That’s one big reason why there’s so much hate thrown at this team. There’s even more dominant basketball to come. And yes, the Dolphins are a train wreck. And South Florida knows it. The days of Dolphins fans devoted sitting in their seats to grumble at Wannyball/Sparanoball/Henningball are over. We can just go watch the Heat instead. By the way, has anyone seen Fin-Omenal? Is he on LeBron suicide watch along with the rest of Cleveland?
Well if the Heat can continue to play good defense I don't see anyone giving them a serious challenge over the next few years. Dallas does have enough pieces to beat Miami but their bench has to be big for them to win. The playoffs have been really amazing this year, its been a long time since I've really been interested in the NBA playoffs.
We're all sitting around wondering when the hell LeBron got a jump shot. The major difference I've seen in the playoffs is that in past years, LeBron would take all these jumpers and pull-up threes, but miss them. This year, he is making them. Makes him a completely different player. And, honestly, Cleveland is more concerned with the Indians at this point. There are still some that are wasting energy hating LeBron, but don't let ESPN fool you - LeBron isn't the topic in this town they want you to believe.
I have said it time and time again, Boston was their biggest challenge, you need a team that has more than one legit scoring option and a deep bench to possibly have any shot at beating Miami....and boston was just to old and slow....The new wave of the future is doing what Boston and Miami did in the offseason, is creating a coop of ballers on one team......thing is Miami did it better than Boston, as they did it with players just entering their prime..... dude look at Jordan before he got the other pieces, his FG% wasnt as good as it was when he did get Pax, Scottie etc....after he finally learned to pass the ball he became dominate...samething with Bron....he is going to take off now, which is scary...
Dallas may get a win in a game where they shoot lights out, but I don't think they have a shot if they can't erase that rebounding disparity. I do wonder if Miami will bring in James Jones to thwart their zone at some point. He's Miami's most consistent 3-pt shooter, but he takes away part of their rebounding advantage. He also reportedly has a toe injury. I think Miami will win and that the Lebron hate will continue to fade. Van Gundy said it well when he said that Lebron was hated for two things, the Decision show and the over the top introduction in Miami. According to Jim Gray's book Lebron was the face of the show, but wasn't involved in any of it. The idea came from the publicist and Gray. They approached ESPN, who loved it and made it happen. Lebron was only asked after it was all set up. Basically his publicist just went to him and said 'ESPN wants you to announce your decision on a show on their station and the proceeds will go to the charity of your choice.' 'I think it's a good idea and it's all set up, will you do it?' I don't think there are many who would have said "no" in that situation. If Lebron keeps playing like he is then he'll be remembered as the guy who put winning above money and ego and was possibly the best player ever. Pippen already came out and said that was possible and even noted hater Whitlock said that Wade/Lebron may end up better than Jordan/Pippen. Most are still slamming the idea, but every year the detractors will decrease in number.
If Dallas could shoot the same as when they swept the Lakers, they could beat the Heat. Sure, credit the Heat defense to an extent, still Dallas missing some wide open shots.
He got a jumpshot when he stopped having defenses swarming him. The looks he's getting now are conducive to efficient play. In Cleveland he always had a hand or two in his face.
I don't buy it. I'm talking about long 2's - LeBron had defenses collapse on him when he drove to the hole - not when he shot 18 ft jumpers. He is still going one-on-one and pulling up for long jumpers, they're just going in now.
He's getting much more space than he did before. Defenders can't stay up in his body on the perimeter because they don't have a wall of defenders behind them. They have to give him a cushion and he's taking these step back jumpers with little resistance.
All I know, is that Mike Bibby is very much reminding me of Mo Williams' recent playoff performances with the Cavs. The only thing is Bibby isn't the Heat's #2 guy like Williams was in Cleveland, heck he probably isn't even #4. I'm sure that eases plenty of weight of Lebron's shoulders.
People are going to hate regardless....especially up here, and especially as the team gets better and better.....do people hate A-Rod any less? In all though as a fan of Miami (you guys) you gotta just ask yourselves who cares, as long as the championships keep coming....as a Yankee fan I dont care one bit about the team interms of wanting them to be seen in a good light by opposing teams fans....it is never going to happen....
LOL. NOBODY can shoot the way they did when they swept the Lakers. Including the Mavs. What Dallas did in that last game has maybe been seen 1 or 2 times in the history of the sport. So yeah..If I pick the correct lottery numbers 12 weeks in a row, I will be a Billionaire.
Actually, I take that back - just looked and his FG% and 3p% is on par with what he did in the playoffs last year. Must just feel like he's hitting more because they seem to be clutch shots down the stretch. (And lmeister3 - I'm a huge Mo Williams fan, but, yes, he was that bad. His 3p% dropped from 43% in the regular season to 32% in the playoffs and his defense was a joke. Our offense was built on LeBron kicking out for open 3s and when he couldn't hit, we were doomed.)
Personally, I don't care whether people hate or not. I just find it to be a fascinating study of fan irrationality. I don't think the A-rod comparison applies. Basketball is different in that one player has a much larger impact on the game and series. If Miami wins several championships then Lebron will be a huge reason why. More than any of the other big three sports, counting championships is the primary barometer for greatness (unless you got them as a back-up). If Lebron ends up with as many championships as Jordan then he'll be put on that level.
I think the clutch perception is a big part of it. Also it's the fact that other players are stepping up. No player is perfect 100% of the time, they all have lulls in their game. When Lebron had his lulls in the past they were seen as failures b/c nobody else stepped up. Now if Lebron disappears for a quarter (or just doesn't score since that's what most fans remember), but Wade or Bosh has a big quarter then it's no longer seen as a failure. It's seen as the offense was just going through another player for a quarter.
It isnt anything more than people do not like other teams that are good, and their stars.....the comparsion does apply, they are both superstars who have, in the eyes of some (whether anybody here agrees with it or not) has done some arrogant things leading up to where they are now....it is literally that simple... Look at Tom Brady, I hate that guy, not in the "I want him to die" sense, but from a sports standpoint...what has he ever done to warrant any sort of hate?? Besides maybe marry some broad who doesnt like American currency...and in the end she was right ha! It is my opinion that the hate will grow, as Miami is constantly in the Finals for the next 3-6 years...people are just going to get sick of him, alla Kobe....
I think a lot of the Yankees / Heat hate is how the teams were assembled. The Yankees have a very obvious advantage over other teams because of the structure of baseball. You can call it jealousy, but it takes some of the "sport" out of it when they are given a very obvious advantage simply due to the number of residents in their city. With the Heat, I don't think the average fan wants to watch three of the best players team up. The fun part of sports is following your team, watching them come together and feeling like you are part of it. The Heat kind of look like mercenaries. Watching a team tank for three years so that it could clear cap space isn't exactly some fairy tale ending. Add in that most people see the Heat as a collection of individuals, not a team - and, sorry guys, a less than stellar fan base, and the average fan outside of Miami isn't going to appreciate them. Again, whether true or not, the Heat go against what most fans like think is important - watching a team come together, strong teamwork and a homefield advantage. The "talents to South Beach" line makes it sound like having nice bars and good looking women trumps those other things.
When he got good coaching from Erik Spoelstra and Keith Askins. I guess the country doesn’t realize how good Miami’s coaching staff is, because that’s really the answer. Hell, how do you think we got Mike Bibby to play something that resembles defense?
Puhleeze. "Tanked" for three years? They made the playoffs in two of those years, and not as hopeless 8th seeds. Both years as a 5th seed. Mercenaries my ***. They added two free agents. Every other team WANTED to ADD TWO free agents, but didn't. The Cavs tried to land ONE of them, but their city is gloomy, dirty, and pretty ****ty, so Bosh said thanks but no thanks. Sorry, but it is true. Miami used their advantages to play the game the same way that EVERYBODY else does. They just played it a little bit better. How the hell do you think teams are built in the NBA? ONLY the Spurs have built their team through the draft, and even then, they needed to be extremely fortunate to tank and land Duncan. The Heat got screwed in the lottery and lost out on D-Rose. They cleared cap space WHILE MAKING THE PLAYOFFS, and developed some of the players that are contributing to this current run. As for the "fanbase"...the Heat fanbase doesn't have to hear this **** from anybody. The FACTS are these...it is hard to find a team with better attendance this year, a fanbase that devoted as many $$$$$ to a team, and for that matter, the reality is this, there are several franchises such as the BOSTON CELTICS that DO NOT have better attendance than the Miami Heat in the last TEN YEARS. Long enough sample size? I am quite frankly, sick of it, and it is time to say that enough is enough. The hatin' has turned into this passive aggressive slam on the Fans of this team, and it is just sad.
Great post man, I was thinking the same thing this morning how this Heat team was assembled like the Yankees in that they try to get the outside help now instead of building from the inside out. And I'm not surprised that the Heat are going to win the title, when they got the big three together I said this would be a walk in the park for them and it's turn out to be just that, LeBron is getting his title he couldn't wait for, just wonder how satisfying it really will be for him because there has to be a part of him that is disappointed he didn't do it in Cleveland.
I'm not arguing that the Heat were the only team that wanted to do this, or the only team to build through free agency. Just saying why a lot of fans are turned off by it. I'm not "hating" - I think I laid out a fairly level headed argument behind what I said. It wasn't an attack in any way - I didn't say they were bad people - I was just giving my opinion on why outsiders don't jump up and down in support of the Heat. There is a difference between attacking your team and explaining why they aren't the darlings of the sporting world. As for the fans, we've argued this 100 times. Attendance is great, but half of those sold tickets don't show up or show up late. You can tell me that the upper levels get loud as hell - but half a stadium of good fans does not make some wonderful fan base. The whole Fan Up campaign doesn't happen if you have spectacular fans. I'm a huge Cleveland Indians fan, and I can admit that Tribe fans are just about as bad as they come. It doesn't change the fact they are in first place in their division. The Heat are going to win - and win a lot. I don't understand why Heat fans still act so tortured about it.
Because all they hear day in and day out is "They don't deserve this" "The fans suck" "The city sucks"...BLAH BLAH BLAH. They are tired of being **** on. and for this area, being as poor as it is..has spent a whole lotta $$$$$ supporting this team and just don't deserve this derision from other fan bases that are not AS GOOD.
I think it's ridiclous to say they didn't deserve this, they won it fair and square, only an idiot would say they didn't deserve it.
Honestly, in Cleveland I think we'd rather argue you didn't deserve that first World Series win than this NBA Championship. All I'm saying is that Miami should just relish the role of being the most hated team instead of whining that no one likes them. Be the Bad Boy Pistons instead of trying to be the Aw Shucks Spurs. Face the facts that what happened in Miami for this Heat team has never been seen before and is probably not going to be accepted outside of that city. Know what that changes? Nothing. You still get to wear big shiny rings in a few games.
See as a fan of a team who often looks like mercenaries (Yanks) I have to disagree, I think it is more of their front offices/GM getting the job done using whatever advantages there are to make their respective teams better.....for New York yeah it is the money, for Miami you know what it could very well be the area....but you cant blame people for that....
"Wait"? for what? for Antawn Jamison and Mo Williams to become good players? How satisfying will it be? Just as satisfying as it was for the 8 billion championships the Celtics and Lakers have bought throughout the years. If you build through the draft in the NBA, you are an idiot. Teams in the NBA get good, based on luck in the lottery, and smart cap management. ONE team built through the draft and they still needed to get fortunate enough to win the Lotto and land Tim Duncan. The Pistons? They made a concerted effort to land every disgruntled short contract guy on lopsided trades giving their partners cap relief to build that team. Is that a more satisfying way?
