The Cavs at the Heat was definitely Thursday's marquee ball game. But did the result really matter?
Before the tip-off, Cleveland was 27-17 and locked into second-place behind Detroit in the Central Division, as well as into the No. 4 seed in the playoffs. The only threats to dislodge Cleveland are catastrophic injuries to key players, and Milwaukee, which is barely visible in the Cavs' rear view mirror
At the same time, the 28-18 Heat had a virtual strangle-hold on first place in the Southeast Division and, subsequently, the No. 2 seed.
Looking ahead, the only way that Cleveland and Miami can meet in the postseason would be in the conference finals — which would necessitate the Cavs' being able to down the Pistons in the semifinals — an unlikely occurrence.
So, given the scant long-term significance of Miami's monstrous 101-73 win, the most meaningful battle was waged between the team's brilliant young prodigies — Dwayne Wade and LeBron James.
Here's a blow-by-blow account:
MIN FG 3FG FT REB A ST BS TO PTS
Wade 35 11-20 0-0 2-3 4 6 4 1 3 24
James 39 12-29 2-5 3-3 5 7 1 0 1 27
Wade is by far the quicker of the two — quick enough to split the helping defense with which Cleveland attempted to stifle any screen/roll (S/R) that involved him. One particular curling, spinning, cross-over, reverse move that Wade showed in the first quarter was quick enough to challenge the accepted laws of time and space. Just to prove that this incredible sequence wasn't an accident, Wade scored on another spectacular defense-dissecting, inter-dimensional move later on.
Wade also moves better without the ball than does LeBron. The evidence in the game at hand included a neat pass-cut-catch-and-dunk Wade worked in tandem with Shaq. When the Cavs showed a zone defense, Wade zipped behind the defense and wound up with another catch-and-dunk. Plus a swift dive-cut off a double high-screen that eventuated in a timely lob pass from Jason Williams and a power dunk. (This was a terrific call by Pat Riley after a time out.)
Young Wade is also a rare combination of speed and power — blasting his way to the hoop on numerous occasions. He even showed a post-up game, easily spinning past a befuddled Alek Pavlovic.
Wade had no problem making simple reverse-wing-and/or-entry passes to facilitate various offensive sets. His pass-work while in motion was geared more toward creating immediate shots for his teammates.
Did he make any mistakes on offense? Plenty.
Like over-handling on one possession to the point where his mates became spectators, the defense surrounded him and his desperate nowhere-to-go pass was easily intercepted. Another relentless sticky-fingered dribble eventuated in Wade's bouncing the ball off his foot and out of bounds. A reckless one-on-three adventure into the paint resulted in a traveling violation. Still another force drive ended with Wade committing a charge. (That's right, I counted one more turnover than the official scorer.)
At least he only forced a single shot. Perhaps that's because Wade's jumper remains a work in progress. He was only 1-for-7 on his jumpers, with the majority of his misses clanging off the front rim.
In addition, it seems that Wade doesn't trust his left hand. How else could you explain an unobstructed approach to the basket from the left side in the early offense, when he scooped the ball with his right hand instead of simply laying it in with his left?
Wade made several quick-handed steals at the other end, but his defense was still on the shaky side. He was repeatedly lifted by ball fakes, failed to throw his hand when his man (usually Alek Pavlovic) shot jumpers in his vicinity, was either lost on or crushed by weak-side screens and routinely turned his head to watch the ball. Since Pavlovic isn't exactly a scoring dynamo, Wade's failures here were relatively harmless. The same lapses against the Pistons, however, would be fatal.
James has to be the most powerful backcourt dude since Magic. And like Magic, LeBron has a long, distance-eating stride that always seems to bring the basket within easy reach. Add a devilish cross-over, and a high-degree of creativity in the paint, and it's no wonder that Lebron is a scoring machine.
When the Cavs are forced to play half-court sets, LeBron is almost always given a high-screen to work with. His favorite ploy is to turn the corner and plunge into the paint. Once there, he'll keep on going should the defense fail to rotate. His other options are to pull-up and take a jumper, or whip a pass to an open teammate. Unlike Wade, however, LeBron seems disinclined to throw non-assist passes — only potential touchdown tosses for him.
James also over-handles even more than does Wade — beating that ball to death until something opens up. That's why Cleveland's half-court offense is relatively static. With James dominating every possession, there simply isn't enough crisp ball- and player- movement necessary to consistently overcome the league's premier defensive teams.
While LeBron is certainly a better perimeter shooter than Wade, the prematurely-coroneted "King" lacks a smooth, consistent stroke. That's why he's such an erratic shooter — making shots he should miss, and missing shots he should make. (From the perimeter, he was just 3-for-11, including five forced shots and one brick.)
LeBron's defense was as bad as ever. He continually tracked the ball and lost any awareness of where his man (usually James Posey) was. James also failed to challenge shots, was easily lifted by fakes and repeatedly played weak-side defense with his body straight and his knees locked. On one transition situation, James was forced to guard Wade, but as soon as Wade passed the ball to the perimeter, LeBron executed a rare move — a 360 on defense! Turning in a slow circle, LeBron had no idea where the ball was, whom he should be defending, where he was or where he was supposed to be.
If Wade's weak-side defense is poor, LeBron's is abominable.
In addition, Wade is a much more mature player than James. For sure, Wade's playing with Shaq alleviates the kind of pressure and scoring responsibility that LeBron is forced to shoulder. But c'est la guerre, or such is war.
Assuming that Riley's charges can remain healthy, Miami is certainly capable of beating Detroit and gaining entry into the championship round. Both Udonis Haslem and James Posey are stoppers, and Alonzo Mourning blocks shots like he's playing with a tennis racquet. The Heat swarm on defense, can run with any team, have excellent spacing and movement in their half-court sets and have one of the deepest, most experienced benches in the league. And there's always Shaq, older, slower and less explosive, but still a monster in the middle.
Cleveland, on the other hand, has no chance to beat Detroit. The Cavs still lack an adequate point guard, athletic bigs (aside from the hustling, but undisciplined Anderson Varejao), dependable perimeter shooters and a viable defensive presence. Besides which, Cleveland's one-man-band simply can't compare with Detroit's symphonic game plan.
That's a fair summary of how these guys play game to game.
Wade > LeBron.
“I'm just honored to play for the Jazz and to play after John Stockton, to wear the same jersey he wore and be on the same floor he was on because he's one of the best players of all-time, one of the best point guards of all-time" Derron Williams - Utah Jazz
Dwyane must have hit his prime a long time ago.....
