We've got homecourt advantage in the playoffs courtesy of the Toronto Raptors' Jalen Rose hitting a clutch three pointer against the Bucks causing the Bucks to lose placing them in 6th place in which we earned 4th place in the East and homecourt advantage. This is our first time back to the Playoffs since 2001, and currently the only Heat player with recent playoff experience is Samaki Walker. We improved by 17 games since last season and have finished the season 42-40 after setting an NBA record for being the only team to start a season 0-7 or worse and being 11 games under .500 at the midpoint of the season and finishing the season with a winning record. Because the Bucks lost and the Hornets won, we will be facing them in the first round and it is sure to be a physically brutal series, especially for the Heat. We are 3-1 against the Hornets this season and all of those games have been comparable to a brutal street fight. Not only did we win the regular season series against the Hornets, but we've been damn near unstoppable on our home court the second half of the season. The last time we were in the playoffs was in 2001, and ironically we played the Charlotte Hornets in the first round and were swept by them, this time however should be completely different. The biggest rivalry the Heat have had all season have been the Honets and we have a grim past against them, and this will be the final time we will ever meet up against them in the playoffs because they're being moved to the western conference next season, unfortunately. I'll keep updating this thread with more information as more things become available such as the schedule, etc.
The playoff dates, times, and television schedules have been set: Miami vs. New Orleans Game 1 - Sun April 18 New Orleans at Miami 7:00PM 7:00PM TNT/RSN Game 2 - Wed April 21 New Orleans at Miami 8:00PM 8:00PM NBATV/RTV Game 3 - Sat April 24 Miami at New Orleans 12:00PM 1:00PM TNT Game 4 - Tue April 27 Miami at New Orleans 7:00PM 8:00PM TNT Game 5 * Fri April 30 New Orleans at Miami TBD TBD TBD Game 6 * Sun May 2 Miami at New Orleans TBD TBD TBD Game 7 * Tue May 4 New Orleans at Miami TBD TBD TBD
Man,that was a pretty good game.the Heat had the lead for most of the 2nd half but the Hornets came back.Anyways the game ended up in a 79-81 win for the Heat courtesey of Dwyane Wade making a game winning shot(not while time expired).
What a great ending to a great game. How much respect do the Heat have for Wade? They gave him the ball with the game on the line against an all star in Davis. Boy did the rookie come through.
Yeah I thought maybe they would give the ball to Lamar Odom I guess not.Im also dissapointed to see Baron Let Wade get by him so easily.
Go Wade Go. He is amazing. He shook Baron a couple times in that game, since he's faster I can't believe they put the ball in his hands with the game on the line. Shows how much he means to the team, and how he plays like a seasoned NBA player.
I'm a Hornets fan for a really long time but i have to say that Dwyane is going to be a BIG STAR for some upcoming years in Miami, only purely great players can hit shots like that in the playoffs the most intense moments of the season and i have to give mad props for Wade, i Just hope these series will be long and good for both teams i just Hope Hornets will come on top
I wonder what Eddie Jones thought about his coaches decision of putting the ball in the rookies hands at the end of the game instead of his. Jones is a classy guy and I'm sure he's just happy to come home with the victory but I would be interested to find out what he felt about the decision.
It's really funny how after Wade's game winning shot last night, all the talk shows on ESPN today and on the radio were talking about how Wade should be the ROY, LeBron isn't in the playoffs, etc. It's just really sad it took the media this long to realize how great Dwyane really is, because if he was talked about and hyped up 6 months ago like he is being right now, there is no doubt he would have been the ROY.
Well Lebron got all of the hype coming into the league and it was to his advantage. There is no doubt that Carmelo would have been rookie of the year if he received that kind of hype.
I missed this game and thought aah, it won't be all that great. But then it turns out to be a nail biter and better then any other playoff series. Look foward to game 2 and hope Skip comes up big.
I'm going with Miami in Game 5! It would be great to see em in second round, and maybe even further into the system!
I'm predicting that the Heat take this series 4-2. As for Wade, he should definetly be on the All Rookie First Team.
The wins just keep racking in, and of course Wade will be on All Rookie First team, let's get serious here, he was third in voting. I thought this would go to 7 games but New Orleans just can't get it together, Baron is still injured, and Magloire isn't dominating inside like I expected. New Orleans shot 24.4% today, thats gotta be some NBA Playoff low shooting percentage or something. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The fourth-seeded Heat did it by limiting the Hornets to 24.4 percent (20-of-82) shooting, just off the record-low 23.3 percent effort by Golden State against the Los Angeles Lakers on April 21, 1973. The Hornets' 20 baskets were the second-lowest total in playoff history. Portland had 19 baskets against San Antonio on June 4, 1999</div>
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">It's really funny how after Wade's game winning shot last night, all the talk shows on ESPN today and on the radio were talking about how Wade should be the ROY, LeBron isn't in the playoffs, etc</div> Yeah, but you know he really isn't the ROY. Dwyane has a real team around him. LeBron really doesn't.
I think Miami will take this all. I mean come on, look at Mash. It's good to see hands go into someone reliable, Wade. Eddie should feel lucky having a player as overly good as he is. Plus man, you gusy have Odom, he'll kill PJ Brown and Magloire.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting STCBBall3:</div><div class="quote_post">Yeah, but you know he really isn't the ROY. Dwyane has a real team around him. LeBron really doesn't.</div> Boozer, Z and McInnis must be imaginary. Yea but if not for injuries I think Wade should have had just as much consideration as Melo and Lebron, but he wouldn't even if he wasn't injured. I mean many people think it's an absolute outrage that some voters gave him second place votes.
