October 26 -- The Miami HEATs season did not start as many would have hoped, as they lost 88-80 (Box Score) to the Boston Celtics.
Dwyane Wade and LeBron James were making uncharacteristically bad turnovers (14 combined), with the ball bouncing off Wades foot or a pass going right into a defenders hands. A cohesive Celtics unit forced Miami into jumper after jumper after jumper as they packed the paint with multiple defenders. The HEAT scored nine points in the first quarter, shooting below thirty percent. Dogs and cats were living together . . . mass hysteria.
And it was all far from unexpected.
What I told the team was it was going to be a process with this, Erik Spoelstra said. I know there are a lot of expectations and a lot of pressure out there, but we have our own timetable, and we knew this wasn't going to be easy.
The first half was an indication of that. We did not play well, obviously. If you shoot 27 percent and have the turnovers that we had, we didn't even have a great flow. Some of the shots that we missed were good looks, but it was a frustrating first half for us.
Nevermind that these were essentially Wades first minutes of the season, the Celtics are not only one of the leagues best defenses, but likely the best at making life difficult for individual scorers.
So, against a team still developing an offensive identity, the Celtics stayed back on HEAT ballhandlers and forced them to take jumpers. Open jumpers, ones that will normally fall for Miami, but not jumpers that are conducive to developing an offensive rhythm in the first quarter of the season in a hostile arena.
And yet the HEAT were only down seven after scoring nine in that first lap because teams rarely start, or shoot, well offensively in the seasons opening minutes.
You could tell both teams were a bit rusty, Paul Pierce said.
Miami fell behind by 15 at the end of the half because Boston again won the shooting battle. Marquis Daniels and Glen Davis combined to shoot 10-of-12 on the night, while both James Jones and Eddie House had sequences where they missed an open three in the corner, and then missed again from the same spot after an offensive rebound.
Miamis defense, however, was present throughout. Though Rajon Rondo enjoyed some time in the paint early on, the HEAT played the passing lanes, staying in front of attackers to take charges and forcing 18 turnovers. It should be noted that while Boston got contributions up and down its nine-man rotation, with four in double figures, their offensive efficiency was still a below average 97.77 points per 100 possessions.
At this point it likely sounds as if the Celtics won by a wide margin, but with those open looks falling in the second half behind the floor-spacing of Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Eddie House and James Jones, the middle opened up for LeBron James 15-point third quarter. James hit jumpers off screens, open threes, shots in traffic and earned 12 free throws in all. And with him leading the way, Miami outscored Boston 50-43 in the second half despite 7-of-27 shooting from Wade and Chris Bosh something thats not likely to happen again any time soon.
I dont think theyll be many nights where we shoot the ball the way we shot the ball, Udonis Haslem said. I dont want to take anything away from Boston but we missed a lot of wide open shots we are accustomed to making, tonight. Offense, I think, will be the last thing to come.
Wade still hit what was nearly the biggest shot of the game, a stepback three-pointer in the left corner that brought Miami within five just before Jamess driving layup that made it a three-point game with 1:10 to play. But the Celtics came out of a timeout with a well-coordinated play for Ray Allen, where Allen caught the ball in the right corner, quickly gave it back up and ran off two baseline screen to the opposite side as the ball swung around the perimeter. With the defense rotating to Pierce on the wing (3-for-4 from deep), there was nobody to close out on Allen (5-for-8 from downtown) who hit the game-decider.
In the end, expected issues reared their head Bostons defense, poor shooting in an intense arena, some work-in-progress offensive sets with newly integrated personnel but with a strong third quarter, a carryover from the preseason, Miami showed that even when things are far from perfect, it has the talent on hand to win any game.
We all know Rome wasn't built in one day, so it's going to take time, and we understand that, James said.
Signs of things to come
Though Bostons defense prevented Miami from running a smooth offense, there were still a few possessions which indicated the type of chemistry we might soon come to expect.
The first two came were instances of James using screens off the ball, one with Wade dribbling up top, to free himself for open spot-up jumpers in the corner. Thats not the type of motion James has run often in his career but he looked both natural and effective doing so, draining both jumpers.
Later, Wade gained inside position on the blocks and LeBron who himself continues to venture into the post lobbed a perfect ball for Wade to grab and finish in the air. The oop dripped off the side of the rim, but it was a play only seen between two high-caliber athletes that trust one another to make difficult plays.
You could see the fact that they haven't necessarily polished or got the whole chemistry thing down, but they will, Kevin Garnett said.
Just a few hours ahead
The HEAT dont get much of a chance to rest, as they take on the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday night on the road. The 76ers come into the season with the No. 2 overall draft pick in Evan Turner and a new coach in Doug Collins, which means high expectations and the resulting high energy that comes with a home opener.
The key matchup in this game will be between Chris Bosh and Elton Brand. Bosh faced off with a re-invigorated Garnett, who looked much quicker moving laterally on defense, tonight and reports are that Brand is healthier and in better shape than hes been in some time. Bosh, meanwhile, will be trying to come back from a night where his usual mid-range jumpers just wouldnt stay down.
If we miss shots, we have to readjust what we're doing, Bosh said. You know, that's just a part of the game. You're not going to come in and shoot it like you want to every night.
You know, I had my open looks, I missed them. I usually make them, he added later. I'm not going to let that discourage me from what I'm going to try to do.