Posted By:
Anthony Sanchez
The Miami Heat are back home for game three tonight, they also have the chance to try and take two games at home to take a commanding lead three to one. First things first Miami needs to secure a pivotal game three against the Spurs while riding high with the win in game two and Lebron James silencing doubters, if just for one game.
Games one & two were two different stories, game one you all know we had the a/c debacle, Lebron James with the leg cramps and the team pretty much after that gave up. Game two was more like the Miami Heat, but the major difference was Lebron James being more aggressive, attacking the rim, hitting his jumper, rebounding and playing stifling defense. The trio of James, Bosh and Wade had a combined point total of sixty-seven points, Bosh once again hit a timely three pointer down the stretch and wade only had fourteen points, but made a crucial lay-up with just 9.4 seconds remaining in the game.
For game three the Heat will need Lebron to stay aggressive, Bosh to stay active and Wade to keep attacking, hitting the mid-range jumper and just keep providing timely baskets along with his defense. The Miami Heat showed that when they can turn up the defense, Lebron is aggressive making decisive plays it is almost impossible to stop or slow down this team. Many doubters believe Miami is a one trick pony, which is further from the truth I have seen Ray Allen find the fountain of youth in these playoffs, I have seen the "Birdman" Chris Anderson's energy, defense and rebounding provide a spark, I have seen Rashard Lewis step up to take a more significant role with the team and I have seen Erik Spoelstra have one of his better years making in game adjustments.
My one concern is from the point guard position where neither Mario Chalmers nor Norris Cole have really contributed, which to me is a surprise because when Chalmers is usually not on you can count on Cole, but that has not been the case in these first two games of the finals. I will say the X factor in all this will be if either one of them can get off their slump and provide a spark from the position to help this team win, which brings me to my next point if Chalmers and Cole continue to struggle what do you do? Well in my opinion we know Wade can handle the ball, I would move Wade to the point, bring in Ray Allen at the two guard, play Lebron at the small forward, bring in Udonis Haslem or "Birdman" Chris Anderson to play power forward and play Chris Bosh at center.
The Spurs will not lay down, they have a future hall of fame coach in Greg Popovich who will have adjustments ready for game three, they have a future hall of famer power forward in Tim Duncan who is a force an will get his, they have a point guard in Tony Parker that is an assassin if he can penetrate an will cause issues with your defensive switching, they have one of the best over seas player in Manu Ginobili who looks much different in these playoffs then he did last year at this time and last but not least they have a bench that at any moment can make it rain three's.
I will say I expect the Miami Heat to come out energized, the crowd to be electric and fully expect the Miami Heat to come out victorious in game three. In doing so the Miami Heat will need an unsung hero to contribute, whether its Mario Chalmers finding his way, Shane Battier bringing his defensive prowess an three point shot, Udonis Haslem bringing his toughness, defense and rebounding skills, James Jones stroking three point shots in front of his home town, bottom line is they need someone else to step other then just the big three.
My final thought is this series is far from over, but the Miami Heat can take control of this series tonight and maintain the home court advantage after splitting the series in San Antonio, so as long as they handle their business at home, stay tuned tonight on ABC at 9pm for game three of the NBA Finals.
Please https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Hwb6j3XMJQ
