GAME THREAD: HEAT @ BLAZERS - 12/28/13, SATURDAY, 7 PM (PST), KGW

Miami was 5-1 without LeBron last season... It's like Lakers without Kobe: dangerous because there's no clear scouting plan.

 

Me neither but luckily it doesn't matter what we believe.

 

yup

 

The Blazers are one of the best teams in the league. This is indisputable if you look at their record. At the same time, it's not wrong to say they have major issues on defense.

 

The defense needs work, but how is that relevant to your response? I responded to someone saying this is why defense wins, but if Bosh missed that 3, then the argument doesn't work.

Get it?

 

Except the Blazers don't play at a high pace, they are average. Tied for 12th.

 

The Blazer have won more than their fair share of games at the buzzer....the odds caught up with them on one night. Great effort by the Heat and you have to appreciate their effort with the the league MVP. Portland seemed to let down a bit and not be very focused. It may be only one game but it is a statement game against the 2-time champs and they didn't pass.

Doesn't mean they aren't good or still aren't a top team but they lost, Heat won....next game. Let's see how they do against OKC without Westbrook.

 

What can you do but tip your hat to the Heat? They played a great game, especially Bosh, who stepped up when they needed him most.

 

It's catching up with them.

 

I don't see how it's not relevant. If they played better defense, Miami wouldn't even be in the position to win or tie the game with 8 seconds left.

Get it?

 

When your ORtg is as high as Portland's, an average pace is amplified.

 

Or maybe if we protected the fucking ball in the fourth. The turn overs weren't forced. Lazy passes. Lost 4 possessions because of it and 4 points.

Get it?

 

It's true. Three losses this month after two in November and one in October. At this rate, we'll lose 4 in January, 5 in Feb, 6 in Mar, and 7 in April... Might only win 54-55 games this season.

 

Or its cause you know... They're 22nd in defensive efficiency. Why does everyone keep sugarcoating the defense? It's not really a stretch to say the defense has been poor. It caught up to them this game.

 

If Portland were able to play the kind of 'D' that Miami did without LeBron, they would be unbeatable.

 

The fact is, Miami missed a ton of wide open shots in the 4th. We could have lost by 6 to 8 points, but we got extremely lucky.

 

If you want to ignore the defensive issues that's your decision. I have serious doubts about how far they can go in the post season if they keep defending like this. I'm not worried about the regular season at all.

 

I'm not saying our defense isn't bad. I was addressing the pace statement only.