<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">MIAMI ? Heat forward Udonis Haslem reluctantly admits his dislocated left middle finger was probably a factor in his poor Game 1 performance against Detroit in the Eastern Conference finals. "Maybe I got frustrated with myself," said Haslem, who got hit with a technical foul in the second quarter for protesting a non-call. "Thirty-nine minutes and for me to only have six rebounds is not the type of basketball that I play. I think I limited myself on the boards maybe because of the finger mentally, but I've got to be a lot tougher than that. On the court I've got to produce." Haslem entered Game 1 averaging 11.6 rebounds per game in the playoffs. He dislocated his finger in Sunday's practice when he fell after attempting a dunk and used his hands to cushion his fall. He said the dislocated finger, which is on his non-shooting hand and has a second knuckle swollen to about twice its normal size, is a painful condition he has to disregard. "I know it hurts," he said. "I know when I catch a pass it's going to hurt, when I get a rebound it's going to hurt, if I get hit it's going to hurt, when I shoot it's going to hurt. I can expect that so I just have to go out and play." If Haslem doesn't produce, it could lead to a Twin Towers of sorts with centers Shaquille O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning playing together. It's an idea that Mourning and O'Neal have been pushing for since March, and something they both discussed after they played together in Game 1. "It felt pretty good," O'Neal said after the game. "I would like to see that more." Van Gundy hasn't wanted to use O'Neal and Mourning together, partially because he wants to have one as fresh as possible. Asked how O'Neal and Mourning did in Game 1, Van Gundy said, "We, offensively, had some efficient moments there, but it wasn't better or worse than any other lineup (in Game 1), to be quite honest."</div> Source It makes sense, Haslem didn't look focused in Game 1. He also re-aggrevated his dislocated finger in the game and was in obvious pain. The Heat definitely need him to have a bigger impact in the game. I don't think the duo of Shaq and Zo can give the Heat over 30 minutes on the floor at the same time in this series. In Game 1 Haslem only had 6 rebounds, and was torched by Rasheed Wallace. The trio of Haslem, Zo, and Shaq combined for ONLY 14 rebounds. The Heat need Haslem to produce numbers Jeff Foster did for the Pacers. Ben Wallace likes to go for the block and it opens up the weakside for offensive rebounds or putbacks. The Pistons are tough to beat when Sheed gets into a game defensively, so Haslem needs to frustrate him early.
