Category: NBA Finals (Page 58 of 58)

Dwayne Wade is battling a sinus infection and sat out of practice on Tuesday.

Wade attended practice, “but didn’t do anything ultra-live,” Heat coach Pat Riley said. Wade went to team meetings and planned to fly with the Heat to Dallas later Tuesday.

Miami will practice in Dallas on Wednesday, then play Game 1 of the NBA finals there against the Mavericks on Thursday night.

“He’ll be OK,” said Riley, adding that he expects Wade will have a full workout Wednesday.

If Wade works out on Wednesday, he should be 100% for Game 1. If he sits out again, Heat fans can start to get worried.

On yesterday’s Daily Dime, ESPN analysts Dr. Jack Ramsay and Chris Ramsay each made an argument for a different team to win the NBA Finals. Here’s the best bit from Chris Ramsay about the Heat:

Shaq dominates the middle. The guy is still more powerful than a locomotive and, having dropped 20-or-so pounds, even looks light on his feet. He’s figured out how to avoid offensive fouls on his post moves. He’s making the smart, patient play on the block — posting, passing, reposting, scoring. He’s getting deep position and making a much more upward offensive move to the basket instead of the inward offensive move that was getting him in trouble earlier in the playoffs. On defense, he shuts down the driveway. There will be no easy stuff at the rim for the Mavs.

Coach Pat Riley has really pulled this team together. I’m sure Shaq has had a big influence here, too. But ever since Miami’s meltdown in Game 4 of the Bulls series, the Heat have looked like a very cohesive unit. Since then, they’ve won 10-of-13 games, and Riley has done an excellent job of building team unity. There have been no knucklehead antics, no bickering and no selfishness. The Heat look very professional and focused on winning a championship.

I picked the Mavs in seven, so these two points are worrisome. I know Dwayne Wade is going to play pretty well, but O’Neal’s effectiveness is a bit more up in the air. Will he dominate? Will he be average? Or will he spend the majority of the series on the bench in foul trouble? His overall performance will likely decide the series. His second point is also valid. With the scent of a title so strong, the Heat are playing as a team, something I wasn’t sure could happen when Pat Riley brought Jason Williams, Antoine Walker and Gary Payton to the team. Can they keep it together for another series – one that will be more pressure-packed than the first three combined?

Likewise, Dr. Jack Ramsay made some good points about the advantages that the Mavs hold:

The Mavs’ trademarks are depth and quickness, two traits the Heat lack. The Mavs’ starting lineup is quicker than Miami’s, and they can bring in a number of talented, athletic players off the bench.

For Dallas, it starts with Dirk Nowitzki, who will be a very tough cover for the Heat. Udonis Haslem will probably need help covering Nowitzki, which will open up the court for the rest of Mavericks. As Chicago showed, a quick, penetrating team can get to the rim and create foul trouble for Shaq. Well, the Mavs are even more talented than the Bulls.

Likewise, the Heat have no natural matchup for Dallas’ secondary offensive stars, Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse. And that’s before you get to Devin Harris and Keith Van Horn, who also will be a handful against the larger, slower Heat.

With this kind of team speed, the Mavs at times will threaten to run the Heat right off the floor.

As I said in my preview, if the Mavs are able to consistently get the Heat into an up-and-down game, they’ll ultimately wear the Heat down. That might be the best defense for Shaq – when the big fella gets tired, he’s more foul-prone. The performance of the Mavs’ bench is also crucial. Guys like Devin Harris, Jerry Stackhouse and Keith Van Horn need to score well in order to counteract the advantage that the Heat has with Wade and O’Neal.

So there you have it – four keys to the series:

1. Shaq’s play inside
2. Miami’s cohesion under pressure
3. Dallas pushing the tempo
4. The Mavs’ bench play

It should be a good one.

The Finals are upon us and we have a star-studded matchup with the Miami Heat squaring off against the Dallas Mavericks. There are lots of subplots to this series – Pat Riley’s controversial offseason acquisitions, Gary Payton’s quest for a ring, Mark Cuban’s courtside antics, pretty much anything Shaq says or does – this matchup has it all. Here’s my breakdown position by position:

GUARDS

Marquee Matchup: Dwayne Wade vs. Jason Terry

I don’t think we’ll actually see Terry cover Wade much in the series, but Terry’s offense will be crucial in offsetting Wade’s game. Terry has been up and down in the playoffs (17.8 ppg on 43% shooting) and the Mavs will need him to be more consistent in order to keep Wade working defensively. And the Mavs need his points to take the pressure off of Dirk Nowitzki offensively.

Dwayne Wade has been phenomenal in the playoffs, averaging 26.2 points, 6.4 assists and 5.2 rebounds per contest. His 51% shooting (62% against the Pistons) makes it critical that Dallas do everything to try to limit him. If the Mavs are able to keep him in the low 20s and force him into five or more turnovers a game, it will greatly increase their chances of victory. They will throw any number of players at him defensively (Josh Howard, Adrian Griffin, Marquis Daniels, Devin Harris, Terry and even Jerry Stackhouse) and hope than one or more of them stick.

Advantage: Heat

Wildcard Matchup: Gary Payton vs. Devin Harris

Nick Van Exel was unable to handle Devin Harris’ speed and Gary Payton is going to be in the same boat. Harris has been inconsistent in these playoffs, averaging 19.3 points in a four-game stretch against the Spurs, but only managed an average of 9.4 points in the next eight games. Harris is going to need to penetrate when he’s being covered by Payton or Jason Williams because neither player has the speed to hold him.

Meanwhile, Payton brings loads of experience to this series, but it is a far cry from the player he once was. He’s not a particularly good shooter and he doesn’t get an opportunity to post up, where he was so effective for so many years. Pat Riley would be smart to take advantage when Harris is guarding Payton by allowing him to post the inexperienced guard up. This would offset some of the problems Harris is going to present defensively for the Heat.

Advantage: Mavs

FORWARDS

Marquee Matchup: Dirk Nowitzki vs. Udonis Haslem

I know, Antoine Walker is the bigger name, but I don’t foresee Riley putting the defensively-challenged Walker anywhere near Nowitzki. The big German has averaged 28.4 points and 11.9 rebounds per game and is shooting over 49% in these playoffs. Along with Haslem, who might have some problems with Dirk’s quickness, the Heat will probably use their best defender, James Posey, on Nowitzki, hoping to recreate some of the struggles that Nowitzki had with Tracy McGrady in last year’s playoffs. It will be up to Haslem and Posey to try to limit Nowitzki as much as possible.

Advantage: Mavs

Wildcard Matchup: Josh Howard vs. Antoine Walker

Josh Howard is quickly becoming one of the best young small forwards in the game. In 17 playoff games, he’s averaging 17.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per contest. He’s also shooting at a 48% clip making he and Nowitzki one of the most potent forward combos in the league. The Mavs would like to use Howard on Wade, but they need someone to cover Walker, who has averaged 13.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in the playoffs, giving the Heat

Advantage: Mavs

CENTERS

Marquee Matchup: Shaquille O’Neal vs. DaSagana Diop/Erick Dampier

Shaq has been strong of late, averaging 20.1 points and 9.6 rebounds per contest. His conditioning will be tested by the tempo of the Mavs, who will look to push the ball at every opportunity. Diop and Dampier will try to limit O’Neal in the post, but they are going to have their hands full with the Diesel. Don’t expect either guy to do much offensively.

Advantage: Heat

Wildcard Matchup: Alonzo Mourning vs. ???

Don’t be surprised to see Avery Johnson play small ball when O’Neal leaves the game, matching Nowitzki up with Mourning. This move should favor Dallas as Mourning doesn’t have the speed to hang with the Mavs on the break. If Johnson chooses to use Diop or Dampier in such situations, Mourning would hold the advantage.

Advantage: ???

COACHING

Avery Johnson vs. Pat Riley

Avery Johnson has done a terrific job since he took over the Mavs, winning Coach of the Year honors in his first full year. He has brought a feistiness to this team that was sorely lacking in the Don Nelson era. He has proven he can make adjustments to help his team win and he has NBA Finals experience from his days with the Spurs. The only knock on the guy is his lack of coaching experience.

Pat Riley is under more pressure than Avery Johnson. Riley made a number of controversial offseason moves when he brought Antoine Walker, Jason Williams and Gary Payton to the team, but so far, he looks like a genius. Though you won’t hear him crow about it until this team wins a ring. Speaking of rings, Riley has four as a head coach, so he is quite familiar with the pressure that comes with the NBA Finals.

Advantage: Heat

PREDICTION

I think this is a very evenly matched series and on a neutral court, I’d give the Heat a slight advantage. The Mavs will try to speed the game up while the Heat will try to slow things down and use Shaq inside. Whichever team does a better job of playing their game will win the series. Considering Dallas will get four games at home, I have to give them the edge – but it’s razor thin.

My pick: Mavs in seven

Dallas 102, Phoenix 93 (Mavs win series, 4-2)
Things were looking pretty grim for the Mavs when they were trailing by 18 points in the middle of the second quarter. But Dallas showed a lot of heart – a reflection of their coach, Avery Johnson – and outscored the Suns, 76-49, the rest of the way, clinching the series and stamping their ticket to the NBA Finals. The Mavs were once again led by their forwards, Dirk Nowitzki (24 points, 10 rebounds) and Josh Howard (20 points, 15 rebounds), and the duo is quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with in these playoffs. This year’s Most Improved Player, Boris Diaw, led all scorers with 30 points, while Steve Nash chipped in with 19 points and nine assists. If Phoenix gets a healthy Amare Stoudemire back next season, the Suns will be a scary, scary team.

Meanwhile, the Mavs move on to play the Heat and they’ll have to find a way to deal with Dwayne Wade and Shaquille O’Neal. Expect Erick Dampier and DaSangana Diop to have much bigger roles in the upcoming series, as the Mavs will need their girth to try to defend O’Neal inside. The good news for Dallas is that they’ll have home court advantage in the series. The Finals start Thursday on ABC.

Miami 96, Detroit 78 (Heat clinch series, 4-2)
Maybe Jason Williams deserves a shot at a ring after all. With Dwayne Wade still suffering from the effects of the flu, the Heat needed someone to step up, and “White Chocolate” delivered, scoring 21 points on 10-12 shooting, while also serving up six assists. Shaquille O’Neal had a monster game, posting 28 points (12-14 from the field) along with 16 rebounds and five blocked shots. It was obvious that Wade wasn’t feeling well, but he looked pretty good during a third quarter run where he hit four consecutive shots to give his team a healthy lead going into the fourth quarter. Wade finished with 14 points and 10 dimes. Collectively, the Heat shot a phenomenal 56% from the field and while holding the Pistons to a miserable 33% shooting. In fact, it wasn’t so much the Heat’s defense – Detroit just missed a ton of open shots. For the next few months, the Pistons will have the opportunity to chew on the air of invincibility and condescension that they’ve carried throughout these playoffs. Talk about eating crow.

Meanwhile, the Heat move on to the first Finals in franchise history. The only downside I can see is that we’ve got to endure at least two games at American Airlines Arena, where there is this constant, ear-splitting, high-pitched rattling. Does anyone know what that is?