MIAMI HEAT PLAYOFFS - ROAD TO THE 3PEAT - FINALS - SA

[DWadeno3]

Wyane Wade! He never brings the D anymore.

Best Heat player ever and deserve a statue at AAA but his been getting lazier by the year

He was actually solid on that end, had plenty of good rotations that most of the rest of the team didn't even have.

I love D-Wade but you need to take your rose-colored glasses off.

I have rose-colored glasses? Read my post history on Wade. A few weeks ago people said I hated Wade, that I was unfair to him.

I'm just going by what I see. Those four steals weren't a result of him being lazy on defense.

[KnockDownTheJ]

What's hilarious about what is happening to the Heat defense is we know and the Spurs know that the over-aggressive style defense is completely being exploited and yet it seems like only the Heat don't know this. We are playing right into their hands...I think it was Diaw who said in the post game that they are being forced to make those extra passes because of the aggressive defense. It is not working, we are not turning them over and they are getting easy basket after easy basket.

So what can realistically be done? Stop trapping, stop paying so much attention to dribble drives by Diaw and postups by Diaw and start playing them straight up.

I would not start Chalmers and I would tell Wade that if he doesn't hustle on defense he is done. Realistically he should not even be playing starters minutes unless he looks healthy and can hustle because he is killing the team. I would also look at playing a center next to Bosh or try Haslem at times but overall I really believe that this team can hold their own on defense if they simply play the Spurs man to man and stop trapping/doubling/switching everything.

Bottom line is there have to be big adjustments because the team isn't simply playing poorly, they have also been exposed tactically.

[Tuff Gong]

Give me a break. Spo will start Haslem on Sunday night and that will be the biggest change in line up and strategy you can expect. Beasley will still be in a sportscoat, and Chalmers will still be starting. And then after they lose I'll be right here going in on this f*ckin dummy for his stubborness throughout this season. They really thought they would trot out the same team as last year, minus a significant piece, and win. Unbelievable.

Sadly, this is the most probable outcome.

I still can't believe he made a line up change in the second half of Game 4 yet included Chalmers into the equation. That was laughable. Like did you really view Rashard Lewis as a bigger problem? Start Wade at PG and Ray Allen at SG. I'm not a Beasley fanboy, but if Allen is inserted into the starting line up then an offensive option is needed to replace him off the bench, so activate Beasley.

[WD]

Mods, do your thing if you want to merge, delete or what ever

I keep hearing people outlining the PROBLEMS, don't hear what you would do knowing that

1. Wade is struggling
2. Mario is in a slump
3. LBJ has a bad ankle

Give some solutions, we all know or have read about the problems as "each of you see it"

What if WADE can't give us much more RIGHT NOW, what would you do about Mario, how would you handle a bad ankle? How could you utilize players who may can help but haven't been in the lineup consistent enough.

Act like a coach and state some solutions......REALISTICALLY for GAME 5, not next year, GAME 5

[krikor]

I will just enjoy watching the game, even if we dont win...just enjoy the achievement of 4 years in a row in a final.
And I have no doubt come next year we will be playing another final again

[Grumpy Heat Fan]

Wade isn't struggling. Wade's body is. He can't call upon his body to play NBA level basketball anymore.

With a slow sluggish Wade out there, the Spurs can easily dismantle our defense. The Heat's D depends on everyone running around the perimeter on D, but with Wade being done.... it won't work.

I don't see anything we can do. With no Wade, no Mike Miller, and a hobbled team, it's over.

You will have to hope Duncan gets the flu or something.

[WD]

^why would you mention anyone that's not even on the team...so I guess there is no need to play on Sunday based on your logic right? - But seriously, it's so easy to pair a gloom and doom picture, what if someone tom the HEAT ORG is reading some of these posts, is the only impression we want to leave them is that we complain after each loss?

Come on HEAT FAN, offer some solutions...don;t tell me you're gonna spend the next 2 days like this...

[WD]

OK-MODS, I tried to bring a positive perspective, but reality is a batch...you can lock this now....

[Nitro1118]

First thing I'd do is use a bigger lineup. More Bird and maybe Haslem. Without any kind of rim protection, Miami cannot stick to their shooters as it would mean an automatic layup with Bosh and Shard defending the paint. OKC used Ibaka to neutralize SA's drive and kicks, and while Miami has no one with that level of ability, they need to at least move in that direction.

Secondly, I'd give Cole more playing time. One of the major issues defensively has been that Miami is funneling too many drives which SA is exploiting because it forces rotations, which are picked apart by patient and willing passers. Cole is one of the only Miami players who focuses on not getting beat easily off the dribble. No penetration=no open 3's. His offense also can't possibly be worse than Mario's.

Third, and to me this is so painfully obvious...MAKE DIAW A SCORER!!! Diaw is a passive player without great shooting touch, but his passing is excellent. All series long Miami has been overreacting to his drives and post-ups. He can't kill you scoring the ball, and he doesn't want to either. 4 games in and they still haven't figured out he's a glorified decoy to get 3pt shooters open and occasionally feed Duncan in deep post position.

Lastly, I get LeBron going early. If he feels it early, it will shake SA up and will give the role players enough hope to follow suit. If they do the opposite and feed other guys first, it will be another uphill battle from the get-go.

[WD]

^That's what I'm talking about, SOLUTIONS that can be made with THE CURRENT ROSTER AS IS....

I especially like

Secondly, I'd give Cole more playing time.
Getting LBJ going early

[heatlespeatles]

Starters

Haslem, Bosh, Lebron, LBJ, Toney Douglas, Wade

I would love to bring wade off the bench and start Lebron and Bosh with shooters to get a good start but benching wade will take guts that only Pop has.

Mission is to contain role players - let Duncan and Tony beat you. I trust Douglas on Parker.

Play man defense, no over helping trapping d, just attempt to stay with your man

Run the offense through Bosh and LBJ early. Let lebron start out in the post - where he can be aggressive and take the Spurs in the paint early - draw fouls etc. Pick and roll between lebron and Bosh would be solid to start out.

Like poster above said, make Diaw a scorer, give him all the space in the world to shoot, if he drives he only wants to pass most of the time..

Again most important is we DONT over help on defense, Haslem has to start out to see what he can give us. Offense should be run through Lebron and Bosh. Let LBJ attack and take control early, no waiting for anyone to show up.

[Hoopz Afrik]

Well our defense is getting stretched like a bowflex so the system that has brought us so much success in the past has backfired completely. It looks like we're just running around out there. We might want to extend minutes for Udonis and Shane as they are two of our best man defenders. We should to stop all this hard blitzing on screens especially when Boris Diaw is on the court because he's made us pay for it 90% of the time and play a more traditional defense and see how that goes for us....Offensively, aside from a prayer, we need LeBron do go SuperSaiyan. We need to move the ball kind of how the Spurs move the ball. Find some minutes for JJ if Rashard isn't hitting shots. If Mario is giving us nothing early then take him out ASAP and live/die by Ray and Norris....at this point, anything we can do to shake things up may be necessary because it's obvious that our systems aren't working against San Antonio.

That being said, I still don't think it's over and fully believe we win game 5 just to make this series look respectable on paper. It aint over until it's over and miracles do have. Why can't we be the benefactor of a sports miracle? #VivaLaHEAT

[WD]

^ I actually think Ray and Cole could do it if they were given an HONEST opportunity and not that TOKEN opportunity. Bottom line for me is, we cannot keep doing the same thing for a third straight thing hoping for better results....that's pure insanity....THERE IS NO TOMORROW. USE THE FRICKIN water boy, if he's suited up....seriously, I'd Dress Mike, whether he plays or not......

[HeatNation88]

I would bench Rio and start LeBron at PG and put Jones at SF and replace Lewis with Haslem... On defense I would play man...I wouldn't trap at all... on offense I want the floor spread out but beat the Spurs defense the way they beat us on offense is keep moving the ball don't let it stick and find the highest percentage shot... I would lash out on the players if I was the coach, I would motivate them,,, Chalmers should not see another minute on the court unless he is giving water to LeBron or rubbing D Wade knees during a timeout... Other then that the bench needs to step up no one from the bench done anything... We basically lost due to our defense, Rio, Wade, and most of the bench... That is almost 80% of our team production... I think I would use some of Pat plays and used them vs Pop... Always set up on offense and defense different making it harder for them to do anything... defend the P&R by not having 2 guys trapping the PG leaving the big open...

[dr3am]

I would start a lineup of Wade, Ray, Bron, Bosh & UD...First two people to come off the bench would be Toney Douglas & Oden...Next would be JJ

If that doesn't work then use Rio/Cole as an emergency

I think it's time to let LeBron be the PG of the team...We need points but at the same time our defense could be so much better

[WD]

^Playing Man defense would make a HUGE difference, but I can already hear the argument from this coach. I'd give Mario 2 possessions, if he starts, if he's not effective on either end, i'd hook his azz...

BTW- i just don't like how we start games, we run basically the same sets, I call the "look for LBJ right and look for LBJ left"

[dr3am]

^Playing Man defense would make a HUGE difference, but I can already hear the argument from this coach. I'd give Mario 2 possessions, if he starts, if he's not effective on either end, i'd hook his azz...

BTW- i just don't like how we start games, we run basically the same sets, I call the "look for LBJ right and look for LBJ left"

IMO Mario shouldn't start at all...3 ppg & 3 turnovers? He's practically gave us nothing this whole series. He doesn't deserve to start anymore. He needs to be hooked from the starting lineup in Game 5

I don't like how we started games in this series either because the Spurs are a great offensive team...As far as running the same sets yea we do which is a main reason why the Spurs have defended us so well...Spo has 2 days to try and come up with something new

[heatlespeatles]

^Playing Man defense would make a HUGE difference, but I can already hear the argument from this coach. I'd give Mario 2 possessions, if he starts, if he's not effective on either end, i'd hook his azz...

BTW- i just don't like how we start games, we run basically the same sets, I call the "look for LBJ right and look for LBJ left"

They actually don't. We start the game with an array of wade Chalmers attempts to get going

[WD]

^Playing Man defense would make a HUGE difference, but I can already hear the argument from this coach. I'd give Mario 2 possessions, if he starts, if he's not effective on either end, i'd hook his azz...

BTW- i just don't like how we start games, we run basically the same sets, I call the "look for LBJ right and look for LBJ left"

IMO Mario shouldn't start at all...3 ppg & 3 turnovers? He's practically gave us nothing this whole series. He doesn't deserve to start anymore. He needs to be hooked from the starting lineup in Game 5

I don't like how we started games in this series either because the Spurs are a great offensive team...As far as running the same sets yea we do which is a main reason why the Spurs have defended us so well...Spo has 2 days to try and come up with something new

Benching Mario would take GUTS from this coach...if he did that, he'd make a real statement..No time for sentimental playing time...Mario is the first guy that starts with the complaining with the refs, sets a negative vibe

BTW- I agree with your line up, except I'm a little nervous about ODEN, but WTH...do it...There is no tomorrow. I'd dress Mike, whether he plays or not.......If you give JJ those same opportunities as you did last night in garbage time, we have a better chance..We want to DICTATE when a player shoot instead of letting him shoot in rhythm.....shooters need touches....no need to play JJ if he's not shooting....said this many time before

[WD]

^Playing Man defense would make a HUGE difference, but I can already hear the argument from this coach. I'd give Mario 2 possessions, if he starts, if he's not effective on either end, i'd hook his azz...

BTW- i just don't like how we start games, we run basically the same sets, I call the "look for LBJ right and look for LBJ left"

They actually don't. We start the game with an array of wade Chalmers attempts to get going

most of the time THEY DO.....but whatever they are doing, the ball seams to always touch LBJ hands before a shot attempt is made...was my point,,,predictable....