Does Heat sickness favor Mavs?
There must be something in the mojitos down there in South Florida.
Three members of the Miami Heat, including superstar swingman Dwyane Wade, came down with illnesses this week. We?re not talking avian flu here; Heat officials are not running around in hazmat suits, gingerly picking up Wade?s sweaty socks with six-foot tongs. But in an NBA Finals matchup against the favored Dallas Mavericks, Miami needs everyone performing at full capacity in order to pull off the upset.
Wade?s health is the primary concern. He came down early Friday morning with flu-like symptoms that have since been traced to a sinus infection. Wade was whisked to Miami Children?s Hospital for some intravenous fluids. He left at 3 p.m. Eastern Time, just five hours before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final between Miami and the Detroit Pistons. Wade ended up with just 14 points in 37 minutes on 6-for-15 shooting; however, his 10 assists, plus big nights from Shaquille O?Neal (28 points, 16 rebounds) and Jason Williams (21 points, six assists) were enough to eliminate Detroit and put the Heat in the NBA finals for the first time in franchise history.
Saturday was the same for Wade as it is for many of us working stiffs ? he stayed in bed. And although he missed practice both Monday and Tuesday, every indication is that Wade will be at full health come Thursday?s series opener in Dallas. ?He had the illness, came home and was sick as a dog for Game 6,? coach Pat Riley told the Associated Press. ?And he still hasn?t shaken the effects of it. But he?ll be ready for Thursday night. He won?t be in the same state that he was, coming out of the hospital, having IVs and all that stuff. He?ll be in a lot better condition.?
If Wade is indeed symptom-free, the question for Thursday?s Game 1 will be whether Wade will be out of sync with his teammates after missing two practices and dropping some weight. He?ll probably not be able to get away with another 14-point performance (the fewest Wade has scored in a playoff game this season) if Miami is going to beat the Mavericks in Dallas. The former Marquette standout is expected to participate in a full workout with his teammates the day before the game, so there will be plenty of opportunity for handicappers to calibrate their expectations based on Wade?s workout.
The other two illnesses are relatively minor. Gary Payton had to skip Monday?s practice with a migraine headache, but was back in action Tuesday. Also returning to practice was little-used power forward Wayne Simien, who sat out Monday with an undisclosed health issue. Simien has only played eight minutes of playoff basketball thus far in relief of Miami native Udonis Haslem.
Riley did a masterful job of confounding the Pistons with matchup problems, even plucking shooting guard Shandon Anderson off the bench and playing him in Game 6 to give Wade a rare breather. The three-time NBA Coach of the Year might have to dig even further into his bag of tricks against the Mavericks. We could see Simien, Derek Anderson and Michael Doleac all get some playing time as Riley tries to counter Dallas coach Avery Johnson?s manpower decisions.
Wade was often double-teamed by Detroit in the previous round. The strategy worked to an extent, but it also left Ben Wallace to deal one-on-one with O?Neal. That?s a losing proposition, even for the league?s Defensive Player of the Year. Johnson can also be counted on to put immense pressure on Wade while maintaining a defensive presence against Shaq. Adrian Griffin and Marquis Daniels are likely candidates to log plenty of minutes at shooting guard to defend against Wade, while guard Devin Harris falls into a backup role behind Jason Terry. Wade will have to be in top condition to survive what many believe will be a long, intense series.
Dallas is a ?150 favorite to claim its first NBA title (and a 5-point home chalk in Game 1), but you can also take the Mavs at +300 on the futures market to win the finals in exactly six games, and +350 to win in seven. These are the two likeliest outcomes on the board. The shortest odds for a Heat victory are in five games at +500. This reflects the 2-3-2 nature of the finals, with the first two games played in Dallas and the next three in Miami. The Heat are +800 to win in six and +600 to go all the way in seven.
---Perry
BetWWTS.com
There must be something in the mojitos down there in South Florida.
Three members of the Miami Heat, including superstar swingman Dwyane Wade, came down with illnesses this week. We?re not talking avian flu here; Heat officials are not running around in hazmat suits, gingerly picking up Wade?s sweaty socks with six-foot tongs. But in an NBA Finals matchup against the favored Dallas Mavericks, Miami needs everyone performing at full capacity in order to pull off the upset.
Wade?s health is the primary concern. He came down early Friday morning with flu-like symptoms that have since been traced to a sinus infection. Wade was whisked to Miami Children?s Hospital for some intravenous fluids. He left at 3 p.m. Eastern Time, just five hours before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final between Miami and the Detroit Pistons. Wade ended up with just 14 points in 37 minutes on 6-for-15 shooting; however, his 10 assists, plus big nights from Shaquille O?Neal (28 points, 16 rebounds) and Jason Williams (21 points, six assists) were enough to eliminate Detroit and put the Heat in the NBA finals for the first time in franchise history.
Saturday was the same for Wade as it is for many of us working stiffs ? he stayed in bed. And although he missed practice both Monday and Tuesday, every indication is that Wade will be at full health come Thursday?s series opener in Dallas. ?He had the illness, came home and was sick as a dog for Game 6,? coach Pat Riley told the Associated Press. ?And he still hasn?t shaken the effects of it. But he?ll be ready for Thursday night. He won?t be in the same state that he was, coming out of the hospital, having IVs and all that stuff. He?ll be in a lot better condition.?
If Wade is indeed symptom-free, the question for Thursday?s Game 1 will be whether Wade will be out of sync with his teammates after missing two practices and dropping some weight. He?ll probably not be able to get away with another 14-point performance (the fewest Wade has scored in a playoff game this season) if Miami is going to beat the Mavericks in Dallas. The former Marquette standout is expected to participate in a full workout with his teammates the day before the game, so there will be plenty of opportunity for handicappers to calibrate their expectations based on Wade?s workout.
The other two illnesses are relatively minor. Gary Payton had to skip Monday?s practice with a migraine headache, but was back in action Tuesday. Also returning to practice was little-used power forward Wayne Simien, who sat out Monday with an undisclosed health issue. Simien has only played eight minutes of playoff basketball thus far in relief of Miami native Udonis Haslem.
Riley did a masterful job of confounding the Pistons with matchup problems, even plucking shooting guard Shandon Anderson off the bench and playing him in Game 6 to give Wade a rare breather. The three-time NBA Coach of the Year might have to dig even further into his bag of tricks against the Mavericks. We could see Simien, Derek Anderson and Michael Doleac all get some playing time as Riley tries to counter Dallas coach Avery Johnson?s manpower decisions.
Wade was often double-teamed by Detroit in the previous round. The strategy worked to an extent, but it also left Ben Wallace to deal one-on-one with O?Neal. That?s a losing proposition, even for the league?s Defensive Player of the Year. Johnson can also be counted on to put immense pressure on Wade while maintaining a defensive presence against Shaq. Adrian Griffin and Marquis Daniels are likely candidates to log plenty of minutes at shooting guard to defend against Wade, while guard Devin Harris falls into a backup role behind Jason Terry. Wade will have to be in top condition to survive what many believe will be a long, intense series.
Dallas is a ?150 favorite to claim its first NBA title (and a 5-point home chalk in Game 1), but you can also take the Mavs at +300 on the futures market to win the finals in exactly six games, and +350 to win in seven. These are the two likeliest outcomes on the board. The shortest odds for a Heat victory are in five games at +500. This reflects the 2-3-2 nature of the finals, with the first two games played in Dallas and the next three in Miami. The Heat are +800 to win in six and +600 to go all the way in seven.
---Perry
BetWWTS.com
