Heat Can't Spur to Victory

Get back Shawn Marion, and his shot? Check.

Dwyane Wade and Michael Beasley (finally) look like a tandem of the future? Check.

Hold Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili to sub-par games? Check.

Sweep the San Antonio Spurs for the 2008-09 season? Well...


The Miami Heat was close but no cigar Monday night against the championship-contending San Antonio Spurs. Miami was right in the game for about 46 minutes of the game before a late surge by the Spurs put the nail in the coffin against the Heat, leading to a 91-84 loss at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Shawn Marion's transition dunk with 44 seconds left in the third quarter tied the game at 60 apiece. But Matt Bonner made a three-pointer 13 seconds later to push the lead back up to three. After a poor offensive play for Miami that resulted in an errant hook shot attempt by Jamaal Magloire, Manu Ginobili's driving layup just before the buzzer sounded made it a five-point game heading into the final stanza of play.

The Heat was quickly able to tie the score, off of a jumper by Beasley and a triple by Chris Quinn. From then on, the San Antonio lead always stayed between three to five points, with Miami missing on several opportunities to cut into the deficit.

With 96 seconds to go and Miami down 81-84, Wade stole a pass by Tony Parker and looked for a transition bucket. He managed to get his layup attempt over Parker, but Ginobili came out of nowhere and repelled the shot to the half-court line. Roger Mason hit a jump shot six seconds later to extend the lead to 86-81 and all but diminish the Heat's morale. Beasley would only score again on the Heat, on a three-pointer with just 13 seconds left.

Even before the blocked shot, it wasn't Wade's night. He missed 16 of 26 field goal attempts, made it to the free throw line five times and turned the ball over five times. The 6-foot-4 guard out of Marquette was constantly doubled after a pick-and-roll. Wade did have 12 assists, but his teammates could've shot better from the field.

Udonis Haslem, who frequently sets picks for Wade, converted on only four of ten shots from the field. Magloire was zero-for-five from the field, hardly showing any offensive upgrade over Joel Anthony. And Marion missed all three of his attempts from downtown.

That's not to say that Marion didn't have a good game. He had one of his better offensive games, with 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting. Marion was really aggressive with the ball, but also converted on a couple of jump shots.

Miami's too rookies also showed up to play last night. Mario Chalmers looked to be more aggressive with the ball after going cold from beyond the arc, finishing with nine points on four-of-seven shooting, five assists, no turnovers and a nice block on Spurs forward Bruce Bowen. Michael Beasley, meanwhile, finished with a double-double of 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting and 12 rebounds in just 30 minutes. As I mentioned, Wade and Beasley looked like the duo of the future for the Heat. Having two offensive weapons on the court makes things tougher for the opposing team.

But that gets to the reality of it all. The Heat is rebuilding, looking to form that chemistry between Wade and Beasley. The Spurs have a goal of winning an NBA Championship, a plan San Antonio has had for the past decade.

The three-point shooting by the Spurs hurt the Heat the most. In total, San Antonio had 30 points from downtown. Matt Bonner and George Hill each knocked down three triples for the Spurs. If you don't follow basketball closely, you probably haven't heard of those two. But it was the role players who did the most damage from beyond the arc.

Inside the arc, Tim Duncan had his way with Anthony and Magloire, finishing with 19 points and nine boards, four of which were offensive rebounds. Anthony didn't know Duncan's moves and Magloire wasn't quick off his feet. I wouldn't have minded to see Udonis Haslem on the 6-fott-11 power forward out of Wake Forest a little bit more. Haslem has guarded Duncan in for the past few years and could've brought that knowledge, something Anthony simply didn't have. He's giving up three inches and 25 pounds to the four-time NBA champion, but he would've contested every shot.

The Heat has lost three of its last five heading into the start of a seven-game road trip. All those losses came against either Cleveland, Orlando or San Antonio, three of the League's dominant teams. But each game had a fourth quarter full of missed opportunities. Coach Erik Spoelstra will try to get his team ready against the Denver Nuggets Wednesday night at 9 p.m. on ESPN, with Dick Vitale commenting. Carmelo Anthony is not expected to play, with a broken bone in his shooting hand.

Injury Report

Daequan Cook left the game in the second quarter after bruising his left knee. X-rays were negative, but Cook did not return and was held out of today's afternoon practice. He is listed as a game-time decision for Wednesday's game.

A spokesperson for the Heat announced earlier today that the team had released Shaun Livingston, the 6-foot-7 guard originally drafted No. 4 overall in 2004. Livingston is still recovering from a gruesome knee injury he sustained in Feb. 2007 that left him with three torn ligaments and a dislocated kneecap.

I, for one, don't think this was purely a salary-cap move. Some were envisioning a point guard future of Chalmers and Livingston. But the lanky guard hasn't shown that he still has promise in the limited minutes he has received, with reduced mobility and confusion. But this was, surely, also a salary-cap issue. If President Pat Riley released the player whom he wanted to, it would probably be Mark Blount, but his contract is so bloated that it makes a buyout difficult. Livingston's contract only guarantees him $370,000 this season, keeping the Heat below the dollar-for-dollar luxury tax. The vacant spot on Miami's roster can be filled by two-time Defensive Player of the Year Alonzo Mourning, who has spoke of his willingness to return to the Heat.

Dorell Wright will not travel with the team during the seven-game road trip after surgery in November to clear loose cartiledge from his knee. James Jones, however, will travel with Miami. Spoelstra has been mum on whether the three-point specialist will get off the injured list during the trip.