• I am gonna go ahead and call it. Norris Cole is a good NBA Player. I have been one of many that bemoaned Norris Cole’s inclusion in a playoff rotation and projected how much more potent and competent a Heat playoff rotation would be with Cole excluded. Well, I was wrong. His on the ball defense has all of a sudden fueled an offensive game which brings into comparison, Jarrett Jack and Eric Bledsoe as contemporary’s. The scouting report I was given when he was drafted is still incomplete, except for the on the ball defense part. His penchant for drawing fouls and getting to the line, is something we haven’t seen yet, but it remains something to look forward too. His left handed dunk with 5:51 left in the 4th to put the Heat back up 84-83 might have been the biggest shot of the game. His defense was again, stellar, and a part of his game I completely trust.
• Dwyane Wade, once again, was doubted. Once again, he made the collection of fools that doubted him, seem dumb. Well, not “seem”..he made them look dumb once again. I for one, liked his floor game in 3 of the previous 4 games. His Game 5 was stellar. If we are handing out player of the game awards, D-Wade got this one. Two floaters, a tip dunk, a heady play to gain a possession, by forcing the ball off of Carlos Boozer, where in succession, the biggest plays made by any of the members of the Big Three in this game. As for Carlos Boozer, he is hot and cold. A lot of credit goes to Erik Spoelstra for not panicking and changing up his gameplan to defend Boozer. He uses Shane Battier on Boozer because he correctly surmises Boozer’s game as a elbow, fade game, and you just don’t need muscle to defend that. Boozer did most of his damage from very good secondary offense, and great Chicago passing that found him on re-sets. In a prospective series versus Indiana, this does not concern the Heat as David West is not as good as Carlos Boozer on secondary offense. You deny him early on, he is gone for the possession. This will be key going forward.
• Finally, I saw the game. I am pretty sure that the Miami Heat won the game and the series, but watching some of the postmortem on NBA TV and other places, you could have swore that this series was headed back to Chicago 3-2. From Dennis Scott claiming that the Miami Heat won only one game in the series decisively (Heat won 3 of the 4 games by double digits, Beat the Bulls by a record margin in game 2, and forced Chicago into a new record for scoring futility in Game 4) to other media types going on and on about moral victories, in a professional sport. Embarrassing. Some residual Heat hate, maybe. But who cares ultimately. At least we are done with the Derrick Rose watch, and all the stupid “grit” and “determination” talk. The Chicago Bulls are a team that plays for low possession games, and sometime they luck into their style of game against a superior opponent. The Bulls’ defensive system can ensure some drama and competence, but come on…They are an inferior basketball club as presently constituted. Enough already. 8 down, 8 to go.
The Miami Heat will open the Eastern Conference Finals at Home, on Monday or Wednesday night.
