Sports Agenda For Wednesday (5/18/11)
Big Story:
The only thing worse than the way yours truly has felt over the last five days was the way the Heat played in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. There's so much that's been said, so we'll break it down a little more here and even more on the sports page of CBSMiami.com.
And lest we forget, the Marlins are still only ½ game behind the NL East leading Philadelphia Phillies and we're halfway through May?!
Plus, the NFLPA is headed by a guy who basically is several French fries short of a happy meal. So I guess he could be the next governor of Florida?
On to the agenda.
Heat: (@ Chicago Bulls, 8:30 p.m., TNT)
Wow, that first game was bad. I mean really, really bad if you're a Heat fan.
Basically, the Heat showed up and played like they thought they could roll their jersey's out and Chicago would cower and give up. Yeah, about that.
It's a pretty simple game. You shoot the ball, you rebound the ball, and you dribble the ball. Basically, the Heat couldn't do any of those right against the Bulls the other night.
The key, besides Dwyane Wade and LeBron James moving without the basketball and attacking the basket, is to crash the boards early and often. The Heat are 10-0 in the postseason when they control the rebounding, they're 0-3 when they get outrebounded.
I don't think you'll see much of a lineup change tonight. You will see a little more Mike Miller because he's a good rebounder.
I think the Heat will have to be content with setting up halfcourt offenses instead of running in transition. If you're crashing the boards, it's going to be tough to run the break. This is what Chicago wants.
So, if the Heat are going to knock Chicago off, they're going to have to do it in the half-court. This means no isolation, crisp movement of the ball, and getting some second chance points.
Look, we all know the Heat are going to go as far as the Big Three can carry them. After playing great in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Chicago forced Miami into some bad old habits of trying to win one-on-one and not running the offense that got them there.
It's all about execution.
And if the Heat's Big Three don't, then John McKay's old line about his Tampa Bay Buccaneers will apply to the Heat. (FYI: McKay was asked about Tampa Bay's execution after a game they lost during a horrible losing streak. McKay answered: "I'm all for it (his team's execution.")
Marlins: (vs. Chicago Cubs, 7:10 p.m., Fox Sports Fla.)
The Marlins had an extra day off yesterday after their second game of a two-game series in New York was rained out. That means the Marlins now return home to take on the Cubbies.
The Fish send out Ricky Nolasco against the Cubs Wednesday. Nolasco was originally drafted by the Cubs in the fourth round of the 2001 MLB Draft. Nolasco is 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA for his career against the Cubs.
It's not looking good for Hanley Ramirez to break out of his slump. Ramirez is still batting just .204 with two home runs, 14 RBI's and a .291 on-base percentage.
I'm not sure what it's going to take for Ramirez to start hitting the ball again, but right now, he looks nothing like the big star the Marlins have hoped he would become. But he is leading the team in stolen bases, so he's got that going for him.
The Fish will play two against the Cubs and a three-game series against the Rays before heading on a West Coast road trip starting next Tuesday.
NFL Update:
If you haven't heard, the NFL now has the NFLPA over a barrel. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals will side with the NFL when the case is appealed and that pretty much kills any chances the NFLPA had of winning any leverage in the negotiating process of a new CBA.
The NFL could force feed their terms to the NFLPA, but the league is trying to win but also not look too much like a dictatorship so as not to rile up the courts.
All the while, the head of the NFLPA, DeMaurice Smith, is coming unhinged.
Yesterday in multiple media appearances, he asked if fans could remember when a league sued to stop the games.
Newsflash Captain Insaneo, it was the players who sued to lift the lockout. The league has reacted to the lawsuit filed by the players when the lockout was instituted. (i.e. the Brady lawsuit).
Basically, Smith has painted himself into a corner.
On the one hand, he has to appear tough for the players to keep them fighting the league in the lawsuit. On the other hand, if he keeps making insane statements, he ruins what credibility he has left and opens the doors for the players to demand a deal get done pronto.
Based on reality, the players should be demanding this anyway. If they keep on in the court system, they run the risk of losing big time in a new CBA.
See, Smith doesn't want the players to get less than 50 cents of every dollar the league makes. What he doesn't grasp and what he's hiding from players is that if the league makes more money, the players will continue to get bigger salaries because there will be more money to go around. Essentially, the players are fighting a losing and puzzling battle.
And if you don't think players are feeling the pinch, check this out. An unnamed player took out a $500,000 loan at 23% interest. In other words, that's $115,000 in interest per year….Ouch!
