RWhitney014
Ginger Whit
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When I previewed the Heat-Pistons series a couple of weeks ago, I have to admit my pick of Heat in 7 was a hopeful one. Miami had beaten nobody of note in the playoffs, even though they played solid ball throughout. Then they nearly inspired a mutiny among Detroit’s roster and essentially dominated the Stones, even though the series pushed itself to six games.
Pat Riley has validated himself as a GM, since his cavalierly rebuilt team reached higher ground than last year’s, but this team was built to beat Detroit. Dallas, on the other hand, was never in Riley’s mind, and neither team matches up particularly well against the other. Dallas’ perimeter offense will cause problems for Miami’s lack of perimeter defense, while Miami’s paint-centric game does not bode well for Dallas’ lack of size. In a series replete with stars, the role players charged with the task of neutralizing them are the keys to this series.
ROLE PLAYER #1: Dallas C DeSagana Diop
The classic first-round-bust-turned-strong-role-player-for-another-franchise, the seven-foot, 280-pound Senegalese played his way out of Cleveland but got another chance in Dallas and is the first combination of size and defensive tenacity that could cause Shaq some problems in the paint these playoffs. Diop’s play was just good enough to beat San Antonio, but if he gets in foul trouble, the smaller (6'10", 265) Erick Dampier will struggle against O’Neal.
ROLE PLAYER #2: Dallas G Adrian Griffin
Griffin does not put up much in the way of stats and did not factor hugely into the wins over Phoenix and especially San Antonio, but he will take some of Devin Harris’ playing time away to guard Dwyane Wade. For Dallas to win, Dirk Nowitzki must outscore Wade. It’s Griffin’s job to make sure Nowitzki has a chance to do so.
ROLE PLAYERS #3: Dallas SF trio of Josh Howard, Marquis Daniels, and Jerry Stackhouse
These three guys need to alleviate some of the scoring pressure from Nowitzki. It doesn’t really matter which one (or two or three) scores, just as long as one does. If they go cold from the field like Rip Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace did for most of the Detroit series, Miami’s defenders can focus on the more malicious threat: Nowitzki (Chauncey Billups in the Detroit series, who was strong but not dominant, exactly what Miami wants Nowitzki to become).
ROLE PLAYER #4: Miami SF James Posey
Posey was acquired to play perimeter defense and not much else. He will see some time against Nowitzki and must prevent him from going otherworldly. He will also have to stop the Dallas SF trio at times. If he plays good defense, the Heat win. If not, Dallas wins. It’s that simple.
ROLE PLAYER #5: Miami PF Udonis Haslem
Haslem played three excellent games in the Pistons series. Miami won all three of them. In those games, he was hitting the 12-foot baseline jumper consistently, staying out of foul trouble, and was active on the glass. All of those games were at home. Haslem will need to improve his play on the road and stay on the floor, because he will be asked to stop Nowitzki at times as well, especially when Miami goes to a zone. A few double-doubles from U would be huge for Miami.
ROLE PLAYER #6: Miami PG duo of Jason Williams and Gary Payton
Don’t get used to the 10-12, 21-point shooting clinic Williams put on to clinch the Detroit series. With Wade sick with the flu, he stepped up to a level he may never have reached in his life. While that would be very nice, he and Payton, a noted defensive stopper, need to turn up the defensive intensity on Dallas combo guard Jason Terry. Keeping Terry out of the lane and out of sorts from behind the 3-point line will put a lot of pressure on Nowitzki.
A lot of people base this series on the Heat’s ability to prevent Nowitzki from scoring. However, like in the New Jersey series with Vince Carter, I am a believer in the make-the-star-win-it in basketball. Although Nowitzki has exploded for huge totals on a few occasions, if the rest of the Mavericks can’t score, the German will not average 50 or 60 points for the entire series. Thus it will be difficult for Dallas to reach 100 points; when Miami has prevented their opponents from reaching the century mark, they are 7-2 since the New Jersey series. Riley must teach Avery Johnson a thing or two about coaching; even though the rookie Johnson has had a fantastic season on the Mavs’ bench, Riley the coach can truly satiate Riley the GM by confusing Dallas. To that end, Dallas assistant Del Harris has championship experience and knows O’Neal better than any coaching opponent Riley has had to contend with this postseason.
Prediction time: Although Dallas is considerably stronger up front than New Jersey, Miami can win by employing the same game plan. For those of you in South Florida, you no doubt saw or felt the ashen effects of the Everglades fires this past weekend. These controlled blazes achieved a mission for local park rangers. Pretend Nowitzki is that fire; let him burn but don’t let him spread to his surrounding areas, his teammates, or a huge inferno is coming. There will be some nights in which the high-flying Dallas offense is going to be unstoppable, but O’Neal wants this one too badly, and the role players slightly favor Miami. Heat in 7.
Pat Riley has validated himself as a GM, since his cavalierly rebuilt team reached higher ground than last year’s, but this team was built to beat Detroit. Dallas, on the other hand, was never in Riley’s mind, and neither team matches up particularly well against the other. Dallas’ perimeter offense will cause problems for Miami’s lack of perimeter defense, while Miami’s paint-centric game does not bode well for Dallas’ lack of size. In a series replete with stars, the role players charged with the task of neutralizing them are the keys to this series.
ROLE PLAYER #1: Dallas C DeSagana Diop
The classic first-round-bust-turned-strong-role-player-for-another-franchise, the seven-foot, 280-pound Senegalese played his way out of Cleveland but got another chance in Dallas and is the first combination of size and defensive tenacity that could cause Shaq some problems in the paint these playoffs. Diop’s play was just good enough to beat San Antonio, but if he gets in foul trouble, the smaller (6'10", 265) Erick Dampier will struggle against O’Neal.
ROLE PLAYER #2: Dallas G Adrian Griffin
Griffin does not put up much in the way of stats and did not factor hugely into the wins over Phoenix and especially San Antonio, but he will take some of Devin Harris’ playing time away to guard Dwyane Wade. For Dallas to win, Dirk Nowitzki must outscore Wade. It’s Griffin’s job to make sure Nowitzki has a chance to do so.
ROLE PLAYERS #3: Dallas SF trio of Josh Howard, Marquis Daniels, and Jerry Stackhouse
These three guys need to alleviate some of the scoring pressure from Nowitzki. It doesn’t really matter which one (or two or three) scores, just as long as one does. If they go cold from the field like Rip Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace did for most of the Detroit series, Miami’s defenders can focus on the more malicious threat: Nowitzki (Chauncey Billups in the Detroit series, who was strong but not dominant, exactly what Miami wants Nowitzki to become).
ROLE PLAYER #4: Miami SF James Posey
Posey was acquired to play perimeter defense and not much else. He will see some time against Nowitzki and must prevent him from going otherworldly. He will also have to stop the Dallas SF trio at times. If he plays good defense, the Heat win. If not, Dallas wins. It’s that simple.
ROLE PLAYER #5: Miami PF Udonis Haslem
Haslem played three excellent games in the Pistons series. Miami won all three of them. In those games, he was hitting the 12-foot baseline jumper consistently, staying out of foul trouble, and was active on the glass. All of those games were at home. Haslem will need to improve his play on the road and stay on the floor, because he will be asked to stop Nowitzki at times as well, especially when Miami goes to a zone. A few double-doubles from U would be huge for Miami.
ROLE PLAYER #6: Miami PG duo of Jason Williams and Gary Payton
Don’t get used to the 10-12, 21-point shooting clinic Williams put on to clinch the Detroit series. With Wade sick with the flu, he stepped up to a level he may never have reached in his life. While that would be very nice, he and Payton, a noted defensive stopper, need to turn up the defensive intensity on Dallas combo guard Jason Terry. Keeping Terry out of the lane and out of sorts from behind the 3-point line will put a lot of pressure on Nowitzki.
A lot of people base this series on the Heat’s ability to prevent Nowitzki from scoring. However, like in the New Jersey series with Vince Carter, I am a believer in the make-the-star-win-it in basketball. Although Nowitzki has exploded for huge totals on a few occasions, if the rest of the Mavericks can’t score, the German will not average 50 or 60 points for the entire series. Thus it will be difficult for Dallas to reach 100 points; when Miami has prevented their opponents from reaching the century mark, they are 7-2 since the New Jersey series. Riley must teach Avery Johnson a thing or two about coaching; even though the rookie Johnson has had a fantastic season on the Mavs’ bench, Riley the coach can truly satiate Riley the GM by confusing Dallas. To that end, Dallas assistant Del Harris has championship experience and knows O’Neal better than any coaching opponent Riley has had to contend with this postseason.
Prediction time: Although Dallas is considerably stronger up front than New Jersey, Miami can win by employing the same game plan. For those of you in South Florida, you no doubt saw or felt the ashen effects of the Everglades fires this past weekend. These controlled blazes achieved a mission for local park rangers. Pretend Nowitzki is that fire; let him burn but don’t let him spread to his surrounding areas, his teammates, or a huge inferno is coming. There will be some nights in which the high-flying Dallas offense is going to be unstoppable, but O’Neal wants this one too badly, and the role players slightly favor Miami. Heat in 7.