11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

[TheMatrix31]

Discuss...

[Jasong7777]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

Interested in seeing the Wiz kids against the Heat tonight.

[Dewie12]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

Interested in seeing the Wiz kids against the Heat tonight.

You mean the starting backcourt of 30 year olds? Hinrich and Arenas play pretty well together. I can't stand Blatche and McGee. Thornton is average. Good to see Nick Young playing well. I didn't know he could move without the ball. He looks more and more like Rip Hamilton with 3pt range. They run a lot of plays for him.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

This.

Is.

The.

Week.

Come on "home" LeBron. We are waiting with open arms and several profanities at the tip of our tongue.

[Jasong7777]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

Lol. I can only imagine how Cavs fans feel.

[LingeringRegime]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

I wonder...

What will have the better ratings?

"The Decision" or "The Homecoming"

[jeebs9]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

Is this a crazy idea guys?

I think Wade should be the pass. And LeBron be the main focus of scoring. I feel as though Wade is too easy to lock down. And have a bad game compared to LeBron (who plays like Wade just bigger and faster overall). Or Maybe Wade come off the bench with the second unit?...

edit: I like how Bosh has stepped up play in the last few games.

[JBH3]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

Can't wait for the MIA @ CLE game... must watch TV and definitely the most intriguing matchup of the week.

[ex carrabba fan]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

I wonder...

What will have the better ratings?

"The Decision" or "The Homecoming"

@ the Homecoming

And yes, LA should have called a timeout last night SMH

Lakers coach Phil Jackson spoke to Ron Artest about the forward's decision-making after the team's loss to the Pacers on Sunday night.

Artest grabbed an offensive rebound off a Kobe Bryant miss with 8.6 seconds remaining and Los Angeles trailing Indiana by three.

Jackson wanted a time-out, but Artest passed the ball back to Bryant for another last-second miss on a three-pointer.

"There were a couple situations I talked to him after the game, between he and I," Jackson said.

Artest said "I don't recall the conversation," when first asked about the chat but later revealed details about the discussion.

"He told me I should have called a timeout when I got the offensive rebound but it was hard to think about that when Kobe wanted the ball and Kobe was going to hit the 3," Artest said.

"When I saw Kobe I was going to give it to him. I asked [Jackson], 'Could everybody else on the court call the timeout since I have the ball, can somebody else call the timeout?' He said, 'Yes,' so he forgot to address it with everybody, so it's OK."


Read more: http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_ar...#ixzz16hQYtNTk

[bigeastbumrush]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

This.

Is.

The.

Week.

Come on "home" LeBron. We are waiting with open arms and several profanities at the tip of our tongue.

Any OSers going to the Heat/Cavs game?

I'd love to see some in-game videos/pics from the stands.

Will it be Battery Night in Cleveland?

[BlueNGold]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/trueho...ory?id=5862172

The Miami Heat's players are frustrated with Erik Spoelstra and some are questioning whether he is the right coach for their team, according to people close to the situation. With the ballyhooed Heat losing four of their last five games and sporting a mediocre 9-8 record, the players are privately grumbling about Spoelstra on several fronts.
Sources say the players believe he is not letting them be themselves, that they are questioning his offensive strategies, and that they think he is panicking because he fears losing his job.

"Right now, in my opinion, no one is doing a good job," said Heat guard Dwyane Wade, asked Monday about Spoelstra's performance. "We're 9-and-8. We're all in this together. The players are not doing a good job. The coach is not doing a good job."
In contrast to the popular view that Spoelstra has been hesitant to jump on Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh, sources say the Heat coach has shown no fear in criticizing them.

Exhibit A was a recent shootaround in which Spoelstra told James that he had to get more serious. The source said Spoelstra called James out in front of the entire team, telling him, "I can't tell when you're serious."

"He's jumping on them," one source said. "If anything, he's been too tough on them. Everybody knows LeBron is playful and likes to joke around, but Spoelstra told him in front of the whole team that he has to get more serious. The players couldn't believe it. They feel like Spoelstra's not letting them be themselves."

But Spoelstra, at the Heat's morning shootaround ahead of Monday night's game against Washington, said players and coaches don't always get along -- and that's normal.
"A coach-player relationship in this league often will be confrontational at times. And other times, it's smooth sailing," he said. "But just the dynamic of the competitive nature of everybody, expectations, results -- all these things combine, yeah, sometimes it will get testy. And that's good. Especially when people have a pure heart and mind about getting better, that just shows that the sides want to make it right."

"If it's an unnamed source, I have no comment about that. That could come from anywhere," he said. "I think the guys in our locker room are pure about what we need to get done and to improve and that's all I'll comment on. Anything else is really just speculation."

Wade said winning will fix everything.

"When success comes we win as a whole," he said. "If we win four in a row, coach is going to look great. If we have a good December, you're going to be talking about coach of the year. And he might not change a thing."

It is not known whether the players voiced their concerns about Spoelstra during their players-only meeting following Saturday's loss at Dallas. Nor is it apparent whether the bump between James and Spoelstra during a timeout in that game was accidental or a result of tension between the two.

Spoelstra said he "didn't even notice" the bump until it was mentioned after the game.
"Coming out of the timeout, it's a pinball at the game, I'm colliding into a lot of people. So it's probably a perfect case of overspeculation from this team," he said Monday.
"I was fine with that timeout. The fact that guys are not happy about the play, tempers rose, you could see the fire and passion in people's eyes. That's the way it should be," he added. "None of us should be happy about what was going on in the third quarter and taking it in stride."

According to the sources, the Heat players believe Spoelstra's offensive strategies have been too simplistic. They feel like he is running nothing but pick-and-rolls and telling the Heat's secondary players to find open spots on the floor for catch-and-shoot jumpers.
The sources said the players also think the constant speculation about Spoelstra's job security is getting to the third-year coach and that he has resorted to nitpicking over minor details because of it.

"He's not a motivator," one of the sources said. "Instead of coaching he's at the point where the players are starting to sense that he's fearing for his job."

While the players may have their doubts about Spoelstra, it is not clear whether they want team president Pat Riley to coach them. Several people close to the situation said Wade definitely does not want Riley to come down to the sidelines. Sources also said that while recruiting players this past summer, Riley insisted that he would not coach the team.

"Riley kept saying 'Spoelstra's a good coach and he'll grow into a great coach,' " a source said. "He said he got his coaching break [with the Los Angeles Lakers] around the same age as Spoelstra got his."

It is widely believed that Riley does not want to coach this season. However, one source said that privately Riley has at times been critical of the Heat's game-planning.

While expectations around the league have started to lessen for the Heat because of their struggles, the sources said the players still have a championship-or-bust mentality for this season and that they are open to whatever changes are necessary to get there.

"Come on, if you lose, no one's going to be happy and nor should they be," Spoelstra said Monday. "Our group is still connected. So we're still trying to work and get better. That's the only thing we're focused on right now. As all the noise starts to raise outside of our circle, we have to stay connected and get through this. It will get better. "

While the players think that may mean a coaching change, one member of the Heat organization said the team is suffering from a lack of leadership from the players, not the coach.

"They don't want to step on each other's toes," the person said. "There's no leader on the team. Somebody has to speak up and be the leader on the team. They can't be afraid to step on people's toes. They need a vocal leader who's going to make everybody accountable. I don't think it's on the coach. It's on the players."

Chris Broussard covers the NBA for ESPN The Magazine. ESPN.com's Kevin Arnovitz contributed to this report from Miami. Information from The Associated Press is also included.

My money is on him being fired if the Heat lose on Thursday.

[videobastard]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

These heat games are interesting to watch. You just dont know what GIF images, quotes, or videos are going to be posted after the game.

[King_B_Mack]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/nb...ory?id=5863633

DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Carlos Boozer practiced Monday with the Chicago Bulls for the first time since breaking his pinkie finger almost two months ago, but his status is uncertain for Wednesday's game against the Orlando Magic.

"I'm doing good," Boozer said Monday. "I've got my protective glove on. I thought I had a pretty good day at practice. My hand felt pretty good, and I'm getting better and better which is all I can hope for." <!-- begin inline 1 --><!-- INLINE MODULE -->ESPNChicago.com Bulls blog

On the one hand, I don't want him rushing back and to just take his time. On the other though...I want him back yesterday lol. I can't wait to see how this team plays with Boozer in there man.

[ProfessaPackMan]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/trueho...ory?id=5862172



My money is on him being fired if the Heat lose on Thursday.

Be prepared to lose some money then.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: 11/29-12/5 Game Discussion Thread

Any OSers going to the Heat/Cavs game?

I'd love to see some in-game videos/pics from the stands.

Will it be Battery Night in Cleveland?

Tickets right now are going for, like, $300 dollars for an updeck seat.

If I could find them for a reasonable price, I'd love to go...but this is the hottest ticket in Cleveland since the Beatles. Even people who don't like basketball want to watch it.