MIAMI, November 29 The easy moment to point out in the game came with 32 seconds to go in the third quarter. Joel Anthony collected an offensive rebound and, as he rose for the putback, was fouled hard by Washingtons Hilton Armstrong.
Seeing his teammate hit the floorboards violently, Juwan Howard then sent Armstrong careening away, followed by players from each team exchanging words. Both Howard and Armstrong were later ejected from the game.
Its an easy moment to single out because those are the moments that, accurately or not, often come to describe the nature of a team. Whether the Miami HEAT had one anothers back was going to matter, as was how they responded with their play.
You always have to have that mentality in any game, Chris Bosh said. If people see a weakness in you and see that youre not going to do anything when they push, then youre going to have that reputation in the league.
I like it when we come in with a chip on our shoulder, coach Erik Spoelstra said.
But the important moments in Miamis 105-94 victory over the Washington Wizards, sans John Wall, had already happened.
Over the past four games, Dwyane Wade had been mired in one of the worst shooting slumps of his career, making just 22 of his last 66 shots. Through Mondays first half, despite earning better looks in the paint, the trend continued.
But in the third quarter tonight, things changed. Wades moves looked quicker and less labored, and his jumper was no longer flat footed. As Spoelstra put it, they finally looked like shots he was used to seeing from Wade. And though the HEAT only extended their halftime lead by four throughout the quarter, Wade breaking out of a rough stretch was worth more than its weight in points.
My teammates just kept telling me to keep going and be me and do what I normally do, and I just got some shots to fall, Wade said.
As did LeBron James and Chris Bosh alongside Wade, with the three of them combining for 76 points and 35 free-throw attempts. Particularly between James and Wade in the second half, their offense wasnt stilted or indecisive. The ball flowed freely between them and, even if the assists didnt apart from an alley oop in transition, things were clearly smoother between two players used to handling the ball the majority of the time.
Tonight was probably the second time this year we both felt comfortable with eachother taking over and not worrying about when we going to get a shot, Wade said.
The HEAT eventually pulled away in the fourth quarter with a 12-3 run on the strength of those two efficiently taking over the backcourt, in part because Washingtons isolation-heavy offense could not maintain with the quality of looks it was getting, but mostly because Miamis defense kept forcing the Wizards into those looks. The Wizards shot just 41.7 percent and 3-of-17 from downtown, and once Wade left the game to a standing ovation, memories of the HEATs stretch of three losses in four games had already begun to fade.
Big off the bench
While Howards aforementioned defense of Anthony was a clear moment of unity for the HEAT, it was the play of the three big men off the bench which provided a bright outlook on Miamis long-term pivot play.
Anthony finished with six points and four rebounds, but all four of those rebounds came on the offensive glass, with him twice beating out multiple Wizards to tip a rebound to himself and collect it. They were exactly the bursts of energy that Spoelstra had so often mentioned when describing how important Anthony is.
Erick Dampier, who has been brought along slowly by Spoelstra since joining the team as he works himself back into game shape, pulled down five rebounds in 11 minutes while contributing outside the box score as his bulk disrupted the inside work of Andray Blatche (26 points). Blatche had been on a tear no matter who defended him, but in an isolation with Dampier, Blatche looked disinterested in attacking the middle and settled for a jumper.
The more comfortable he gets, the more confident well get in him, Spoelstra said. He gives us something we clearly need. Hes big, hes tough, hes rugged, he gives us that size under the rim that we need.
Udonis Haslem
Haslem spoke briefly in the locker room after the game to provide an update after having surgery on his Lisfranc ligament, but offered no timetable for his return.
As soon as possible. But realistically, later than sooner, to be honest, he said. Its a situation where Id love to come back and help the team, but at the same time it does no good to go out there and get re-injured again and be out for six months to a year.