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MIAMI, October 18 The Miami HEAT continue to put up huge third-quarter numbers this preseason, pouring in 31 against the Charlotte Bobcats Monday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.
The only issue was that the scoring margin wasnt quite there, and when coach Erik Spoelstra sat his starters in the fourth quarter, the Bobcats were close enough to pull ahead and earn the 102-96 victory without Gerald Wallace.
But thats the story of any preseason game, and the things that happen when a coach dips deep into his bench and begins experimenting are far more important to the coaching staff than to any meaningful analysis.
Whats pertinent tonight is that, though hes been remarkable in other instances, LeBron James was as unstoppable as anyone has seen him in a HEAT uniform as he dropped a cool 33 points in 29 minutes on 17 shots.
One of Spoelstras points of emphasis over the past few weeks has been utilizing this teams speed and athleticism in the open court. Some might read that as Spoelstra trying to re-create the high-possession counts of the Steve Nash era Phoenix Suns, but what he is really going for is a consistent counterattack born out of defense.
James demonstrated this perfectly, taking a pair of first-quarter steals the length of the court for scores, one a soaring videogame dunk, the other a freight-train layup.
The aggressiveness is something that weve been stressing, and to have that disposition, which is good, Spoelstra said.
Then the third quarter happened.
After the period was kickstarted in dominant fashion by a driving reverse dunk and a pair of earned free throws from Chris Bosh, James coming off a few days spent mending a leg cramp owned the rest of the quarter with 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting before sitting down for the night.
Not that James feels he needs those moments to feel its time for the season proper to begin.
I feel like Im ready, James said. I dont need those moments to know that Im ready, but at the same time its a great feeling to be able to play at a high level like that in a quarter and to be able to give my team an opportunity to succeed. I cherish those moments.
The HEAT didnt escape the night unscathed, however. Mike Miller (2-of-7 from downtown) rolled his left ankle at the end of the first half. He would return, only to roll the same ankle again trying to change direction on the defensive end.
Both times he tweaked it, Spoelstra said. He said he was ready to go in the second half, but I said, Ive seen you roll it enough tonight, Im not going to go for the triple play.
With a number of players still on the mend, including Dwyane Wade, the HEAT, strong third quarters aside, remains an unfinished project. But with the final preseason games coming on Thursday and Friday against Atlanta and Orlando, respectively, the goal now is to have everything in place for Wades return.
Were still working things out, James said. This is a very new team. Its not like we implemented one or two guys in the system and weve all been rolling. At this point we want to make it as easy as it can be for when Dwyane Wade shows up. Once he gets back everyone wants to be on the same page and itll be an easy transition for him, it will be like he never left.