Since the day Lebron James made the biggest decision that created more heartbreak for Cleveland to go along with numerous others such as The Shot, The Fumble, The Drive, etc. December 2nd, 2010, was the so-called day of reckoning where Cleveland would get their say on what they felt after Lebron took his talents to Miami to play with Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade.
Tonight, it was Lebron, Wade and Bosh who put the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers to bed before the 4th Quarter. Their defense was smothering, which led to easy points and baskets. They were forcing the Cavaliers to shoot jumpers and throw wild shots at the basket hoping for it to fall. Alas, it would not fall and the Heat's lead would continue to balloon.
Collectively, the Heat rebounded the ball with passion that seemed lacking the last few games. They out-rebounded the Cavaliers 43-34. Miami's defense was able to produce 28 points off 13 Cavalier turnovers.
In addition, their shooting was excellent for the majority of the game. Lebron's jumpers fell in the formerly friendly confines of the Quicken Loans Arena, which he called home for the past seven years. He went 13-18 from 2 pt. land but a pedestrian 2-7 from the three. Lebron's athleticism and game were humming as he scored 38 points, 8 assists but only five rebounds after three quarters. One such example, was when he took on Joey Graham along the baseline and scored on a reverse lay-in that was almost a Julius Ervingesque type move that reminded me of the 1980 NBA Finals. Pardon me, for my hyperboles as you will see in this video below:
D-Wade was the Flash as he scored 22 pts. 9 rebounds and 9 assists for a near-triple double. It was vintage Wade as he drove to the lane for pretty dunks and lay-ins. He was the distributor and scorer, which made me wonder if he should be the guy who feeds Lebron and Bosh for 3 quarters. Then in the crunch time, he takes over a la Michael Jordan to close the game out.
Bosh had a decent game where he lived off jumpers and kick-outs. Yet, was nonexistent in terms of rebounding. At some point, the Heat will need to find a frontline center who will do the following: rebound, bang and do the dirty work to get his points. In a sense, they need a Dennis Rodman/Joakim Noah type player to protect Bosh and Lebron.
The Cavs were just awful tonight as they could not buy a bucket during the Miami onslaught. Mo Williams shots stopped falling and as a team they shot 35.5%. It just confirms the fact that Lebron was their offense A-D for seven years. Right now, the Cavaliers will be lucky to make it as an eighth seed in the East and they might considering how moribund it is right now.
That might be an accomplishment for the fans who put up various signs and shirts expressing their anger for Lebron's departure. They booed him every time he touched the ball but were silenced by the end of the 3rd Quarter as the Cavs were down by thirty points. Aside from that, it's sadly going to take a long time before Cleveland will have another winning team that can bring joy to a city that has gone 46 years and counting without a championship.
As a whole, the Heat basically pummeled a reprehensibly bad team tonight in front of a hostile crowd. They showed up and did not have the glazed terrified look they had in Boston. For now, they took care of business but there will always be critics who say they need to beat teams like the Celtics, Lakers, Spurs and Bulls. Yet, it's still a long season and they have a lot of chances to prove their worth when they play at Utah on Dec. 8th and the sputtering Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day. Until then, enjoy the Roller Coaster ride that is the NBA season.
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