Category: NBA (Page 522 of 595)

1. The Heat look unmotivated. I understand that the NBA season is a grind – a marathon, if you will, not a sprint – but if you can’t show up to play on opening night, the same night you raise your championship banner and get your title rings, then you’ve got a problem. The Heat lost, at home, 108-66. Ouch!

2. The Bulls are for real. The addition of Ben Wallace and Tyrus Thomas gives this team a presence around the rim that wasn’t there last year. They looked to push the ball early against the Heat, which is a smart move considering their young legs. They’ve got a deep bench with Thomas, Andres Nocioni and Chris Duhon and an explosive starting five, led by Kirk Hinrich who just signed a $50 M extension. The Bulls/Cavs race in the Central should be interesting.

3. Dwyane Wade has added the long ball to his arsenal. After hitting just 13 3PT shots all of last season, Wade made 14 in the playoffs. Last night, he went 2-3 from long range. If he becomes a 35-40% shooter from behind the arc, he’ll be almost unstoppable.

4. The Suns should be ashamed of themselves. They came out on fire and led 41-26 at the end of the first quarter, but let a Kobe-less Laker squad outscore them 88-65 the rest of the way. Their defense was pitiful and their offense was sketchy once they started missing jumpers. One positive note – Amare Stoudemire looked OK in 12 minutes of playing time. He’s nowhere near 100%, but he had an explosive dunk and played hard.

5. Andrew Bynum is vastly improved. The 19 year-old center was thrust into the lineup due to injuries to Kwame Brown and Chris Mihm, but he outplayed both guys, finishing with 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists. His ability to pass out of the post was probably the most surprising aspect of his game. If he keeps playing like this, Brown and Mihm might find the minutes hard to come by when they return.

Legendary Celtics coach/GM Red Auerbach died of a heart attack on Sunday. He was 89.

Today, friends and family gathered to mourn his loss, and Boston Globe writer Bob Ryan related a few of the stories he heard during the memorial. He also shared his thoughts on the man and his legacy.

With the NBA season right around the corner, Bullz-Eye.com breaks down the league, ranking each team division-by-division. Who are the likely starters? Who were the key additions and losses for each franchise this offseason? What questions does each team face as the season approaches? We’ve got it all right here, along with a look at a few impact rookies, fantasy hoops tiered rankings and some of the best and worst basketball movies of all time.

MIAMI HEAT

2005-06 RECORD: 52-30 (1st in Southeast, 2nd in Eastern Conference)

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP: PG – Jason Williams, SG – Dwyane Wade, SF – Antoine Walker, PF – Udonis Haslem, C – Shaquille O’Neal

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP: Alonzo Mourning, James Posey, Gary Payton

KEY ADDITIONS: The Heat didn’t make any major moves this offseason, going with the philosophy that if this group of players was good enough to win the title last year, then it’s good enough to win it this year. With Jason Williams coming off knee surgery and Gary Payton’s continuing decline, it’s not clear why the team didn’t go after one of the point guards (Marcus Banks, Speedy Claxton) that was available for the mid-level exception. Banks would have been an especially good fit with his accurate FG% and 3PT%, and all teams, no matter how successful, can use some new blood to keep things fresh.

KEY LOSSES: Derek Anderson wasn’t getting any playing time, so the Heat bought out his contract so he could try to find minutes elsewhere.

THE BIG QUESTION: Will the Heat hit the wall?
There weren’t too many believers in Pat Riley when he brought in Jason Williams, Gary Payton and Antoine Walker last summer, but everything worked out well in the end. The biggest challenge the Heat face this year is age. They only have two players – Wade and Haslem – that are in their prime, while the rest of the main rotation is over 30. When age hits, it usually hits fast, so Riley will have to walk the fine line between playing his vets enough to win enough games in the regular season while limiting their minutes to keep them fresh for the postseason.

2006-07 OUTLOOK: Payton is going to start at the point until Williams is healthy enough to take over. That, coupled with the games that Shaq will no doubt miss to various injuries – he’s played more than 67 games only once in the last five seasons – is going to make it difficult for the Heat to earn home-court advantage in the playoffs. Still, it doesn’t look like any of the other teams in the Southeast are ready to dethrone the champs, and with Wade and Shaq, the Heat have as good of a chance as anyone in the East to advance to the Finals. Keep an eye on Wade’s injured hand – if he shuts it down for any period of time, the team falls to the middle of the pack talent-wise, assuming O’Neal is playing, of course. If they’re both out, the Heat are in trouble.

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