An Interactive Sports Experience

FAN SUBMITTED: 5 Questions Now for the Heat in the Best of 3 Against Pacers

FAN SUBMITTED: 5 Questions Now for the Heat in the Best of 3 Against Pacers

May 30, 2013

5 Questions Now for the Heat in the Best of 3 Against Pacers: Things I don’t understand as a Heat Fan

FAN SUBMITTED ARTICLE

1)      Where are Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh?

This first question is nothing new and has been on the minds of all Heat fans and analysts this entire series with the exception of Game 3. Wade has got to enforce himself for the Heat to win this series and the championship trophy this year. It is understood that Wade has been battling a knee injury during the latter part of the season and during the playoffs but with him shying away from the basketball for much of this Pacers series is actually hurting the Heat. Not to mention that he is also being owned on the defensive end by Lance Stephenson, especially in Game 4. We all know that Wade is still an offensive threat, but if he is not giving any offensive perhaps Spoelstra should reduce his minutes, a minute or two, to get fresh legs in the game and allow Wade to get rest to finish the fourth quarter stronger.

Chris Bosh is a player that has been criticized many times for his softness in the game, those critics have risen again. Bosh has got to assert himself on both ends of the floor. Without Bosh putting up his all-star numbers, this series will be very tough for LeBron James to do it all alone. It is often time disturbing to watch a person of Bosh’s size “6’11, 235 lbs” to be set up so far from the basket and often shooting jumpers and threes.  Although he has been hitting three pointers more consistently that should not be what he settles for majority of the game. How many times have we seen Bosh drive to the basket this series? Not many. It is understandable that the Pacers have two tough big men under the basket but Bosh has got to take a chance, hopefully he and Wade can get Hibbert and West in foul trouble.

Without the help of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat are nothing more than a supersized LeBron-era Cavaliers team, which is didn’t sign up for.

2)      Why is Chris Bosh only averaging 3 rebounds a game this series?

We have to give credit to Frank Vogel and his system but we also have to criticize the efforts of Chris Bosh on the defensive end. You can’t imagine how many times I have screamed at my television screen because of Bosh being soft under the basket or not even trying to get a rebound. Referring back to Game 1, in the first half Bosh had only 2 points, 0 rebounds finishing with only 2 in the entire game, with the second rebound coming in overtime. That’s just not going to get it done.

3)      Why is Erik Spoelstra not shaking things up a little?

In a series where Ray Allen and Shane Battier are struggling to make shots, Erik Spoelstra needs to mix it up a little. We have seen flashes of Mike Miller and Joel Anthony during this series, be not enough to be noticeable. Mike Miller had the big three pointer before the buzzer at the half of Game 2 but has not had an impact since. It is understood that Miller is also a liability on defensive but at times the Heat are struggling to put the ball in the basket, especially when LeBron makes drives to the basket and kick it out to the three point line only to have Allen or Battier miss the shot.

Joel Anthony is very similar to Chris “Birdman” Andersen with his active hands. Did we all forget that Anthony used to be the starting center for the Heat at one point? If used effectively he can get Miami a boost in the rebound category.

4)      Why are the Heat not driving to the basket more?

Are we afraid of Hibbert, or the thought of getting our shots block, or simply don’t want to get hit hard? Those are the only reasons that I can think of as to why the Heat are not driving more. Cut the flopping out and play some basketball and make the referees have to do their jobs. Now that, the NBA has issued out $5K fines in this series to James, West, and Stephenson, the refs are going to be even more active than they were in Game 4, whether you agreed with their whistles or not. The Heat had to find a way to make the Pacers pay, and what better way to do it than to get the big men in foul trouble.

5)      Will the refs determine this series?

In the mist of a Miami Heat run in the last minutes of the fourth quarter in Game 4, the Heat witnessed their only answer LeBron James foul out of the game. Many people including myself believed that the refs did a terrible job of officiating not only in the fourth quarter but periods throughout the entire game. This is a series with two very good basketball teams, there should not be any reason for the referees to be the storylines in dictating the outcome of games. They need to scale back a little and let the guys play some playoff-caliber basketball, PLEASE!

 

Edited By: Lisa Williams

An Interactive Sports Experience

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