khandor’s sports blog

Q. How good can the New York Knicks become, if they get 100% healthy?

A. With the addition of a solid, good-sized, PG like Jeremy Lin, and a full line-up that looks like this:

OWNER – James Dolan

GENERAL MANAGER – Glen Grunwald

HEAD COACH – Mike D’Antoni

STARTERS

PG, Jeremy Lin [acquired December 27, 2012]
OG, Landry Fields
SF, Carmelo Anthony
PF, Amare Stoudemire
C, Tyson Chandler

KEY SUBS

PG, Baron Davis
OG, Iman Shumpert
SF, Bill Walker
PF, Jared Jeffries
C, Steve Novak

RESERVES/EXTRAS/OUTS

PG, Toney Douglas
PG, Mike Bibby
PF, Renaldo Balkman
PF/C, Josh Harrellson
C, Jerome Jordan

New York should be good enough to qualify for the playoffs and, perhaps, advance to the EC semi-finals.

#1. The following 5-man unit:

is the best in the league.

#2. If their opponent chooses to go “small,” Miami does not need to make adjustments to their best 5-man unit, in order to be able to cope successfully.

#3. If their opponent chooses to go “big,” Miami does not need to make adjustments to their best 5-man unit, in order to be able to cope successfully.

#4. That said …

Miami’s bench now includes a mix of players with diverse skill-sets that capably support their best 5-man unit, including:

i. Mike Bibby, PG [veteran 3PT-shooter with good size, relative to his position]

ii. James Jones, OG [veteran 3PT-shooter with good size, relative to his position]

iii. Joel Anthony, PF [veteran shot-blocker, solid rebounder and interior defensive specialist]

iv. Mario Chalmers, PG [perimeter defender with good size and quickness, relative to his position, and a spot-up jump-shooter]

v. Zydrunas Ilgauskas, C [veteran high percentage mid-range jump-shooter with good size]

vi. Eddie House, OG/PG [veteran perimeter shooter with a championship ring and large size cajones]

vii. Juwon Howard, PF/C [one ‘tough hombre’; veteran ‘Leader’ on the bench]

viii. Jamaal Magloire, C [veteran non-disruptive ‘tough guy’, along to ride ‘shot-gun’, if necessary]

ix. Erick Dampier, C [veteran non-disruptive ‘nice guy’, along for the ride]

x. Dexter Pittman, PF/C [typical Pat Riley ‘project’ – with a terrific ‘background story’ - who is eventually going to be a solid player in the NBA]

#5. Regardless of their opponent’s style of play on offense, Miami has a profound commitment to Team Defense and Rebounding, as The Foundation of their Collective Identity, which is a Cohesive Unit that refuses to be broken apart.

#6. This Collective Identity includes having 4 individual players who are each capable of defending in an adequate way against the Mavericks’ best and most important player, Dirk Nowitzki, in a 1-on-1 match-up:

I. Udonis Haslem;

II. Chris Bosh;

III. Joel Anthony; and,

IV. Juwon Howard.

This provides the Heat with tremendous versatility at their Big positions.

#7. Erik Spoelstra [Head Coach] really does know what he’s doing, as a strategist and tactician, after being mentored for 16 years by – the one and only – Pat Riley.

#8. Pat Riley [President & GM] really does know what he’s doing, as a strategist and tactician, after being a dominant head coach in the NBA for a period of 20 years and winning 6 NBA Championships [i.e. as a former player, head coach and GM].

#9. Micky Arison [Owner] has been willing to do what’s necessary, over an extended period of years, in order to build a championship-winning franchise in South Beach … which includes:

A. Being patience [when needed];

B. Being quiet and remaining in the background;

C. The will to pay-the-toll-required on, “The Championship Highway.”

#10.  Unfortunately … Life does not always provide a happy, story-book ending, even for a “great teammate” and “tremendous individual player” like Dirk Nowitzki [PC/C].

As was mentioned in this space on Monday …

The adjustments which Miami needed to make in order to win their series with Chicago included:

1. Giving increased playing time to [A] Mike Miller/SF, [B] Zydrunas Ilgauskas/C, [C] Eddie House/OG and [D] Udonis Haslem/PF];

2. Reducing the playing time of [A] Mike Bibby [PG] and [B] Jamaal Magloire [C]; and,

3. Having Dwayne Wade [OG] check Derrick Rose [PG].

Given the result of last night’s Game 2, it is now fair to say that a main reason this series is tied, 1-1, is because Erik Spoelstra [Head Coach] actually implemented several of the “strategic” adjustments which were recommend, in advance, right here.

For example:

#3) For significant stretches of the 4th quarter, Miami used the following 5-man unit with the associated Individual Match-ups:

PG, Dwayne Wade [vs D-Rose]
OG, Mike Miller [vs Keith Bogans or Kyle Korver]
SF, LeBron James [vs Luol Deng or Ronnie Brewer]
PF, Udonis Haslem [vs Carlos Boozer or Taj Gibson] 
C, Chris Bosh [vs Joakim Noah or Omer Asik]

#2.B) Jamaal Magloire was used for only 5 minutes.

#1.A) Mike Miller was used for 18 minutes.

#1.D) Udonis Haslem was used for 23 minutes.

If Coach Spoelstra wants to ensure that the Heat will win this series … by an ever-widening margin, then … all he really needs to do is implement the remaining “strategic” adjustments which were listed here on Monday that he chose to disregard in Game 2, i.e. 2.A, 1.B, and 1.C.

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PS. Last night, actually Coach Spoestra did a solid job of earning his salary. Unfortunately, the same thing cannot be said for Coach Thibodeau … especially, when he fell asleep at the switch, and was much too slow in substituting Ronnie Brewer back into the game, in the latter stages of the 4th quarter, after Coach Spoelstra showed that he was going to milk the “3-1 Pick-and-Pop” – with LeBron James as Miami’s primary ball-handler, since Kyle Korver/OG was still in the game and being used to check Mike Bibby/PG

PPS. BTW … For those who still believe that Chris Bosh is incapable of playing Center for a title-winning team in the NBA, last night’s game serves as Exhibit A for how exactly this young man can best be used by an organization that is being run by a GM who really does know what he is doing when it comes to being able to win it all.

Before sending Mike Bibby [PG], Maurice Evans [G/F] and Jordan Crawford [G] to the Washington Wizards, prior to the NBA’s deadline, in exchange for Kirk Hinrich [G] and Hilton Armstrong [PF/C], the Atlanta Hawks [40-32/.556] were firmly ensconced in the top half of the Eastern Conference with a Won-Loss Record of 34-23/.596.

Since that deal was made, however, the Hawks have been in a fairly rapid decent [i.e. W-L Rec/6-9/.400], and are now in danger of relinquishing the No. 5 position in the East to the hard-charging Philadelphia 76ers [37-34/.521].

Unlike assorted others in the on-line hoops community, who believe that the Hawks are in total disarray right now …

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The Atlanta Hawks are falling apart

The team is in a freefall mostly because it isn’t shooting as well as it used to. Joe Johnson still has his moments but he isn’t the sort of offensive force to build around, and while newly-added Kirk Hinrich is actually making nearly half of his three-pointers as a Hawk, everyone else seems to be falling short.

Worse? Everyone else seems to be falling into a bit of a funk. On record.

Joe Johnson?

The Hawks have no “sense of pride, a sense of urgency. … We should play for one another, but yet still we don’t.” And that “countless” players-only meetings meant to stir the echoes have “meant nothing.”

Al Horford?

“We just have to be mentally stronger.”

Coach Larry Drew?

His team is “a little fragile right now,” and the Hawks “have got to heal, more so mentally than physically.”

Josh Smith?

“When you don’t help each other, it gets contagious. We just didn’t show any kind of resistance.”

————————————————————————————————-

this corner of the blogosphere can see a clear way out for the Hawks, if they will just remain calm and search for the right answer to their current set of problems, from within the cozy confines of their own roster of players.

If the Hawks go with the following rotation in their next game [Sat Mar 26, vs New Jersey]:

STARTERS
PG, Jeff Teague [i.e. their best play-making PG]
OG, Joe Johnson
SF, Marvin Williams
PF, Josh Smith
C, Al Horford

KEY SUBS
G, Jamal Crawford [i.e. their best "scorer" off the bench]
G, Kirk Hinrich [i.e. their best "defensive Guard" off the bench]
SF, Damien Wilkins
PF, Josh Powell [i.e. their best "mid-range shooting Big" off the bench]
C, Zaza Pachulia [i.e. their best "rebounding/defensive Big" off the bench]

RESERVES
PF/C, Etan Thomas
C, Jason Collins

EXTRAS/OUTS
SF, Pape Sy
PF/C, Hilton Armstrong

and, therefore, use MORE of their avalibale players … as opposed to scaling back the number of players they use in their regular rotation, which is precisely the major mistake that Larry Drew [Head Coach] has made, since the trade for Kirk Hinrich was completed … it should come as no surprise, at all, to see this team register a very badly needed W.

Once the Hawks can right their ship, by getting this W, and establishing a clear rotation, as outlined above, Atlanta should then be able to string together a modest 3-game winning streak:

Sat Mar 26 vs New Jersey, W?
Sun Mar 27 @ Cleveland, W?
Wed Mar 30 vs Orlando, W?

before taking on the Boston Celtics, at home, on April Fool’s Day.

Although the Hawks have only played at a .400 clip since the trade deadline, it should be noted that:

3-0, vs. sub-.500 [at the time of the game]

Fri Feb 25, @ GSW, W
Tue Mar 15, vs MIL, W
Sun Mar 20, vs DET, W

3-9, vs. plus-.500 [at the time of the game]

Sun Feb 27, @ POR, W
Mon Feb 28, @ DEN, L
Wed Mar 02, vs CHI, W
Fri Mar 04, vs OKC, L
Sun Mar 06, vs NYK, L
Tue Feb 08, vs LAL, L
Fri Mar 11, @ CHI, L
Sat Mar 12, vs POR, W
Wed Mar 16, vs DEN, L
Fri Mar 18, vs MIA, L
Tue Mar 22, vs CHI, L
Wed Mar 23, @ PHI, L

i. They have played an extremely difficult schedule of games;

and,

ii. Each one of their losses has been to a team in the top half of the league standings … with a great deal at stake, at the time of the game;

while,

iii. Atlanta has basically been in cruise-control since the end of January:

Hawks W-L Record, Month-By-Month

October, 3-0
November, 8-7
December, 10-7
January, 9-4
February [before the trade deadline], 4-5

secure in the knowledge that their team is probably not good enough to move into the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference AND not bad enough to fall completely out of playoff contention.

As long as Larry Drew can keep his wits about him for the rest of the regular season schedule … and settle on the rotation suggested here … the Hawks should be able to regain their footing and re-establish themselves as the 5th best team in the East this season.

The Toronto Raptors lost a hard fought game to the visiting Atlanta Hawks last night:

Atlanta Hawks 104
TORONTO RAPTORS 101
Complete Game Info

but, instead of whining about the discrepancy in fouls called against the Raptors by a fairly veteran crew of officials … i.e. Bill Spooner, Rodney Mott and Haywoode Workman … which is really as good as it gets for a Wednesday night in the NBA with 11 games on the slate, what the Raptors and their rabid fanbase should actually be moaning about today is the poor defensive execution displayed by their own team on the following possession which allowed the Hawks to take the lead for good, on a simple “catch-and-shoot-3PT-shot” by notorious Raptors killer, Mike Bibby, with Atlanta down 2 points and 10.3 secs left in the 4th quarter:  

Q1. Which of the following individuals for the Raptors was at fault for failing to carry out his assignment properly on this specific defensive sequence?

i. Jose Calderon,
ii. Amir Johnson,
iii. DeMar DeRozan,
iv. Andrea Bargnani,
v. Leandro Barbosa,
vi. Jay Triano?  

A1. If you’ve been a regular visitor to this blog over the last several years, then, you should already be able to answer this question correctly for yourself.

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When a team is currently ranked:

A. 26th in [5th last] Points Allowed [i.e. 105.1], and

B. 30th [last] in Defensive Field Goal % [i.e. 49.2],

that team’s supporters need to understand that the primary reason they lost a very winnable game last night has nothing to do with the poor quality of officiating their team received but the poor quality of defensive execution by specific players and coaches when the outcome of the game was actually on the line.

FWIW, here’s the correct answer to the question posed above:

i. Demar DeRozan … did his job properly.
ii. Amir Johnson … did his job properly.
iii. Andrea Bargnani … failed to do his job properly.
iv. Leandro Barbosa … failed to do his job properly.
v. Jose Calderon … failed to do his job properly.
vi. Jay Triano … failed to do his job properly.  

SPECIFIC RATIONALE

re: Bargnani [i.e. near screener's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the screen defender – in the double screen action – who is closest to the inbounds passer is to:

- see the 2 cuts happening from the player located above/below the double screen [i.e. Mike Bibby]

and,

- jump out on the near/high side of the double screen to deter and/or intercept/deflect a direct pass to the shooter popping out at the top of the key

re: Barbosa [i.e. inbounds passer's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the inbounds passer’s defender is to:

- ”jam the passer” so that he is not able to complete a direct pass to a teammate cutting to the top of the key with the benefit of a single, double, or staggered set of screens

re: Calderon [i.e. weak side shooter's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the defender who is checking the player located above/below the double screen is to:

- “stay below” and towards the “basket side” of his own check

- “switch” vs any little-on-little cross screen action that ahppens below the double screen

- “chase” the shooter who comes out towards his side of the floor “around” the double screen action at the top of the key … and into the area of screen defender who is nearest the inbounds passer … by “trailing” on the hip of the shooter rather than attempting to fight “through” the middle of the 2 screeners

re: Triano
The primary responsibilities of the head coach whose team is leading by 2 points with only 10.3 secs left in the 4th quarter and the opponent with the ball in a sideline out-of-bounds situation, when coming from a called time-out is, to:

- Ensure that his players fully understand what they MUST DO in order to NOT GIVE UP an open 3PT-shot … either, from the top of the key, or the near wing/corner … which can lose them the game, outright, as opposed to surrendering a 2PT-shot which can only tie the score 

re: Amir Johnson [i.e. far screener's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the screen defender – in the double screen action – who is furthest from the inbounds passer is to:

- stay below the double screen, in order to cover whichever screener might step towards the basket in response to the actions of the near screen defender and the weak side shooter’s defender 

re: DeMar DeRozan [i.e. ball side shooter's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the defender who is checking the shooter located in the ball side low post is to:

- “front” vs this shooter so that he does not receive a direct entry pass

- “switch” vs any little-on-little cross screen action which occurs below the below screen

- “chase” vs any cut made by his individual check which does not involve the use of a single, double or staggered set of screens

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Kudos to the Hawks’ Larry Drew, Jamal Crawford, Al Horford, Josh Smith and Mike Bibby for doing each of their jobs properly and executing this basic offensive play! 

re: How an astute NBA observer might expect the first part of the schedule to unfold for the Raptors this year

Game 20 – at Atlanta [Wed Dec 02]

The Hawks are going to be a solid team in the EC this season. Adding a good PG from the 2009 NBA Draft [i.e. Jeff Teague], a multi-purpose Guard [i.e. Jamal Crawford] and a serviceable veteran Big [i.e. Joe Smith] improves their squad significantly; as does 1 more year of maturation with their core group [i.e. Joe Johnson, 28; Al Horford, 23; Josh Smith, 23; and, Marvin Williams, 23] together. The individual match-up advantages favour Atlanta … which will probably mean another road loss for the Raptors, in this back-2-back.

Raptors expected W-L Record: L, 7-13

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PS. This marks the end of the “early season” phase for the Raptors.

Related:

Toronto Raptors Season Preview: Game 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1.

* Tyler Hansbrough makes his summer league debut. Those who think that Larry Bird made a mistake with the No. 13 pick in the 2009 NBA Draft are going to be in for a surprise this season.

* Colangelo works fast and hard to get Turkoglu. Hedo is many things but a player who “creates” shots working off the dribble he is not. Expect THAT from him, without the benefit of a pick and you’ll be in for disappointment Raptors fans.

* What’s next? As the old adage goes: “Some of the best deals a team ever makes are the ones it doesn’t make, in the first place.” Solace for Blazers fans in the aftermath of winning losing the Hedo Turkoglu Sweepstakes.

* Buyer Beware! Things are not always as they first appear to be, when it comes to advantageous signings during the NBA’s free agency period.  

* Nick Collison says Thunder is ready for the next step. Sleep on Oklahoma City this coming season at your own peril.

There’s a tonne of information on-line right now but this one, courtesy of John Schuhmman, is as sound and concise as any:

Position-by-position: Top 5 free agents
As we’ve seen in the NBA Draft over the years, the best strategy is usually to take the best player available. You never know how draft picks will turn out, so selecting the guy closest to a sure thing, even if you’ve already got a similar player on your roster, is often the prudent way to go.

In free agency, though, teams pretty much know what kind of player they’re getting. Teams have seen what these guys can do and are able to better evaluate what they’re capable of and what they can bring to their team.

So the next few weeks will be about finding the right fit, both on the court and on the payroll.

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By position, the following players are under-rated [#, indicates where they should be ranked] in this year’s Free Agent class, according to yours truly:

POINT GUARDS
* Ramon Sessions [#1]
* Jarret jack [#2]
* CJ Watson [#6]

OFF GUARDS
* Anthony Parker [#1]

SMALL FORWARDS
* None

POWER FORWARDS
* Antonio McDyess [#3]
* Brandon Bass [#7]
* James Singleton [#9]

CENTERS
* Johan Petro [#4]

When Raptors fans look at the way their team is perfoming during the final 20 games of their disappointing season …

———-

* – >.500 Team

winning only 7 of the 15 games [.467] they’ve played thus far.

———-

they need to make an accurate appraisal of the players who will form the nucleus of this team going forward from here:

Unlike many others in Raptorville, this corner does not believe that the main problems this team has experienced this season have been rooted in the assortment of injuries they’ve sustained and/or the overall poor performances of Chris Bosh and Jose Calderon, who are their best players by a wide margin.

Until Bryan Colangelo significantly upgrades the players who are currently slotted into the #3-15 spots on the Raptors’ roster:

i.e. Shawn Marion/#3, Andrea Bargnani/#4, Anthony Parker/#5, Joey Graham/#6, Kris Humphries/#7, Jason Kapono/#8, Roko Ukic/#9, Pops Mensah-Bonsu/#10, Quincy Douby/#11, Jake Voskuhl/#12, Patrick O’Brant/#13 and Nathan Jawai/#14

there is little chance this team will make serious headway in the Eastern Conference next season. 

Using the 4th place Atlanta Hawks, as one comparative example:

1. While Chris Bosh [C] can hold his own against other up-and-coming young players like Al Horford [C] or Josh Smith [PF], Andrea Bargnani [C] cannot; and, is simply out-classed by either of these two players.

2. While Jose Calderon [PG] can hold his own against a solid veteran like Mike Bibby [PG], Shawn Marion [SF] cannot stay with a multi-dimensional, dynamic Wing player like Joe Johnson [SF/OG/PG].

3. While Joey Graham has made a significant jump this season … i.e. from a seldom-used after-thought to a serviceable Wing player … he is simply not as good as Maurice Evans [OG/SF], nor as consistent.

4. While Jason Kapono is one of the best stand-still “catch & shoot” artists in the NBA, he is simply not as versatile a Back-up Guard/Forward as a Flip Murray, who can capably fill in for the Hawks, as an under-sized OG and an emergency PG.

5. While Kris Humphries is a solid Back-up Big Man, he is simply not as good as Zaza Pachulia.

6. While Roko Ukic has the make-up of a solid Point Guard, in the NBA, he is not a superior player to Acie Law, at this position.

7. While Pops Mensah-Bonsu certainly brings some badly needed energy and NBA athleticism to the Raptors, he is simply not in the same class of serviceable Back-up Big Man as a versatile player like Solomon Jones [who was a DNP in last night's game but can capably fill-in for the Hawks at both C and PF].

Most of which was on full display in last night’s game.

FINAL SCORE: RAPTORS 110, Hawks 118
Complete Game Info

FINAL SCORE: Tor 84, ATL 87
Game Info; Box Score; Full Play-By-Play; Video Highlights

It is comical to read that many observers in Raptorville actually believe that Jamario Moon was the main reason the Raptors lost this game yesterday and that what Chris Bosh did at the 01:33 mark of the 4th quarter was, in fact, what his team needed from him, at that point, in this contest.

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Yours truly is appreciative of Chris Bosh, as the Captain of this team … but, in this specific instance, what he did at that moment in time was the exact opposite of what was needed by his teammates and specifically a player like Jamario Moon.

What exactly happened at the 01:33 mark of the final quarter?

Joe Johnson beat Jamario Moon off the bounce, from the top of the key [TOTK] for a driving layup, straight down the middle of the lane. On his made field goal attempt, however, Johnson was fouled by Moon. Chris Bosh came off his own check to provide late help at the rim for Moon. After the bodies unpiled off the ground, Bosh tore a strip off his teammate for his inability to prevent a direct drive to the basket by Johnson, putting the responsibility for this made basket by the Hawks best player squarely on the shoulders of his beaten Raptors’ teammate.

If you watch the videotape of Moon’s reaction to the calling out he received from Bosh you will see that he was completely stunned and upset to be singled out in this way, by his Captain, at this point in the game.

The score was Tor 84, ATL 83 … and Toronto then possession of the ball.

* Joey Graham subbed in for Roko Ukic, meaning that the Raptors best available 5-Man Unit of Parker/PG, Graham/W, Moon/W, Bargnani/B & Bosh/B were on the floor together for the final minute and half of the game.

Possession #1
Bosh set an Angle Pick for Parker [Left-TOTK]. Parker drove left [vs Flip Murray] and passed off to Graham [Left-Corner]. Graham drove the left baseline [vs Evans & Smith] and took a contested jumpshot which missed with 9 seconds remaining on the shot clock [01:18]. Smith collected the defensive rebound.

Possession A
Smith passed to Johnson in the Hawks’ back-court. Johnson dribbled into the front-court and tried to iso vs Parker [Left-Wing]. Bargnani provided backside help to deter Johnson’s drive. Johnson drove left regardless and was soft double-teamed by Parker & Bargnani. Johnson passed out of the double-team to Bibby [Left-TOTK]. Bibby shot-faked and was fouled by Moon. Bibby Made 2 FT’s … Tor 84, ATL 85 [00:54.4]. Raptors’ Time-Out [Full].

Possession #2
Kapono subbed in for Graham. Kapono inbounded the ball [Left-Sideline] and passed directly to Bosh [Left-TOTK/vs Josh Smith]. Bosh tried to swept right and drive by Smith into the lane. Smith deflected the ball off Bosh’s knee and it went to Johnson with 22 seconds on the shot clock. Turnover, Chris Bosh [00:52.7].

Possession B
Atlanta attacked in transition [Johnson vs Bargnani]. Johnson passed to Smith [Left-Wing, vs Parker]. Smith drove into the lane and passed to Maurice Evans [Left-Block]. Evans attempted a wild driving, twisting layup vs the 4 Raptors [i.e. Parker, Bosh, Bargnani & Moon] who were back standing under the basket, with 19 seconds remaining on the shot clock [00:45.2]. Bosh collected the defensive rebound.

Possession #3 
Bosh made an outlet pass to Parker. Parker attacked in transition [vs Flip Murray, Right-Elbow]. Evans recovered to Parker [Right-TOTK]. Parker passed to Moon [Right-Free Throw Line Extended/FTLX], who was unchecked in transition. Moon attempted a 3PT-shot with 20 seconds remaining on the shot clock [00:38.6], in a two for one situation, down by 1 point. Murray closed out vs Moon. Moon’s 3-ball missed. Johnson tipped the defensive rebound to Bibby. Raptors’ game announcers – Matt Devlin & Leo Rautins [TV] and Eric Smith & Paul Jones [Radio] – castigated Moon for shooting THAT shot at that point in the game.

Possession C
In the Hawks’ back-court, Bibby passed Murray & Murray passed to Johnson. Johnson [vs Moon] dribbled into the front-court. Johnson passed to Bibby [Left-Hash Mark/vs Parker]. Johnson [vs Moon] set a High Middle Pick for Bibby [vs Parker]. Parker & Moon Switched. Johnson iso’d vs Parker [Left-Elbow] and took a tough 18 foot pull-up jump shot that was heavily contested by both Parker & Moon [helping off Bibby/TOTK]. Johnson Made the jump shot with 2 seconds remaining on the shot clock [00:12.5]. Tor 84, ATL 87. Raptors’ Time-Out [20]. Toronto & Atlanta each with 1 Time-Out [20] left.

Possession #4
Kapono [Left-Sideline/vs Flip Murray] inbounded the ball to Parker [TOTK/vs Maurice Evans]. Kapono cut baseline off Staggered Lane Screens by Bosh [1st/vs Smith] and Bargnani [2nd/vs Johnson] and curled out to receive the pass [Right-FTLX] from Parker. Murray went Over the 1st Screen and Locked & Trailed on the 2nd Screen. Kapono caught the pass cleanly and elavated for his 3PT jump shot. Johnson [helping off Bargnani] rotated out to contest Kapono’s jump shot. Bargnani stepped to the Left-Corner. Kapono tried to pass in mid-air to Bargnani but the jump-pass was deflected by Johnson [00:08.0]. Murray bobbled the loose ball. Bargnani bobbled the loose ball. Kapono collected the loose ball and took a 3PT-shot [Right-Sideline/vs Murray] that missed [00.04.5]. Smith collected the defensive rebound [00:02.8].

Possession D
Smith passed ahead to Johnson in the Hawks front-court [00:00.0]. End of Game.

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As a Team Leader …

What Chris Bosh NEEDED to do instead, at that moment in time, with the game on the line, was encourage his teammates NOT admonish them.

See the Full Play-By-Play [above] to compare the way Bosh and Moon played from 05:00-01:33 of the 4th quarter.

Admonishing teammates with 01:33 remaining in a 1 point ball-game usually leads to further execution errors, by both parties, not less … which is precisely what happened in this instance.

Hopefully, as Chris Bosh continues to mature, in this regard … as a person, player and a Leader … he will better realize the error of his ways.