11/17/24
June 20, 2012
Miami Heat One Win Away from NBA Championship: LeBron James fought through leg cramps to help the Heat go up 3 games to 1 in the best of 7 series. A team leading by 3-1 in the Finals has never failed to win the championship.
posted by justgary to basketball at 09:35 AM - 19 comments
I haven't followed the Thunder, and I know James Harden has a good rep, but his play hasn't been simply bad, it's been embarrassing.
posted by justgary at 11:39 AM on June 20, 2012
Evil seems to be triumphing over good
I call it "Ass over Class"
posted by cixelsyd at 12:14 PM on June 20, 2012
It's a lot quieter in here when the Heat win.
I didn't like the Thunder's defense on Lebron in the post. A lot of really soft doubling and cheating which allows James to just pick them apart. Either go hard at him and try and rotate or just let him work out of the post and try and stop him one on one. They gave up so many wide open looks to marginal offensive players. The Thunder role players got very few of those open looks as the Heat either didn't double or aggresively trapped the pick and roll.
posted by tron7 at 03:42 PM on June 20, 2012
Is anybody here rooting for the Heat who does not have a hometown reason to do so?
posted by rcade at 04:31 PM on June 20, 2012
I'm rooting for the Heat simply because I'm sick of hearing people talk about how LeBron has no rings. I look forward to him winning a championship so the conversation can evolve from "he doesn't have any rings" to "he doesn't have enough rings."
posted by insomnyuk at 04:43 PM on June 20, 2012
I'm rooting for the Heat but it's not by a lot. I like both of these teams so mostly I'm just rooting for a long series.
Also, what insomnyuk said.
posted by tron7 at 04:53 PM on June 20, 2012
The depressing part for me is watching the Thunder give away points on both offense and defense. I watched the 4th quarter yesterday, and every time the Thunder would tie it, they'd promptly go soft: Westbrook for example would drive, drive, drive, tie it... then suddenly everyone is tentative and slow, settling for perimeter shots where no blue jerseys were anywhere near the basket for the rebound, engaging in silly passing, offense setups that seemed to be most charitably described as "confused". There was a play near the end of the fourth where the Thunder steal it after James went down with a cramp, have the numbers in a fast break, and... kinda pull up short and I believe it was Harden who then lobbed a sloppy 18-footer that was pathetic.
In short, they have nice runs and then promptly convert to playing like a team too nervous to even be in the Finals. I feel like the Thunder could just as easily be up 3-1 right now, if they didn't keep dropping back to 1st or 2nd gear every time they got a lead or got close. I think it was game 2 when with maybe half a minute left and the Thunder down by maybe 3, the Thunder turned over the ball on an incredibly sloppy inbounds pass- it's the kind of thing that should never happen.
And yeah, Harden had some absolute bonehead plays that just... it's got to be tearing the OKC fans apart to watch this, knowing how close they came to winning this Finals by being right there in every loss, literally 2 baskets from a win... (and assuming they aren't ripping off three in a row against the Heat at this point).
posted by hincandenza at 05:18 PM on June 20, 2012
What insomnyuk said.
It's also the reason I cheered for ARod for a while.
posted by grum@work at 06:22 PM on June 20, 2012
I look forward to him winning a championship so the conversation can evolve from "he doesn't have any rings" to "he doesn't have enough rings."
You guys wish. The conversation has already turned to the Thunder being chokers and James Harden being horrible. As a Celtics fan, I can't root for the Heat, but I don't mind LeBron. He and Bosh are fine by me. It's everyone else on that team I can't stand. And it appears the Thunder missed the game tape where Mario Chalmers torched the Celtics.
posted by yerfatma at 06:34 PM on June 20, 2012
Plus this is a strike-shortened season, so the Heat's haters will always be able to say "Yeah, BUT..." whenever this ring comes up.
posted by Etrigan at 07:25 PM on June 20, 2012
Only if they didn't watch the games. It pays me to say it, but they kick ass. Maybe they are a bit of front-runners in that once they get ahead they are murderous in transition, but they're good all over.
posted by yerfatma at 07:59 PM on June 20, 2012
I got my satisfaction last year, when the Heat crumbled at the gates of Rome. If they win this year, it's OK. They've gotten their pre-ordainment reality lesson.
The Heat will likely never allow a conversation-free lifestyle. If LeBron gets a ring, the talk will turn in greater earnest to Spoelstra's benchworthiness or some other pressing topic.
Heading in the other direction, since no team has ever squandered a 3-1 lead in the Finals, if the Lakers can't be the first team to do so, the Heat would make a fabulous second choice.
posted by beaverboard at 08:16 PM on June 20, 2012
I'm rooting for the Heat simply because I'm sick of hearing people talk about how LeBron has no rings.
I could talk about that forever. I tried to find the Heat sympathetic as a Floridian, but failed.
posted by rcade at 09:16 PM on June 20, 2012
I could talk about that forever.
Like Texas baseball teams and World Series championships?
posted by grum@work at 12:14 AM on June 21, 2012
Whimper.
posted by rcade at 09:57 AM on June 21, 2012
And how expansion has just not seemed to agree with all of the Original Six.
posted by beaverboard at 11:12 AM on June 21, 2012
Whimper.
But I was expecting that one. I would have also accepted "Like Ontario hockey teams and Stanley Cups?"
posted by grum@work at 12:58 PM on June 21, 2012
Carles on why you should root for Lebron.
posted by tron7 at 08:07 PM on June 21, 2012
Evil seems to be triumphing over good.