#18 -Miami Heat @ LA Lakers 7:30pm ESPN.

[DWadeno3]

Congratulations guys, you deserved that one. I hope that wakes Wade up.
I like Kobe, he's a great player and so much better than LeBron. He made a couple of big shots in this game and is so ultra-competitive in every single game. I wish somebody else would be like that again...

[tkb]

Kobe man. What an amazing athlete.

MVP thus far.

Carmela laughs at that. 30.2 PPG son.

Scoring champ =/= MVP rook.

Best record in the league, and superb season thus far from Kobe.

[LA Titletown]

YEA!!!!!OMG...If the Heat win this they will officially be my 2nd favorite team..

Definition of a BUSTA.............Celtic fans are a joke. Can't wait until we lay the wood to them next month. These cowards are so gutless and suicidal when they lose they might just hang them selves on January 31st.

I know. I was laughing at that fool too.

[TonyMontana]

Kobe man. What an amazing athlete.

MVP thus far.

Carmela laughs at that. 30.2 PPG son.

Scoring champ =/= MVP rook.

Best record in the league, and superb season thus far from Kobe.

I agree.

WHAT A GAME BOYYYYYYYYYYYYY............... I had this sick feeling it was going down to the wire and Kobe or Fish was going to hit it for us when it counted.

GOOD ISH LAKER FANS GOOOOOOOOOOOOD ISH.

[semi-sentient]

did Wade really dominate in the 4th or did Fishers Shaqesque pick and roll D made him look that good?

That was only part of it. There were two specific plays with under 2 minutes left where Wade got to the basket easily off of screens, and IMO both were due to Fisher's lazy defense. The first screen Kobe might have been able to go under, but Fisher could have been in better position to help.

The 2nd screen was almost identical, except this time Kobe had no idea it was coming until it was too late, so not only did Fisher not communicate on the play but he was WAY out of position which led to 2 free throws by Wade.

The other play Wade scored on late in the game was that little floater where everyone scrambled for the ball under the basket, and outside of that he was doing a great job of distributing the ball.

Wade also deserves a ton of credit for the defense he played on Kobe. He forced him into quite a few difficult shots in the final 5 minutes including the game-winner. The only easy shot Kobe had was that layup that he blew with like 14 seconds left, but we scored on the putback so it worked out in the end.

Kobe, like Fisher, made up for some poor play down the stretch by hitting a couple of big shots.

[Anklebreaker702]

Great win las night! Wasn't able to watch it live but best believe i will watch the TIVO version today! Also this 8 game winning streak is longer than any winning streak we had all of last season. We did 7 on either 3 or 4 occasions. The big thing is to also keep the streak of never losing more than 2 in a row & we should be in good shape!

[Sedale Threatt]

Good screen/roll defense requires team work. As such, I'd blame Kobe and Gasol/Bynum a hell of a lot sooner than I would Fish. That little finger roll Wade hit was pathetic -- Kobe goes over the screen, even though Wade hadn't hit a jumper all game, while Gasol and Bynum just watched him roll to the basket like they were glued to the floor. Definitely something to work on.

[semi-sentient]

Good screen/roll defense requires team work. As such, I'd blame Kobe and Gasol/Bynum a hell of a lot sooner than I would Fish. That little finger roll Wade hit was pathetic -- Kobe goes over the screen, even though Wade hadn't hit a jumper all game, while Gasol and Bynum just watched him roll to the basket like they were glued to the floor. Definitely something to work on.

Hmm, rewatching the play I think there's equal blame to go around. Chalmers came from Kobe's left and slid under to screen him from the right. Moments before Kobe turned his head to look behind for a screen and all was clear. Fisher didn't communicate and as a result Kobe had no idea the screen was coming, meaning he couldn't go under it. Fisher was way to the left of the play which left a gaping hole and put him out of position to even slow Wade down.

Our bigs definitely deserve to be called out. Gasol, Bynum, and Artest were all at the basket and just layed down roses and blew kisses while Wade scored easily.

The first screen (where Wade got to the line) was the one that Kobe should have gone under, but I think the second one (where he got the layup) was a big time failure of communication by our guards and I'd lay the bulk of the blame on Fisher and our bigs.

Edit: Rereading my earlier post, it looks like I confused the two plays. Wade actually shot free throws on the first screen, not the second, which is the one where Kobe should have gone under. Bynum was also out of the game on that one, not that it would have mattered since he just stood and watched Wade on the second screen/roll. Damn my memory blows.

[DubaLakers]

Carmelo is a brilliant scorer and scores maybe as easier than anyone, but he doesn't have much of anything else that he brings to the table, a scorer only guy...Kobe & DWade do everything in spades.

[Sedale Threatt]

Markus, you probably got confused because we kept making the mistake over and over and over again. We never made a single adjustment.

If I had to call anybody out first it would be Kobe -- absolutely no excuse to keep chasing Wade over the screen when he hadn't hit an outside jumper all night. A close second were our bigs, of whom you made a very apt description about laying down roses and blowing kisses.

I'd have to go back and study the fourth quarter to give Fish a proper assessment, but those were the primary culprits in my mind.

[Dedicated_76ers_fan]

I just wanna comment and say Kobe Bryant's the best shooting guard in the NBA. Look at the Trajectory of that shot. There's no way that would've missed, maybe God could stop it LMAO. But Kobe's got the best shot in the game, along with his post-up game?

GOAT. That's his nickname, he's a GOAT. Greatest of All Time. No ands/ifs/or buts. That's a hell of a shot.

[iamworthy]

Good screen/roll defense requires team work. As such, I'd blame Kobe and Gasol/Bynum a hell of a lot sooner than I would Fish. That little finger roll Wade hit was pathetic -- Kobe goes over the screen, even though Wade hadn't hit a jumper all game, while Gasol and Bynum just watched him roll to the basket like they were glued to the floor. Definitely something to work on.

Hmm, rewatching the play I think there's equal blame to go around. Chalmers came from Kobe's left and slid under to screen him from the right. Moments before Kobe turned his head to look behind for a screen and all was clear. Fisher didn't communicate and as a result Kobe had no idea the screen was coming, meaning he couldn't go under it. Fisher was way to the left of the play which left a gaping hole and put him out of position to even slow Wade down.

Our bigs definitely deserve to be called out. Gasol, Bynum, and Artest were all at the basket and just layed down roses and blew kisses while Wade scored easily.

The first screen (where Wade got to the line) was the one that Kobe should have gone under, but I think the second one (where he got the layup) was a big time failure of communication by our guards and I'd lay the bulk of the blame on Fisher and our bigs.

Edit: Rereading my earlier post, it looks like I confused the two plays. Wade actually shot free throws on the first screen, not the second, which is the one where Kobe should have gone under. Bynum was also out of the game on that one, not that it would have mattered since he just stood and watched Wade on the second screen/roll. Damn my memory blows.

+1

I think we saw the affects of not having LO on the floor in the 4th. LO typically is the most vocal guy on the court. He would have been calling out picks to Kobe to let him know what side the screen was coming from. The first step in regards to guarding the PnR effectivly is to actually know that a guy is coming to pick you from your backside and what sided hes on ..ie..left or right. When LO is in the game I clearly hear him doing these things for the guards on the perimeter

[hourockman]

gotta love watching the replay on FSN

They replay the commercials, mostly. Cut out 8 minutes from each quarter. What's the point?

[SApuro_]

Kobe's shot won the game but fishers game them the chance to win. He is one of the most clutch players in the league. Very nice win. Heat didnt deserve to win that game anyway. The didnt play with much passion.

[DEEP3CL]

Kobe's shot won the game but Fishers gave them the chance to win. He is one of the most clutch players in the league. Very nice win. Heat didnt deserve to win that game anyway. The didnt play with much passion.

+1 SApuro.........people always overlook the fact about possessions. Fish shot cut the number of possessions to 1 for the win.