Dirty Miami Heat Get Lesson In Heroism From Rondo As Boston Celtics Hold Homecourt, Get First Win In Series

BOSTON, MA. Dwayne Wade used to be one of my favorite players. It was because he was a basketball hero.

What he did in the 2006 NBA Finals was incredible. He demonstrated the will to win that only a handful of players with his talent and skill ever demonstrate. And when he won the NBA title, I had a lot of respect for him.

Until tonight that is.

It really started the other night in Game 1 of the Miami Heat/ Boston Celtics series when he ran through Paul Pierce's legal screen, and somehow, Paul Pierce got ejected from the game. I forgave Dwayne Wade because it was truly on the referee to call it properly as an offensive foul and tech on Wade for being the aggressor.

But tonight, Wade pulled a clearly dirty play designed to draw the foul by dragging Rajon Rondo on top of him, but instead, it may have accomplished a whole lot more to gaining an advantage for the Miami Heat. On the play, Rondo tried to brace his fall and ended up dislocating his left elbow.

Rondo dislocated his left elbow on this dirty play by Dwayne Wade, but he would return to give his team a lift in a must-win game for Boston. 

It was a gruesome looking play and injury, and Rondo was taken off the floor with assistance for x-rays and treatment. After having the dislocation reset, Rondo chose to return to the game, a must-win for Boston.

The Boston faithful were probably as encouraged as they were skeptical at Rondo's return. With his left arm dangling lifelessly and uselessly at his side, Rondo was playing in a must-win playoff game. What could he possibly do with one arm when the Heat had built a 2 - 0 lead against a fully functional Rondo?

Well, Rondo answered with his presence and gutsy effort, including a big steal and dunk.

Along with a 28 point and 18 rebound effort from Kevin Garnett, Boston is sitting in a safer spot at 2 - 1 in the series. However, the Celtics will need Rondo to have use of both of his arms if they hope to even up the series and beat the heat at home, which they will need to do eventually.

Kevin Garnett dominated Chris Bosh and put up 28 points and 18 rebounds in Boston's Game 3 Victory over the Miami Heat.

In addition, the league needs to put a stop to such plays designed to "draw" foul calls by locking arms and legs with other players. In recent years, the practice has become more prevalent, and it must stop now. It does not add to the enjoyment of the game of basketball, and as we've seen tonight, it can lead to players being injured. And that makes the game less enjoyable for fans who want to see the games decided by the players on the court, not by the sneaky plays that result in injuries that keep players off the court.

Furthermore, the Heat should be penalized for Dwayne Wade's dirty play. How did that play not even garner Wade a personal foul? Wade should be suspended for a minimum of one game and possibly more if Rondo must miss games with his injury.

Even if the NBA fails to do the right thing, what Boston does have going in their favor is the devilish pact that resulted in Lebron and Bosh going to the Miami Heat and Pat Riley winning Executive of the Year.

The devil never keeps his promises, so although the Heat may be up for now with a 2 - 1 lead and Rondo injured, look for the Miami Heat to suffer the karmic repercussions of their deal with the devil.

HIGHLIGHTS OF BOSTON CELTICS vs MIAMI HEAT, 2011 NBA PLAYOFFS, GAME 3:


Boston needs Rondo to play big in order to beat the Heat. Can Rondo recover in time to put his mark on this series?

Boston Wins To Take Top Spot In the Eastern Conference as Sidekick and the Heat Fail The Test Against Celtics Again

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. You could not have scheduled the NBA season any better. On day 3 as the top team in the Eastern Conference, Dwayne Wade's Sidekick took his talents to Boston for a meeting between the former top team in East, the Boston Celtics.

Wade, Bosh, and Sidekick suited up for the game, and there would not be the excuse that one of the superfriends was injured. And despite being a regular season game, there was indeed something on the line in this contest: first place in the Eastern Conference and, potentially, the tiebreaker for homecourt advantage in the East.

Rondo went for a triple double and locked down Sidekick when called on.

As a Sidekick once said, "Karma is a B*tch." Just when he thought hitting the "Easy Button" and joining DWade's team was finally getting him everything he'd dreamed of the easiest way possible, there were the Boston Celtics to snap him back to reality. Again.

The game went down to the wire after the Miami Heat were able to erase a 13-point 4th quarter deficit, but with the score at Heat 81, Celtics 83, and a chance to tie Boston in his hands with two free throws, Lebron managed to miss his first crucial free throw and made only the second, leaving his team still trailing by 1 point.

The Heat sent Glen Davis to the line for Boston, and he calmly hit both to keep his team up by three.

On the closing opportunity for Miami, Lebron dribbled around and passed off to Mike Miller for a last second 3-point attempt that skidded off the rim. It was later revealed that Miller had just been cleared before the game after suffering from a concussion.

Whenever the Heat have put a game in Sidekick's hands, they've come away with an "L".

After the game, Sidekick was inundated with question about his inability to beat the Celtics, the team that sent Lebron home from the playoffs last year (the infamous "Quitness" game) to contemplate where he would go as a free agent. With an 0 Win, 3 Loss record against Boston this year, it would seem that Lebron's decision was a wrong one.
With the win, the Boston Celtics reclaimed the top spot in the Eastern Conference, and with it, Boston now holds the tie-breaker over the Heat for home court advantage in the Eastern Conference playoffs. However, without a loss to Miami this season, it doesn't seem to matter to the Celts where the games are played.

The final meeting of the season between the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics is April 10th in Miami. Expect Miami to pump themselves up to win a meaningless moral victory heading into the playoffs.

Celtics Beat Heat Again With Total Team Effort Despite Lebron's Near Triple-Double

MIAMI, FLORIDA.  Lebron James put up 35 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists, and 3 steals. However, Boston left Miami with the only thing that mattered to them, and that was a convincing victory over the most overrated team in NBA history.

Boston beat down Miami for the second time in the early 2010-11 season.

The Boston Big Four dominated the game despite Lebron's nice statline. Ray Allen finished with 35 points and made 7 of 9 from 3-point land, and Kevin Garnett owned the paint to the tune of 16 points and 13 rebounds. Rajon Rondo had 16 assists, and Paul Pierce pitched in with 25 points.

The biggest difference maker was the job the Celtics defense did on Dwayne Wade, holding the Heat star to 8 points on 2 of 12 shooting.

Once again, it was evident by Lebron's statline that he was being asked to shore up the inadequate rebounding of the Miami Heat starting frontcourt of Chris Bosh and Joel Anthony. Better teams have easily taken advantage of this Miami Heat weakness and will continue to do so. If Lebron leads the team in rebounding on a given night, the Heat will have lost.

FINAL THOUGHT:  With nearly 8 minutes remaining in the game, the standing-room-only, Miami Heat crowd at the American Airlines Arena began to filter out of the stadium. Did they get to watch Lebron flirt with a triple-double? Did they even care?