Miami Heat Lose Game 4; Lebron and Heat Complain About Officiating

INDIANAPOLIS, IN.  With 0:56 left in the 4th Quarter of the Eastern Conference Finals Game 4, Lebron James stood with his mouth agape. And it was not because he had crapped himself in fear and was about to FAIL in the closing seconds of yet another NBA Playoff game.

"I didn't do it! I'm just DWade's Sidekick! He told me to set that screen!"

No, this time, Lebron had his mouth agape in shock after he was called for an offensive foul while setting a screen for DWade. Despite all his protesting, unless he's new to the sport of basketball, Lebron James, being a veteran of the league, should know that throwing your hip out and tripping the other player while setting a screen is indeed a foul for any player in the NBA, despite the usual practice of "Superstar Calls", for which Lebron is a particularly frequent beneficiery.

In case you haven't seen the highlight of the play which earned Lebron an ejection, here it is:


It was ironic after a day when Lebron was quoted as condoning flopping as a good strategy, and laughing for several days about the 10-12 flops a game on which his Miami Heat teammate, Shane Battier is able to draw fouls that negate Indiana Pacers scoring plays, offensive rebounds, or just generally get David West or Paul George into foul trouble.

However, on this night, things would end differently.

Despite Battier again drawing flop fouls on nearly three consecutive trips down the floor and helping the Miami CHeat to build a 7-point lead early in the 4th Quarter, the Indiana Pacers would not go away, and they would not be discouraged by the biased officiating. With 0:56 seconds left in the game, the Pacers held a 4-point lead.

And that is when Miami went to their true alpha dog, DWade, while Sidekick set the screen.

Well, Lebron couldn't quite do that right, and he ended up getting tossed with 6 personal fouls and on the strength of a 99-92 victory, the Indiana Pacers pulled into a 2-2 series tie with the Miami CHeat.

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Today, the official network of the Miami Heat and online home of "The Heat Index", ESPN, finally remarked on the ridiculousness of the amount of flopping going on, mostly to say that the Indiana Pacers had joined in. It was not notable or ridiculous when the Miami CHeat were utilizing flopping as a strategy, but now that the Pacers were playing that game, now it is excessive and rampant, and must be stopped. HUH?

I guess the media must believe that since the Miami CHeat flop, Floppers Gon' Flop. Even if it has been made "illegal" by the NBA.

Lance Stephenson Gets Elbow To The Head While Dwayne Wade Gets Slap On The Wrist

MIAMI, FL. There was an Eastern Conference Finals game tonight, but that was made irrelevant by the NBA ruling that came down today prior to ECF Game 3.

The National Basketball Association review video of the following video of Dwayne Wade delivering a flying elbow to the side of Lance Stephenson's skull during the previous Eastern Conference Finals game. You make the call; how many games should DWade be suspended for?



What was your answer? 3? 4? 5? 6? 7?

WRONG!
Try ZERO.

Lebron gets shoved; Nazr Mohammed gets ejected.
J.R. Smith of the New York Knicks misses with an elbow; he gets suspended.
DWade blatently and intentionally elbows a player at half court during a nationally televised game; no call, as Miami Heat referees "didn't see" the play during game; then upon league review, FLAGRANT ONE, fine and no suspension.

HUH!? NO SUSPENSION? For a malicious and intentional elbow to the head of another player?

There is no greater insult to the game when there is such a steep inequity in fairness between the privileged and the rest of the league.

The Miami Heat after losing to the Chicago Bulls in the Game 1 in a fairly officiated 4th Quarter, finally got by the Bulls with the help of Miami Heat referees.

Now, despite a dumb, dumb, dumb-ass play by DWade, the Miami Heat and the NBA's corporate fake-superstar, Lebron James, do not have to feel the repercussions of such a mistake, unlike the other 29 NBA teams, because the Miami CHeat are the NBA's  pet franchise. And it will be the Indiana Pacers who will have their NBA Championship stolen one bad call at a time by NBA Miami Heat referees.

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After a series where Carlos Boozer was called for an offensive foul for every Shane Battier flop, now the Eastern Conference Finals has been rigged by off-the-ball fouls on David West, who proved to be unstoppable during ECF Games 1 and 2.

Watch for more mystery fouls on the Indiana Pacers' dominant frontline in order to nullify the Miami CHeat's biggest weakness as a "team".

While Miami is by far the most talented team in the NBA (collusion by the Big Three to come together aside), they should not be GIVEN another undeserved NBA Championship just because they have the most stars. They should be made to earn it, in a fairly called series of games, just like every other team in the league. If the NBA can't clean up their corrupt officiating favoring their pet team and players, JOIN THE BOYCOTT!

Joe Johnson and J Smoove Close Out OT For Victory Over DWade and Sidekick In Miami; Lebron Should Stick To Sidekick Role

MIAMI, FLORIDA.  Huge plays by Joe Johnson and Josh Smith at the end of regulation and to close overtime helped to seal victory for the Atlanta Hawks over the Heat.

What might have been a blowout victory over the Bosh-less Miami Heat got a lot closer after the Hawks lost talented big-man, Al Horford, to a sprained right ankle in the 3rd quarter, however other Hawks were ready to step up.

J Smoove and the Atlanta Hawks soared to victory over the beaten and battered Heat.

With victory hanging in the balance, Johnson manned up and tied the game on a layup with 25.4 seconds left in regulation. The Heat chose not to call time-out, and instead, they ran the clock down and set up Sidekick for a 28-footer that banged off the side of the rim just before the buzzer.

As the clock began to run out on the overtime period, Josh Smith made a go-ahead layup with 34.7 seconds left in overtime. The Heat made the mistake of putting the game in Sidekick's hands once again, the result being a long missed three, and Joe Johnson hit two game-sealing free throws with 5.2 seconds remaining to send the Heat to a fourth straight loss.

Sidekick struggled in his return to the Heat lineup vs the Hawks.

The Atlanta Hawks defense contained the Miami Heat, who shot 28 for 77 as a team, and DWade and DWade's Sidekick combined to shoot a dismal 19 for 50 as they were beaten by the Atlanta Hawks on their homecourt.

The poor performance follows yesterday's Miami Heat practice where Wade, Sidekick, and Bosh were unable to go because of injuries sustained against the physical Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers.

The game marked the return of Sidekick to the lineup for Miami after missing two games for a sprained ankle sustained in the beatdown at the hands of the Los Angeles Clippers.

NBA fans caught a glimpse of Lebron as the Heat's game closer. Two chances to win the game, and two bad misses.

Lebron, better stick to your sidekick role.

DRose Outduels DWade To Claim Jordan Mantle In "The House That Michael Built" As Sidekick Watches From The Sideline

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.  It seemed that a lot of people were disappointed when Lebron announced his "Decision" this past July, however Derrick Rose was not necessarily one of them. 

DRose raised his game higher than any other star in the United Center tonight.

Rumors emerged that DRose did not want Lebron to come to Chicago because he wanted to be "The Man".

Then, DRose stated in an interview before the season that he wanted to be MVP, the Most Valuable Player, in the league.

Well, as of this week, Rose is the frontrunner for the award according to ESPN. And while in Miami, it will always be DWade's team, there is no doubt that Derrick Rose is "The Man" on the Chicago Bulls; and he has delivered in the clutch, when it mattered most.

In many ways, DRose's entry into the NBA mirrors Lebron's: both were super-talented, homegrown products drafted #1 Overall by their local team and heralded as the hometown hero who would save their respective NBA franchise. However, that is where the similarities abruptly end.

After promising to bring a championship to the championship-deprived city of Cleveland, Lebron's decision to leave town to join a stacked team in Miami revealed his complete selfishness and lack of integrity and perserverence. His announcement of "The Decision" in a one-hour special on ESPN was a self-aggrandizing act of pure hubris. While Lebron chose the easy way out to get his championship, the people of Cleveland were witness to nothing but a single NBA Finals appearance and several early playoff exits.

Rose is essentially the anti-lebron; he is a modest, hard-working phenom who relishes the burden of the Jordan legacy, including the effort it takes to be the best. While Lebron and his posse played with the emotions of GMs, cities, and teams' fans, Derrick Rose played the point for the U.S. team that won the Gold Medal at the World Basketball Championships this past summer.

Then he got in the gym, and in his understated, modest tone, "I've been working on my shooting range." All the way out to 3-point range; he is shooting 3-pointers at 37.9%, higher than Lebron's 35.8% clip for the season. Just as Jordan worked to add new facets to his game, Rose has gone from great to unstoppable.

Lebron quit as Rose and Wade battled for the Legacy of Jordan

On the other hand, when faced with stepping into Jordan's shoes, Lebron ran away as fast as he could to join another Chicago product who found inspiration in the miracles Michael Jordan performed as the face of the Chicago Bulls.

Dwayne Wade, more than any other player on the Heat, embodies the will to win that helped Jordan claim 6 NBA Championships. Wade's incredible performance in the 2006 NBA Finals was one for the ages.

How appropriate that Lebron "not Jordan" James stepped aside to allow two Chicago boys to duel for the Legacy of Michael Jordan.

And in the end, it was Derrick Rose who claimed the win and the mantle of heir to the Jordan Legacy in Chicago. In the victory, Rose put up 34 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 blocks, and most importantly for the young man and the city of Chicago, the win.

The true Legacy of Jordan was to not only say what you are going to do, but to do it.

Lebron Returns to Cleveland: Post-Game Postmortem

CLEVELAND, OH.  Lebron's big return to Cleveland was marked by nothing more than a much needed "W" for the Miami Heat. Nothing more. DWade finally shot a respectable percentage from the field, and the Miami Heat were able to get a big lead in the first quarter and cruised.

The two major stories of the game hardly concerned the actual basketball that was played.

Signs of the times: this is no longer 2003 for Queen James.

Cleveland fans were empassioned at the start of the game, and they did their fair share of "booing" before being quieted by the Heat's big first quarter.

All the bogus threat of violence perceived by Lebron's caretakers and the ESPN news machine was nothing more than making a news story out of a molehill.

The atmosphere created by the fans in support of their underdog team exceeded the effort that was given on the night by Cavs players.

Despite the magnitude of the game, Cavs players joked and laughed with Lebron, putting him at ease in the hostile environment. All that we learned on Thursday night was that Cleveland fans are classy but still upset, the current Cavaliers team still has the "warm fuzzies" for Lebron, and Lebron is still a LeBiatch.

Lebron tosses chalk in the air because he can't juggle.

Lebron is a LeBiatch because he did his Chalk Toss routine, in front of a chorus of "booing" Cleveland Cavaliers fans at the Q. In spite of numerous questions about it and suggestions that not doing the chalk toss would go a long way towards repairing the bitterness felt in Cleveland about "The Decision" show and other displays of disrespect towards the fans that loyally followed Lebron, Lebron goaded the packed stadium who rained "boos" down upon the villainous traitor. The Cleveland Cavaliers fans showed up in force to "unwelcome" Lebron, and to be present for the event. But there was no apology, no show of grace, no show of respect from Lebron that would have to be returned in kind.

However, the packed stadium was enough to prove a point to the self-appointed "king". Here was a basketball fan base that knows and appreciates sports and sports history. They filled the stadium for all those seven years that Lebron played for their Cavs. Now, Lebron joins Wade, playing before fans who can hardly show up for the first half of the game and have no sense of history. I suppose it is fitting that a player whose legacy is ruined would want to play in front of fans who don't care and won't remember. Being the best player to not achieve his potential and the best player to be completely forgotten will be Lebron's legacy.

Larry Bird Joins Legends in Denouncing Lebron's Decision

Larry Bird, or Larry Legend as he was known even during his playing days with the Boston Celtics during the 1980 and 1990's, is on record having voiced his disapproval of Lebron James' "Decision" to join Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami, which is in line with the sentiment voiced recently by his Hall of Fame contemporaries, Michael Jordan and Earvin "Magic" Johnson.

Although a decade and a half of fierce competition has given way to a great friendship built on mutual admiration and respect, Bird had this to say about the idea of playing alongside Johnson:

"I remember back in my days, I'd rather play against Earvin Johnson than play with him. He's a guy I always compared myself to. I'd rather stay in Boston and let him stay in L.A. and just compete every year in the Finals. That's what made me a better player."

Bird's statement follows closely on the heels of Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson's statements criticizing Lebron James decision to join the Miami Heat. By doing so, James, the most coveted free-agent of the decade, joined with the next two most talented free-agents in arguably the greatest free-agent class ever in the NBA. Essentially, the joining of James, Wade, and Bosh, though not as epic as a Magic, Bird, and Jordan triumverate, is about the closest thing that has, in fact, come to pass.

The Legends (Bird, Magic, and Jordan), the first-ballot Hall of Famers who were responsible for the international explosion in popularity of the NBA and basketball, have voiced their displeasure with "The Decision" because of what it may mean to the future of NBA. The competition between Bird and Magic defined an era in the NBA, and the dominance of Jordan through the 1990's was a tribute to the will and perseverance of the greatest player of all time.

Old-school fans of the NBA were treated to epic battles between the fiercest competitors the game has ever seen, however the Lebron decision was an admission of surrender and an inexplicable act of submission to another star in Wade.

When asked about Lebron's decision following a celebrity golf tournament in Nevada, Michael Jordan's reply to NBC Sports was this:

"There's no way, with hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry, called up Magic and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team, but that's ... things are different. I can't say that's a bad thing. It's an opportunity these kids have today. ... In all honesty, I was trying to beat those guys."

And in sports, it is that competitive fire that athletes are measured by, and that is why Bird, Magic, and Jordan have the legacy and legend that they do.

Magic Says That Lebron's Choice Was Not What His Generation Was About

Magic Johnson, NBA great and former point guard and leader of the Showtime Lakers of the 1980's, joined a growing number of fans and NBA legends in criticizing the Decision of Lebron James to join forces with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami.

The long awaited and anticipated NBA Free Agenct Class of 2010, which saw quite possibly the most talented free agent class of all time become available to NBA teams with adequate cap space to sign them, dragged on for a week passed the first day of signing and ended with a Shyamalanian-twist, some of the most questionable choices by "grown" men, and the worst examples of poor judgment seen in any sport, ever.

Mere days after the debacle that was the ESPN-produced "The Decision", NBA greats have been approached about their opinions about Lebron's Decision.

When asked, Magic Johnson, who won five NBA championships playing for the Lakers after he led Michigan State to an NCAA title victory over Larry Bird and Indiana State in 1979, said it was never a real possibility for him to play with Michael Jordan and Bird.

"We didn't think about it 'cause that's not what we were about," Johnson said at Baruch College in New York, according to Bloomberg News. "From college, I was trying to figure out how to beat Larry Bird."

"It was never a question in our mind because nobody has ever done that," Johnson said when looking back to his era.

Johnson's comments come only days after Michael Jordan told reporters at a weekend golf event that he'd rather beat Johnson and Bird than become their teammates.

"There's no way, with hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry, called up Magic and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team', " said Jordan, the majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats who led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships.

"But that's ... things are different. I can't say that's a bad thing. It's an opportunity these kids have today. In all honesty, I was trying to beat those guys."

Of James, Johnson concluded, "I think he will be, one day, a great businessman. The first order of business for LeBron is to win championships. If you build your brand on the court, then that will take care of the off-the-court brand."

It doesn't seem that Johnson feels that James is a great businessman yet, and certainly not with his Decision.