<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Injected into the starting lineup for his shooting, small forward Wesley Person shot 1 of 7. Removed from the starting lineup because of his shooting, forward Rasual Butler shot 0 for 2. Allowed to remain in the starting lineup despite a shooting percentage worse than Person and Butler, guard Eddie Jones went 0 of 4. And counted on for his shooting, point guard Damon Jones closed 1 of 6. "You've got to be mentally tougher than that to play in the NBA," an exasperated Van Gundy said. "If you want to be on a good team, in big situations you've got to step up and make shots. "I mean, everybody is going to have a bad night here or there, but it's getting ridiculous with some of these guys." When it comes to Eddie Jones, it has gotten far beyond a laughing matter. "He didn't do anything tonight," Van Gundy said. "I don't know what's going on with him. I've never been through a stretch like this with Eddie in the whole time he's been here. I've never seen him play like this. "What got me tonight was the five turnovers on top of everything else." For Jones, there was one moment that even eclipsed those five miscues. After Wade had tied it 92-92 on a 19-foot jumper with 38.7 seconds to play, the Heat put together a solid defensive sequence to force a wayward 3-pointer by Raptors forward Donyell Marshall. Implored on three separate occasions by the staff not to drift toward the lane for rebounds on such lengthy outside attempts, Jones did just that. That allowed Toronto guard Jalen Rose to secure the offensive rebound and draw a foul on an out-of-position Jones. Rose converted both free throws with 15.6 seconds to play to close out the scoring. </div> EJ had this to say <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">"It was probably the roughest [game] I've ever had," Jones said. "I didn't do anything correctly out there. "I'm getting great looks, but I am just missing shots. At some point it has to turn around for me."</div> Eddie Jones had 2pts from 2-2 FT shooting, shot 0-4 FG 0-3 3PT, and had 2-REB 2-AST 5-TOs and 5-PFs in 28 min against the Raptors 11/30/04 SVG on the final play of the game; <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Still, even those late gaffes could have been overlooked had the Heat executed on its final possession. But instead of locating an open O'Neal at the rim, Wade found himself in traffic and pitched back to Damon Jones. That led to a wayward double-pump 3-pointer, a long rebound, and Wade's final jumper that was on target but too long. "Shaq was open for a dunk on the way to the rim," Van Gundy said after reviewing the tape.</div> SVG on the supporting cast's offense: <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">But this loss was about neither Wade nor O'Neal. It was about supposed supporting players who have provided precious little support. "I don't know which of those guys I can count on," Van Gundy said. "It has gotten pretty bad. We brought in a lot of guys who can shoot the ball. I still believe we brought in the right guys. It is mind-boggling to me, with the shots they are getting -- they are wide open -- that we can't make those shots."</div>
The Heat are on a downward spiral right now. After opening 4-0, they're only a .500 team. I can't see them doing better unless EJ steps up.
They have all the pieces in the players, it just deoends on how each one plays. All the players are doing their jobs exept Eddie Jones. He isn't doing horribly but if he steps up and gives the Heat at least 15+ points a game they will be winning almost every game.
It's just the offense, in the Raptors game everyone was missing wide open shots. I'll say it again, besides Shaq Wade and UD everyone shot 8-33 in FGs in the game. Just a shooting slump. When Miami opened in the first 5-6 games we were shooting around 50% in FG as a team.
