Forget LeBron, it's Wade, Bosh who must step up

Share

Game 1 of the NBA Finals is in the books, after the OklahomaCity Thunder pulled away from the Heat in the fourth quarter and won 105-94.

Some quick thoughts, with the main one being: Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh aregoing to have to play better for the Heat to win the series...

The Heat have been winning most of their games in thepostseason with scores in the 80s and 90s. Miami likely wont be able to do thatagainst the Thunder because the Thunder is better offensively than the teamsMiami faced in the East.The Heat are going to have to find a way to consistentlyscore in the high 90s or into the 100s in this series and the only way they cando that is if they get better performances from Wade (who went 7-for-19 fromthe field) and Bosh (who shot 4-for-11).I like the idea of bringing Bosh off the bench, though I cansee coach Erik Spoelstra changing that thinking. Its not dissimilar from whenSpurs coach Gregg Popovich over the years has brought Manu Ginobili off thebench.Popovichs thinking was that with three stars and scorers inthe starting lineupin San Antonios case: Tim Duncan, Tony Parker andGinobiliit was tough to get each of them into an offensive rhythm at thesame time.So, Popovich sometimes would bring Ginobili off the bench inorder to give Duncan and Parker a better chance to get off early. And then,Popovich would bring in Ginobili, who would largely play his first stint of thegame against substitutes.Thats a sound theoryand one Spoelstra likely subscribestobut it all goes awry when Bosh doesnt give you much off the bench andWade never gets going. ...--Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the Thunders runinto the Finals, and now into Game 1 of the Finals, is their ability to rallyfrom deficits. Its a trait that most young teams dont haveparticularlywhen were talking about young teams playing in the postseason.The Thunder rallied from a 13-point deficit on Tuesday nightagainst the Heat; the Thunder rallied from a 15-point halftime deficit againstthe Spurs in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals; the Thunder rallied froma nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter of Game 4 against the Lakers in theWestern Conference semifinals; and the Thunder rallied from a 13-point deficitin the fourth quarter of Game 4 against the Dallas Mavericks in the firstround.The Thunders resiliency and how they keep coming has been ahuge part of the 2012 playoff story. ...--A solid Game 1 for sideline reporter Doris Burke in theNBA Finals. Burke is one of the most competent, professional and knowledgeableanalysts on televisionand that includes men and women.Its hard enough for men in the media to get any kind ofrespect from the players and coaches in the NBA game. Its got to be even moredifficult for a womanand yet Burke has managed to do it.I think I speak for many NBA fans when I say: Give me more DorisBurke. ... --Worth noting: Derek Fisher played his 227th playoffgame on Tuesday, which is third on the all-time playoff games list behindRobert Horry and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.Two hundred twenty-seven games is almost three full NBAseasons, and not just regular NBA seasons. Playoff basketball is significantlymore stressful and intense than the regular season and to have that manypostseason games under your belt is pretty remarkable.

Contact Us