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Originally Posted by raymond:
Originally Posted by ksazma:
Originally Posted by raymond:
 

dude...one thing we Knicks fan do...sell out the garden no matter what...we not bandwagon fans when their team wins....

Only because ya'll New York sports fans like misery. We down heah gat lots ah things we cud du every day ah de year.

suh how come yall only full the stadium when you win? guess yuh have more to do when yuh lose vs win....guess 5 0' clock dinner buffet at Olive garden must be full

Yuh rass mad or whah. Olive Garden full all de time.

FM

When the regular season ends the Knicks would have learnt a lot of lessons - tactical and strategic (like how to use low-post, back-to-the-basket players; which is best combination given the opponent's substitution patterns, etc. Sorry to be pedantic, but the point I'm making is that the current Heat has been around for a couple of years now and have a cohesion that the Knicks don't have quite yet. There is talent on the Knicks - that's undeniable. There is good chemistry. what the Knicks are learning now is how to get the best combination on the floor at times and how to get the best shot for the right players. It will come; but most importantly Melo, Chandler, and hopefully Amare when he returns will be healthy and somewhat rested. The Heat has not had to deal with adversity and who knows if a lingering DWade knee problem may surface in May to Bosh's back or Lebron's knee (when he mangled it against the Knicks and "dare-I-say-steroid" gave him superhuman resiliency) finally shows human wear-n-tear.

 

The playoff format favors an old team like the Knicks (and by the way the starters and 6th man have an average age in the 20s. Only Melo and Amare are 30 or just over, and Kidd is not a starter). The playoffs give you focus and refreshed attitude, and only one opponent to think about for a series, not the in-and-out regular season with travels that favor a cohesive team like the Heat.

Kari

Kari likes to dream. The playoffs favor an old team like the knicks? You mean in the playoffs they don't have to run up and down the court? And the knicks have better shooter than miami? How deep is  the Heat's team? Miller and James Jones sit idly almost every night. These guys could start and be major contributors eery night. And here they ride the pine. The only position Miami is weak at is the 5. And Andersen is plugging that leak decently. So much so that Bosh is shooting threes.

 

So Kari, you write a great story but that won't help the knicks win. But keep on keeping on with your gereatric dreams.

 

Ball don't lie Kari. Just saw the Heat beat the Bucks for 21 straight.

FM

Hey Freaks.....LeBron is not on steroids and I have no business insinuating that. Why I threw that "dare-I-say-steroid" comment about LeBron after he took that nasty pain in the knee following an awkward landing against the Knicks, is because someone mentioned how LeBron looked old when he was in his teens and look how he bounced back after a nasty fall that would have sent a regular dude to a day-to-day status. I just wanted to hear some comments on this angle, and you gave yours.

Kari

Kari, Bron has always been a super athlete. The guy is so competitive even if it hurts, he'll play. The other day I was reading an article and they said that the Heat were training the morning of the gameday and Ray Allen said that he'll skip the team bus and run back to the hotel instead. Guess who took him up on the challenge to get there first running? Yep, he's that competitive.

 

During the All-Star game it was Barkley or Kenny Smith that mentioned that Bron looks younger. These guys work out everyday and maintain strict diets because they know what it means to be a professional and they don't want to disappoint their fans because its the fans who make them all stars, buy their jerseys and their shoes. And they understand that they are role models for a lot of kids.

FM
Originally Posted by Bruddaman:

Heat win.

Again

 

Knicks lose

Again.

 

Story getting old nuh?

The NY Times ran an interesting story on the 3 teams in NBA history with a regular season streak of 21 wins or more..........let's hope that a key Heat player does not get injured come playoff time. God knows the Knicks have had their share.

Kari

Questions of Vulnerability as Heat Stay Hot

<address class="byline author vcard">By BENJAMIN HOFFMAN</address>
LeBron James and the Heat joined the 2007-8 Rockets and the 1971-72 Lakers as the only teams with 21 or more wins in a row.Matt Slocum/Associated Press LeBron James and the Heat joined the 2007-8 Rockets and the 1971-72 Lakers as the only teams with 21 or more wins in a row.

For the Miami Heat to win their 21st consecutive game, they had to get through one of the few teams to win 20 in a row, the Milwaukee Bucks. Of course, the Bucks of this season are a far cry from the 1970-71 team that was led by a big three that rivals Miami’s: Lew Alcindor, Oscar Robertson and Bob Dandridge.

Coach Larry Costello with members of the 1970-71 Bucks team, which won 20 in a row.Associated Press Coach Larry Costello with members of the 1970-71 Bucks team, which won 20 in a row.

But with the Heat having joined the 2007-8 Houston Rockets and the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers as the only teams to record 21 or more wins in a row in a single season, the questions now become how long the team can keep the streak going and if it will affect the Heat’s ability to win a championship.

As to the streak’s length, the Heat are vulnerable in virtually any game because of the unpredictable nature of game-by-game results, a punishing road schedule and the pressure that comes with maintaining such a streak. They have had close calls against lesser teams, like the Philadelphia 76ers and the Orlando Magic recently, while blowing out strong teams like the Indiana Pacers and the Los Angeles Clippers. But the Heat’s chances of maintaining the streak are seemingly bolstered by a schedule that has them facing just two teams with winning records over their next eight games.

The Rockets’ streak in 2007-8 came at the expense of Yao Ming’s health.Pat Sullivan/Associated Press The Rockets’ streak in 2007-8 came at the expense of Yao Ming’s health.

Both the Boston Celtics on Monday and the Chicago Bulls on March 27 are capable of putting up a fight, but the true test for Miami, should the streak still be going, would be a matchup with the San Antonio Spurs on March 31. A win would involve Miami conquering the best team in the Western Conference despite playing on the road for the ninth time in 11 games. If the Heat succeed, the streak would be at 30 games, which would still place them three short of the Lakers’ N.B.A. record.

While the Heat are probably hoping to emulate those Lakers and Bucks teams, which went on to win championships, they should count themselves lucky if they come out of the streak with all their players intact, given the history of some of the teams that won 20 in a row. The Heat survived a scare Friday night when Dwyane Wade collided with the Bucks’ Larry Sanders, a hit hard enough that Wade had to go through concussion testing. He later said he would have been unable to shoot free throws had a foul been called because his hands were numb from breaking his fall.

“My head didn’t hit the ground, so that was good thing,” Wade told reporters. “I got hit hard; I haven’t been hit like that before, and I played football.”

The Rockets were not as lucky during their streak, which was the second longest in league history but came at the expense of Yao Ming’s health and the team’s playoff fortunes. Ming, a 7-foot-6 center, played in the first 16 games of the streak, but then he was found to have a stress fracture in his left foot. The injury kept him out for the remainder of the season, and while the Rockets won six more games, stretching the streak to 22, they were eliminated by Utah in the first round of the playoffs.

The Rockets, led by Ming and Tracy McGrady, did not have the star power of the other teams that won 20 in a row but seemed to truly enjoy the streak and understand what they had accomplished.

“They’re going to remember that,” Rafer Alston, a Rockets guard, told reporters after the team lost to the Celtics on March 18, ending the streak that started on Jan. 29. “They may not remember our names, like Chamberlain, Goodrich and West, but they’ll remember us.”

For the Lakers, led by the celebrated players Alston referred to — Wilt Chamberlain, Gail Goodrich and Jerry West — the record-setting 33-game streak involved saying goodbye to one of the N.B.A.’s greatest players. After scoring 8 points in a loss to the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 31, 1970, Elgin Baylor decided to retire because of problems with his knees. The Lakers, without Baylor, would not lose again until Jan. 9, coincidentally at the hands of the Bucks. Not only did Baylor, who retired as the N.B.A.’s third-leading scorer, miss out on the streak, but he also was left out of the team’s championship win, a goal he never reached in his historic career.

“I had hoped to end my career after one last successful season,” Baylor said at the time, unaware of the heights his team would soon reach. “Out of fairness to the fans, to the Lakers and to myself, I have always wanted to perform on the court up to the level and up to the standards that I have established throughout my career. I do not want to prolong my career at a time when I cannot maintain these standards.”

The first 20-game streak came in 1948 from a team that no longer exists — the Washington Capitols — in a league, the Basketball Association of America, that predated the N.B.A. Achieved under the coaching of future Hall of Famer Red Auerbach, still a few years away from taking over the Celtics, the Capitols’ 20-game streak is somewhat discounted because it was split over two seasons.

The Bucks’ streak came with far less drama. The star-studded team not only had a 20-game streak but also had streaks of 16 and 10 games on its way to a 66-win season and an N.B.A. championship.

But in a season of wins, the Bucks did endure one loss: the storied name Alcindor. The day after the Bucks clinched their title with a Game 4 victory, he changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

FM

It's not so much that the streak reaches a particular number or so. It is more important that the Heat does not expend too much just trying to keep it alive. In fact if they were to be unburdened of carrying the streak, they might be better prepared for the playoff grind.

 

While a lot of folks are decrying the East for being the Heat and a bunch of mediocre teams, what you have to bear in mind is that those points-in-bunches teams that you see of the athletically-minded West teams (like OKC), except the Spurs, will have to adjust to a different game i May/June. When you play just one opponent over a few nights you can focus on slowing the game down to a half-court game with defense. But the more important point about the East teams is that they are bigger up front and that is what the athletically-minded teams have trouble with. While the Heat is like those West teams they play tough defense. If Rasheed were to be with the Knicks towards the end of the season (unlikely) I would have said they have a chance of winning it all this year. The Knicks with a healthy front line of Chandler, Melo, Amare and Rasheed with Camby and Thomas in limited effective minutes can slow down a lot of penetrating guards.

 

The Knicks right now will continue to be in a funk, until they get healthy. You don't lose that front line and expect to be competitive. Miamai has to hope for continued good health a nd not much wear-n-tear to keep the streak alive. They would be a better team by losing to the Celtics tonight.

Kari

I see the Knicks culture of losing has really become embedded in your psyche, so much so that you're wishing it on my Heat.

 

Kari, Miami is not bothering with the streak. Like Bron said, it depends on game-by-game. Bad teams have beaten the Miamias and San Antonios. And the Heat and Spurs have soundly defeated threats like themselves.

 

If the heat are not worrying about the streak then there is no pressure. If they were playing with the end goal of the streak then I would agree with your above-mentioned scenario/statements. However, with the situation being what it is, ie, the end goal being the NBA Throphy, theHeat are in good shape.

FM

What a game! Instant classic.

 

I started looking at the game when the score was 67-41 or something like that. My wife was like "Oh my god, they're getting beat bad." I said to her they gonna win. She went back to the litchen. Came back 5 minutes later and I told her they're down 10. When she asked the score again a few minutes later I told her the game was tied at 77. She got interested in the game after that.

FM
Originally Posted by Kari:

Victories like these usually take their toll in May/June. It's good to win as you want to win the next, and the next. But the reality is a winner loses sometimes. Even God lost ....Lucifer the Devil....not to him, but he did not stop him from being the anti-God.

You mean willing yourself to win will take a toll? Come on. The reason the Heat's opponents play so well against them is they know they are the champs and now especially with the streak thing going everyone wants to be the one to end the streak.

FM
Originally Posted by Kari:

The Heat has been winning a lot of games over lowly opponents by close shaves and come-backs. Not a good sign for May/June

The Heat currently have the best winning record in the NBA despite the fact that every other team is playing the same lowly opponents that the Heat are beating regardless of whether the wins are close shaves or come-backs.

 

Don't you think the Knicks or their fans would love to have some of those close shaves or come back wins?

 

And in regard to tiring themselves out, while that is a possibility, there is also the argument that these grind out games are providing the right kind of practice that can help the Heat in the second season.

 

Now the only danger is injuries but competitors can't dwell on injuries especially when there is no guarantees that they will not get injured in the second season.

 

So sit back my friends and enjoy the ride for as long as it lasts. It may not eclipse the 33 wins by the Lakers but wherever it stops, it would still be memorable. Especially if you are a Heat fan.

FM
Originally Posted by Bruddaman:

Ai was a great player. After that GM left he was on his own. Him and Larry brown were good for AI.

And he always give you your money's worth when he was on the floor. I still remember that playoff game when they played the Bulls where he twisted his ankle and missed only 1 minute of the 48 for the game. That is how long he was willing to be out of the game. Or maybe that was the least amount to time the physicians would accept. 

FM

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