Colin

Thomas Gardner!

I could see someone throwing him $7 million per year.

I agree. I don't pick on Josh, never have. Like I said, he made up for his stupid shots last night. Joe on the other hand isn't doing much to help the team. He even had another play last night where he just plain threw it out of bounds... Again. He needs to come with a sense of urgency in game 5.

I am Zaza's biggest fan, but I really doubt he can. The Heat will probably box out double/triple on every miss, and double him inside the paint right when the ball goes up. Which should allow others to rebound more effectively.

Exactly. I went to take a dump at the end of the quarter because of that three.

Yes, it is from a no-name homer for some crappy newspaper, but nonetheless, when I read this, I was infuriated beyond belief... - - - - - - - - Depressing, yes. This wasn't why the Heat asked its fans to wear black, but it was certainly fitting Monday night. An awakening, yes. More than even the Game 1 disaster, this was a cruel reminder of just how difficult it is to win any playoff game, especially for a relatively young team. Bleak? Hardly. As bad is it looked to watch Dwyane Wade drag his worn body up and down the court and fail at his personal rescue attempt in the fourth quarter, this loss is not indicative of what's to come. As emotionally draining as it was to experience a riveting 19-2 run to end the second quarter and follow that with a lifeless second half, it's nowhere near enough reason to declare the tide incapable of turning back in the Heat's favor. The Hawks have home-court advantage in what is now a best-of-3 series. It is a position of strength, yes. But they are still the Hawks. And even in a game that they never trailed and held a lead as big as 21 points in the first half, these Hawks showed why they're simply not capable of maintaining any of this momentum. Call them emotionally unstable. Call them strategically challenged. Call them a coach's nightmare. Whatever you call them, just remember that they're the Hawks, and the Heat will still recover from this, win the series and move on to a much-anticipated series against the Cavaliers. Why the optimism after a dreadful performance in which the Heat scored more than 17 points in only one of four quarters? Just rewind the tape and check the evidence. That was Wade shooting four airballs in the first half. That doesn't happen unless he's hurt. And chances are he will find a way to work around a tight back or some sore muscles for the remainder of this series, now that he knows what is facing him. But more importantly, remember how the Hawks took over the game and then nearly blew it in a matter of 11 minutes. As the Heat was handling and shooting the ball as if it was covered in butter, the Hawks had 24 points in the first quarter and 22 in the second -- an average half. The combination translated to a 44-23 lead with 3:47 left in the half. Then the Heat amped up the pressure, and the real Hawks showed up. Udonis Haslem took a charge and Maurice Evans nearly exploded. Then Solomon Jones, who hasn't played significant minutes all series long, fouled James Jones shooting a three for a four-point play. Then Mike Bibby blatantly pushed Mario Chalmers for an offensive foul on the ensuing inbounds. And to finish off the comedy of blunders, Bibby fouled Jones again while he was shooting a three. Fouling a three-point shooter is one of basketball's criminal acts as it is, but to do it when Jones had a four-point play just 11 seconds earlier makes you question not just the basketball IQ, but just the regular-old IQ of the team in general. The Heat's close to the second quarter was so predictable, it was as if it was simply baiting the Hawks the entire time. The only part that was surprising is that Miami couldn't finish off the comeback, which had as much to do with more poor shooting than anything Atlanta did. Yes, the Hawks outrebounded the Heat. And, yes, Zaza Pachulia had 12 points and 18 rebounds in 34 minutes off the bench. But Smith was at his unpredictable offensive worst. Joe Johnson was still stymied by the Heat defense in a 5-of-12 effort. And Flip Murray continued to take more shots than anyone should be comfortable with him taking. So if the key to winning Game 5 is basically ''shut down Zaza Pachulia,'' consider it possibly the easiest game plan in playoff history. And consider it done. A pessimist might look at the Heat's two-point production from a limited bench and consider that a problem. But it's practically a guarantee that Wade going 9 of 26 and the bench going 0 of 7 from the floor in the same game will never happen again. Not in this playoff series, anyway. Remember how Wade and the bench responded after the Game 1 debacle? Monday was sad and unexpected and painful to watch (whether you were a Heat fan or not). But it's no precursor. The Heat will recover. Wade-LeBron is still very much on. What the hell? http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/columnis...ry/1021191.html

I think people were upset that we let the lead dwindle, that Joe didn't step up, and that Josh took stupid shots. They don't realize that we did EVERYTHING we needed to win. We played tough defense at the end, held on the lead, had the pace where we wanted out, outrebounded them, and didn't give them open looks from the three point line.

Josh made some stupid decisions regarding shot selection, including that three pointer, which confused the s*** out of me, literally. BUT, he convinced Woody, and myself with the rest of his play that he should be in the game.

With the Atlanta Hawks trailing the Miami Heat two games to one, and game four being played in Miami, the team realized they needed to bring a sense or urgency and energy to the court. Zaza Pachulia provided all of it while proudly sporting the black eye he earned during Game Three. In a Herculean effort off of the bench, the 6'11" big man helped the Hawks even the series, pulling down 18 boards to go along with 12 points (on 5-8 shooting, a healthy improvement from his 6-19 in the previous three games of the series.) In fact, if two loose ball fouls on the Heat hadn't negated two rebounds already reeled in by Pachulia, he would have finished with 20 for the game. Due to Al Horford's foul trouble, Pachulia entered the game early and proved to be the greatest move that Atlanta coach Mike Woodson made all night. Atlanta raced out to a 44-23 lead due in large part to Pachulia's interior presence—before Woodson called a timeout allowing Pachulia to head to the bench and catch a breather after 16 straight minutes on the court. But a win wasn't going to be that easy to come by if Miami (or the referees) could help it, and they didn't go quietly. The Heat used a 19-2 run to close the first half, including back to back four point plays, (both on questionable calls) by Heat swingman James Jones, the latter coming only 11 seconds after the first, due to an offensive foul on Mike Bibby during the previous inbounds play. The Hawks lead had been cut to 46-42 heading to the locker room, and many feared that the Hawks had lost their grasp on the game due to the let up at the end of the Second Quarter. But the Hawks came out strong, or at least stronger than the Heat in the second half, and the lead was never cut to less than three after the intermission. But it wasn't luck that let the Hawks leave the building with the victory. Pachulia's strong effort kept Miami disrupted all night, from chasing down a loose ball that left Dwyane wade sprawled on the ground pleading for a foul, to ending up in the Heat bench while saving a loose ball. Pachulia was everywhere. “They made all the plays,” James Jones said. “Zaza was the guy who every time they needed a big play, he made it. Whether it was a rebound, a tip or a layup, he was the momentum breaker tonight and I think he kind of sealed our fate.” Pachulia's 18 rebounds were more than Jermaine O'Neal, Udonis Haslem, and James Jones combined for in the Miami frountcourt, and his six offensive rebounds were just one less than the Heat had as a team. Wade was basically quiet most of the game, ending the first half shooting just 4-17, on his way to finishing 9-26 shooting night...He heated up late in the Fourth Quarter, but by then the Heat had run out of time and energy it seemed. Jermaine O'Neal and James Jones were the only other Heat members who added anything on offense, adding 20 and 19 respectively. Jones' 19 points came on just 4-5 shooting, including 3-4 from three point range and 8-9 from the free throw line. While the Hawks had balance offensively, tonight's effort won't go down in history as unstoppable. Six Hawks players scored in double figures led by Mike Bibby with 15, followed by Joe Johnson's 14, Josh Smith with 13, and Pachulia's 12. Flip Murray added 11 off the bench, and Maurice Evans finished with 10 despite fighting foul trouble the majority of the game. Al Horford had just four points and three points, playing only 17 minutes due to foul trouble but was not missed due to Pachulia's emergence. The Atlanta Hawks wanted energy, and Pachulia made sure his team didn't head home in a three games to one hole. I'm sure Pachulia is hoping that some of his energy will rub off on his teammates in time for Wednesday night's game. Extended Notes- * The Hawks bench outscored the Heat's 25-2, and out rebounded them 24-8. * Dwyane Wade is reported to have been experiencing back spasms throughout the game, though he was also seen nursing his hip and legs, though this was only apparent when he wanted a call or missed a shot. * Pachulia set playoff career highs in points, rebounds, and minutes. * Six players scored in double figures for the Hawks, while only six players scored for the Heat including a combined 10 points from Haslem, Chalmers, and Michael Beasley.

I have been on the bandwagon since 2003. You guys always make fun of me for it. Does this mean i'm cool now?

I was actually surprised with Zaza's defense this game as well. No stupid fouls, solid work staying in front of his man, and a REALLY nice poke away from O'Neal that had him complaining.

"Welcome! You've got hate mail!" :beer:

Exactly. We NEED to find the intensity. All we have to do to put this series back in our hands is teal this game. WE CANNOT START SLOW. Play your *ss off in the beginning, we can't let the crowd get behind them and fight back the whole game. Hard foul on Wade. We've been saying it all series.

They gave up Marion, which isn't exactly nothing. I don't want Jermaine f***ing O'Neal.

Am I the only one who thinks that Zaza has been the only player playing with 100% every second he is on the court? His shooting percentage looks bad, but that can actually be attributed to the refs hesitance to blow the whistle with 3 minutes left in a blowout it seems. He dove for loose balls when we were up by 25 in game 1, he dove for loose balls and dove into the stands when we were down big in Game 2 and 3. He is doing what is asked of him, and has been a spark every time he has been on the court. Why can't they emulate his energy!? He is giving is all, however sloppy it may be, and I thought it would do more to motivate his teammates, but it looks like it isn't. Taking Zaza out for Josh when Zaza is leading the team back is poor coaching IMO, though some may see it as necessary to get Smoove back into the game. But Zaza is very quietly averaging 7 & 7, with the best plus/minus on the team during the playoffs. He is outplaying whoever guards him. By the way, did anyone see Wade block Zaza, and then CLEARLY punch him in the face on the follow through... How was that not a foul? We need JJ, Smoove and Horford to bring the energy that Zaza does. I didn't expect Zaza to bring the same impact on the road, but I think he did.

I'm not shaving my mustache until the Hawks make it to the EC finals. Even if it takes a couple years. I am 18, and have a full mustache, a bit weird, huh?

I don't get why we are all so scared of their rebounding...? Even though we went 1-3 against them, in the four games combined, we outrebounded them by 1... It's not like they have this HUGE edge on the boards, even with the addition of Joe Smith, that makes them a bit better. Horford outrebounded Z in the games against them. EDIT- by the way, you're in Houston too?

That means we need to make the call... Does anyone know John Edwards number?

We actually lost by 6... So being a few bad calls away from 2-0 on our home court doesn't scare them?

Hilton Armstrong may be the worst center in basketball...

To tell the truth, we have the most exciting player in basketball in Zaza. I almost pee myself with anticipation whenever he touches the ball. I never know what he's going to do!

I have to sit on the floor, 2 feet away from the TV at all times. I only get up to get drinks during timeouts, and I lay down on my back and watch whenever the Hawks are losing. I eat something after every quarter, and only pee at halftime. Weird, i know.

The Zaza hate hurts me, he played his game, and that is all he can do. He had a few sloppy drives sure, but his first jumper was a good look that went in and out. He set a nice pick, but got called for the offensive foul, am i the only one who saw the guy running through the pick throw his arms at zaza's face as he ran at him?

I agree completely, especially regarding the ability of all five of our starters to drop 20. That is something very few teams can boast, we need to take advantage of it!

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/158013-...urning-pun-here Sorry, for some reason I tried to just paste it in this thread, but it kept messing up the format.