Heat get Lump of Coal

The Miami Heat played on Christmas for the fourth consecutive time, and have gone 3-0 in their previous three meetings. But this time, LeBron James spun by Dorell Wright to score the first bucket of the game. Apparently, that was an omen of the game for Miami, who dropped to 8-20 earlier today in a 96-82 loss.

Cleveland dominated the Heat in the entire second half, and the Heat did virtually nothing right in the last 24 minutes. After opening with a 10-point lead in the opening minutes, the Cavs took full command, capitalizing on Miami's 11 turnovers in the third quarter to turn what was once a double-digit deficit into a six-point lead going into the fourth.

I cannot stress the turnovers enough for the Heat. Miami was up by 10 in the third quarter, and they had an opportunity to get a comfortable win on Christmas day. However, the Heat got complacent and only scored 14 points in the third period. You have to give credit to the defense of Cleveland, but a lot of it was (I'll use the tennis term here) unforced errors. At one point, Miami was in transition and Jason Williams passed the ball to a bumbling Shaquille O'Neal, who could not handle the pass. The decision making for Miami needs to improve.

Cleveland virtually lived inside the paint for the first quarter, on their way to taking an eight-point advantage going into the second period. However, Miami gave Cleveland mixes of zone and man-to-man defense, which discombobulated the Cavs. And good defense leads to easy offense, as the Heat shot 56% from the field in that 30-point second quarter.

Unfortunately, Miami's lead quickly evaporated in the third quarter and Cleveland never looked back, making it a double-digit lead with nine minutes to go in the game. The Heat were unable to respond, and Dwyane Wade simply could not take over. Wade may have some lingering knee and/or shoulder problems, but he simply did not have the explosion that you usually see out of him. Another glaring weakness was Wade's free-throw shooting. Again, Wade's injuries may have something to do with it. Wade, a good free-throw shooter, was eight-of-16 from the line, which is unacceptable.

It will be arduous for Miami to salvage a season already 1/3 through. The Miami Heat need an overhaul, plain and simple. They let good players and All-Stars go and essentially got nothing in return. Where is the three-point shooter? Where is the defensive stopper? Where is Udonis Haslem's backup? It's tough to fathom Pat Riley going in to the season with no answers for these questions. Although Earl Barron is becoming the charge-taker for Miami.

One surprising move by Pat Riley was letting Mark Blount and Luke Jackson play today. I don't know what Riles saw in Luke Jackson, but whatever it is, he doesn't have it now. After missing crucial shots in his first game, being glued to the bench, Jackson air-balled his first three-point attempt. He's not the consistent three-point shooter the Heat need. He's not a consistent shooter at all.

I do not mean to be all "Bah, Humbug" today, but I would just like to wish everyone a merry Christmas.