 |
You know there is no crying in baseball, the Rockford Peaches and Geena Davis made sure of that. But what about in the NBA? Can we cry there?
Apparently the Miami Heat feel the answer to this question is yes. Following their 87-86 loss to the Chicago Bulls head coach Erik Spoelstra let it be known tears were shed in the locker room.
This brings up two crucial questions. Why exactly are they crying and why does their coach want us to know about it?
The first answer could go a couple of different ways. It could be a sign they care. It could be that their overall passion for the game is so great, they couldn't help but burst into tears when handed yet another "L." They could just be for-the-love-of-the-game tears.
But I'm not buying that. Listen, it's the first week in March. If you are crying after a loss in March, there is a real good chance it's not just about the game you just tanked.
With Sunday's loss the Heat have now lost five of their last six games, lost all but one game against the top teams in the NBA, are 5-13 in games decided by five points or fewer, and are a collective 1 for 18 on shots taking in the final 10 seconds of a game in which they are trailing by three or fewer points.
This crying wasn't about losing. This crying was about a feeling of helplessness. That feeling you get when you're getting dumped despite buying flowers, despite being the shoulder to cry on, and depsite spending all day Saturday at some random relative's birthday party pretending to enjoy coloring with three kids you don't know and who look like they were born near a power plant. Despite your best effort, you are sinking and you have no idea what more you could do to stop it.
That is what the tears in the Miami locker room tell us about where that team is today. They built themselves up, did the whole fireworks thing, and even convinced themselves they were a lock for a title run. Now they are sinking fast and starting to feel like there is nothing they can do to stop it. Well except cry.
But should their coach have let this be known?
Probably not and he probably didn't even mean to. The more you look at his comments the more he just sounds like a guy trying to prove to the media - and maybe himself - that these guys were doing everything they could. That his team wasn't cashing it in late in games and has the passion to win.
Spoelstra didn't come across as a bad guy by doing this, but he did come across as a guy who needs some reassurance.
So why are they doing so bad?
Is it because they lack a solid point guard? Well, yes. And please don't tell me that issue is going away with Mike Bibby entering the picture. The 32-year-old is on the downside of his under six assists a game career, so I'm not exactly seeing the quality distributor these guys need there.
What about their lack of a true big man? Well it's not helping that's for sure. We knew Chris Bosh wasn't going to come in and dominate the block, but I don't think any of us knew he had the ability to completely disappear at times.
I could go on, trying to point out other troublesome areas, but I really am not sure any of those are the real issue. No I believe the real issue is that the Heat do not know who the lead actor is. They are like one of romantic comedies with 12 different story lines and six or so A to B list actors. You spend the first 90 minutes of the film trying to figure out exactly who you are supposed to be following. Are Julia Roberts and that guy from The Hangover the main characters or is it Drew Barrymore and the kid from Waiting? And what about Jamie Foxx? Is his only real role in this to have another movie scene where he reminds us he can play the piano?
It's confusing, you have no idea which person to focus on, and you end up just stumbling through the movie, missing plot points and ruining the ending.
That is how the Heat have operated up to this point. Who is going to bring the ball up? Who do we run the offense through? Who is the go-to guy in the last minute that you can count on to put the team on his shoulders and lead them to victory? No one knows. The roles aren't defined and what you are left with are haphazard end-game scenarios where everyone is looking at someone else to make the big play.
So what now?
The good news is the general public is loving this current slump, meaning the Heat are still a threat in most folks' eyes, which they should be. At 43-20 the are sitting in the third spot in the East and if just under half of those 13 losses by five or fewer points goes the other way, they are at the top of the conference. A tweak here or there and were having a totally different conversation right now.
Those tweaks however, need to come soon. The Heat are facing a week and a half where they will be visited by Los Angeles, San Antonio, and Oklahoma City. A grand opportunity to either shine in redemption or sulk back in shame.
And that's the thing about being a threat. When it's all said and done the threat will be known as either a warning sign of what was to come or as a Y2K-esque urban legend that only fools bought into and saved up canned goods for.
When it's all said and done, which do you think Miami will be remembered as?
No comments:
Post a Comment