Will Marion Move?

This is not the ideal time to run an NBA team. Not only is attendance down because of the economic recession, it already looks like the Boston Celtics, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Cleveland Cavaliers are pulling away from the rest of the League. Of course, anything can happen in the final five months of the season. But it should not be a surprise that New Orleans and Phoenix -- two teams that would like to compete with the Lakers in the West -- made deals Wednesday.

This brings us to the possibility that Heat President Pat Riley may trade Shawn Marion. Marion trade rumors were heard ever since Marion did not sign a contract extension with Miami last summer. The four-time NBA All-Star has put up mediocre numbers of 12.7 points and 9.2 rebounds this season compared to what we have seen out of Marion. As I said in my previous post, Miami is a jump-shooting team right now, and with that comes inconsistency. The Heat has won four of its last five games, but Marion has not proven he can step up when things are not falling down for Dwyane Wade.

Do not expect Riley to trade his highest-paid player anytime soon.Pat Riley will not trade Marion before James Jones comes back from his injury. Jones is expected to return in mid-January, which is still well before the trade deadline in February. The 6-foot-8 forward out of Miami University has never been a full-time starter in his five-year career. It would be quite a leap to give him the starting duty after coming off of a serious injury. But even if Jones plays well for Miami once he comes back, I anticipate Riley will let Marion ride out his $17. 2 million contract in order to sign a big-name free agent in 2009. Carlos Boozer's name has been thrown around the most when it comes to that for Miami.

Why will Riley keep Marion? While an expiring contract is appealing to certain General Managers, it is not to others. There is always the prospect of renting Marion for the rest of the 2008-09 season before he can sign take off to another team next season. And trading one or two key cogs will probably lead to some buyer's remorse. Moreover, Marion's statistics are down across the board, and most GMs would agree that he is not worth the $17.2 million he will get at the end of the season. Nonetheless, there could also be some sign-and-trade options for Riley this summer.

That is not to say that a trade involving Marion is very unlikely. This season has not been good for Mark Blount and Marcus Banks. Riley would love to get rid of either of the two overpaid players, and if trading them requires Marion to sweeten the pot, I do not see why Riley would not jump on the deal.

Miami is not looking to compete with Boston, L.A., or Cleveland. The Heat is in the Eastern Conference. All teams except Boston, Cleveland and Orlando are nothing special. Even the Detroit Pistons have fallen out of the top-tier teams in the East after its Allen Iverson trade left more questions than answers. If Erik Spoelstra can get his team to get the fourth seed -- which is still conceivable -- then attendance will steadily go up and the Heat will be a resurgent team. Pat Riley will then have salary cap flexibility after Marion's contract expires to get a top-tier post presence. That may be, simply, as good as it gets for Miami.

Hawks Snap Streak

The Miami Heat opened its match-up against the Atlanta Hawks on an 11-0 run, but seemingly did not have anything left as the Hawks cruised to an 87-73 win to snap Miami's four-game winning streak.

During Miami's 11-0 run to open the game, Shawn Marion had four points, Mario Chalmers hit a three, Udonis Haslem hit a jumper and Dwyane Wade capped it off with a jump-shot with eight minutes and 32 seconds left in the first period. That run was the complete opposite of what the Heat did the rest of the game. Marion's ugly shooting mechanic cost him a few easy shots in the paint, Haslem missed his open jumpers, Chalmers was riddled with foul trouble and Wade did not bail out Miami in the fourth quarter.

The Hawks closed to within five points by the end of the first quarter and had a 43-40 lead at intermission. In the third quarter, it seemed as if Atlanta was getting everything it wanted while the Heat could not buy a bucket. The only two players that shot above 50 percent from the field for Miami were Marion (five-for-nine shooting) and reserve center Jamaal Magloire (one-for-one shooting). Unfortunately, neither of the two stepped up to make this game even remotely competitive in the second half.

Miami's second leading scorer, Michael Beasley, had the flu and did not play tonight. His presence could have made a difference against the Hawks. Beasley is the only player on the Heat who can create his own shot whose last name is not Wade. As bad as this game looked, the Hawks did not play particularly well. Atlanta shot just 38 percent from the field. Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby shot a combined 12-for-33 from the field. The reason why the Atlanta won is because it made 32 trips to the free-throw line and out-rebounded Miami 53-37.

Beasley has had rough nights, but the Heat has still managed to pull a way with a victory. In that case, Wade would have a great game or Daequan Cook would have a nice shooting night from the field. Tonight, Wade shot a miserable 9-for-24 and made it to the free throw line just six times. Wade settled for too many jumpers, and with three days off leading into tonight's game, there is no excuse for settling. Cook, meanwhile, shot 5-for-14 from the field and committed five fouls in 30 minutes off of the bench.

Despite the rough night for Bibby, Miami's point guard rotation looked untested earlier tonight. Mario Chalmers got into early foul trouble and the Hawks took Chris Quinn apart on defense. Coach Erik Spoelstra decided to go with the longer, more athletic Marcus Banks. Banks could have done a lot more in his garbage minutes. The most experienced point guard on Miami's roster looked disinterested in playing defense and was non-existent offensively.

With the lack of slashes from Wade, Miami was purely a jump-shooting team earlier tonight. That is the problem when Spoelstra does not have a post presence to go to. And when you have a jump-shooting team, your team is going to be inconsistent. Against Atlanta, it seemed as though Wade made a domino effect on the rest of the team: he shot poorly, and so did everyone else.

Jamaal Magloire was active on the glass, with five rebounds in 13 minutes. In his last two games, Joel Anthony has had a combined one block. I know it is premature to label Anthony in a slump, but I am not completely sold on Anthony. Spoelstra knows how Miami's rebounding has cost them a few games, and may be willing to give more minutes to the 6-foot-11 Magloire rather than the 6-foot-9 Anthony. Spoelstra should still start Anthony, but the door is wide open for Magloire.

Nonetheless, the need for a post presence was highlighted tonight. Beasley drives to the rim and Wade drives to the rim, but Miami still needs that post presence who can get them those high-percentage shots consistently. As I said, when you are a jump-shooting team, you will be inconsistent. Throughout this season, Miami has been.

The Heat will fly to Memphis, Tenn., to face the Grizzlies Monday. The availability of Beasley against Memphis is unknown.

Wade Lifts Heat Past 'Cats

Dwyane Wade was again called upon to rally the Miami Heat in the fourth quarter to a win, and did not disappoint.

After Charlotte point guard D.J. Augustin made a three-pointer to put the Bobcats up 84-79 with just under seven minutes to go, Wade turned it on and got the job done. Wade found Yakhouba Diawara in the corner for a three to make it 82-84. But a couple of minutes later, Wade decided to take it into his own hands.

After grabbing a defensive rebound and taking the ball up court, Wade used a screen from Shawn Marion and drove right into the lane and viciously dunked on Emeka Okafor. That dunk made the game was tied at 86 all with 4:02 remaining. The game was mostly free throws from then on, but that play helped Miami overcome what was as much as a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit.
Jason Richardson missed two free throws that could have tied the game at 93 all, but Diawara, Udonis Haslem and Wade all made their free throws en route to a 100-96 victory. The crowd again serenaded Wade from the stands with chants of "M-V-P! M-V-P!" as he went to the line 19 times, with 15 connections.

Wade finished with 41 points on just 22 shot attempts. Wade also grabbed eight rebounds and dished out three assists. Wade continued to stay true with his jump shot. Wade even shot four three-pointers last night, and connected on two. The turnovers (five) were a blemish, but the rest of the Heat only turned the ball over six times.

Wade's back-court mate, rookie Mario Chalmers, managed to out-play both Raymond Felton and Augustin. Chalmers had 15 points on five-of-nine shooting from the field and four-for-five from the free throw line to go along with three steals and three assists. Felton and Augustin, by comparison, shot a combined 6-for-25. Additionally, Chalmers was not the catch-and-shoot three-point shooter he has been all season long. He drove to the rim and took it off the dribble a lot.

Late in the game, Coach Erik Spoelstra went with a lineup of Chalmers, Wade, Diawara, Marion and Haslem. I expect Spoelstra to use that again, as going small was very effective against Charlotte. Diawara especially did his part defensively. After Charlotte guard Jason Richardson scored 13 points in the first quarter, Diawara guarded Richardson for most of the second and fourth quarters. Richardson went one-for-four during those quarters.

Other than Wade, Chalmers and Diawara, no one else played well for Miami. Marion shot just 5-for-13 from the field, missing several short shots. Haslem shot just one-for-five from the field, but did make his free throws down the stretch. Joel Anthony did have six rebounds, but did little to slow down Okafor, who finished with 19 points on 9-of-11 shooting and 12 rebounds. Quinn shot decent from the field, but his lack of foot-speed was exploited against the quickness of Felton and Augustin. Michael Beasley had a rough shooting night, and is still not able to step up as a definitive second-scoring option.

The Heat barely beat the Gerald Wallace-less Bobcats at home. The underrated Wallace had to go to the funeral of his grandmother. The Heat simply cannot continue to rely on Wade to bail the team out. Marion has proven to be a third-scoring option at best, and Beasley still has not found consistency to be the second option on offense.

Miami, nonetheless, is just percentage points behind New Jersey and Detroit and within striking distance of the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference. The players will get plenty of rest before taking on the fourth-seeded Atlanta Hawks Friday night.

Heat Complete Trifecta

It was supposed to be a match-up between childhood buddies Kevin Durant and Michael Beasley, the last two Number 2 picks in the NBA Draft. Instead, it ended up as a match-up between Russell Westbrook and Dwyane Wade, with the NBA's leading scorer winning, 38-30.

The Heat also won three consecutive games for the first time since the 2006-07 season. This is a big step forward for this rebuilding team. Erik Spoelstra could not have asked for a better opponent last night, the Oklahoma City Thunder (2-19). The Heat (11-9) was able to withstand an uneven performance to come away with a 105-99 win.

Wade showed no signs of the migraine he suffered in Utah. In addition to scoring 38 points on 14-of-24 shooting and 10-of-15 from the free-throw line, the 6-foot-4 guard out of Marquette had five rebounds, seven assists, two steals and two blocks in 35 minutes. Unfortunately, Wade turned the ball over four times, but no other player turned it over more than twice and the Heat kept its total to 14.

Wade had 15 points in the first quarter and 25 by intermission. In the third quarter, the Miami lead swelled to 15 on Wade's three-point play with 2.8 seconds left in the period. Wade got some chants of "M-V-P! M-V-P!" from the stands as he went to the line for his free-throw.

Should Wade be the 2008-09 MVP? Just a quarter into the season, it's too early to tell. But when the Thunder went on a 20-5 run in the fourth quarter when Wade was on the bench, it shows that he is very valuable to this team.

It ended up as a 90-90 game halfway through the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for the Thunder, Wade found Mario Chalmers for a three with 5:13 to go to make it a 93-90 game. Wade then made a fade-away jumper with 3:27 left to make it a 97-91 game. Shawn Marion then made six points in the final two minutes to ice the game for Miami.

Marion finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and four blocked shots on the night, hitting on all cylinders. Chalmers also added 15 on five-of-eight shooting from the field and three-of-six shooting from beyond the arc. The rookie out of Kansas struggled defensively against Westbrook and picked up three early fouls, but made the clutch shots in the fourth quarter.

Also adding 15 points for the Heat was Udonis Haslem. Haslem finished with 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting and 14 rebounds. Haslem has been a consistent scorer and rebounder since he shifted over to his natural position. His three consecutive games of 13 rebounds or more was the first time a Heat player has done so since Shaquille O'Neal in the 2004-05 season.

Miami did not get much help off the bench, with Michael Beasley only scoring six points in 13 minutes. Beasley got poked in the eye and had to go to the locker room for further treatment. When Beasley stepped back on the court, he complained of blurry vision and had to sit back down. Daequan Cook, meanwhile, struggled with his shot, connecting on only one of his five attempted shots.

But Jamaal Magloire provided the most in his five minutes of action. The 6-foot-11 center got an offensive rebound in the second quarter, threw his elbows around a few times, and dunked the ball with authority over two Oklahoma City defenders. His aggressive play is not bad, considering this is a team is need of some bulk.

"He gives us a level of toughness and a defensive presence there," Spoelstra said. "No matter what happens, I know somebody’s going to get hit. It could be one of our guys or one of their guys, or maybe him hitting the floor, but I like that physicality."

On a more serious note, Magloire has a shot with this club. I like Joel Anthony's defense, but the door is wide open for Magloire. If he can be a defensive presence and get a few off second-chance points, he could end up starting for this team. However, this is a big if.

The Heat, a team that has won the battle of the boards against its past three opponents, will host the Charlotte Bobcats Monday, Dec. 8. In the standings, Miami is only one-half of a game behind New Jersey for the sixth seed.

Injury Report

Chris Quinn missed Saturday's game due to a sprained ankle. He is expected to play Monday night against Charlotte.

Shaun Livingston got 12 minutes of playing time last night, his longest stretch since suffering a devastating knee injury in Feb. 2007. Livingston finished with three points, one assist and zero turnovers for the Heat.

But in the most unexpected news, Spoelstra talked about the possible return of veteran Alonzo Mourning to the team.

"He’s still working every single day," he said. "It’ll probably be another three weeks or a month before he can come to his decision."

Heat Finds Consistency on Road

The Miami Heat started its five-game road trip Nov. 26 and lost to the Portland Trail Blazers by 38 points. The Heat fell below .500 for the first time since Nov. 1 and it looked like Erik Spoelstra would have a long week ahead of himself.

But he did not. Spoelstra tweaked the starting lineup, moving Michael Beasley to the bench while inserting Joel Anthony at the five. This not only allowed Miami to have a defensive presence in Anthony, it let Udonis Haslem play in his natural position, the four. The Heat went 3-1 the rest of the road trip (and maybe 4-0 if that referee would have taken a step to the left or right) and managed to string two wins together for only the second time this season.

Miami (10-9) and New Jersey are currently deadlocked for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference, and the Heat's schedule looks soft. League lightweights Oklahoma City, Charlotte, Memphis and Milwaukee coming up. It is imperative that the Heat do not take these teams lightly. This team has already lost to the Bobcats and the Clippers. But if Miami takes it one game at a time, they could continue to climb in the standings. The Heat have begun to find some consistency after a month into the season. And it starts and ends with Dwyane Wade.

Wade has been playing at an otherworldly level since last summer's Olympics (no, he is not a cheater). He averaged 28 points, five rebounds, eight assists, two steals and two blocks per game through 19 games. He is playing as well as he played in the 2006 playoffs, but this performance now may be more impressive. He is shooting at an astounding 49.1 percent from the field, just four-tenths off of his career-high of 49.5 percent shooting from the field in the 2005-06 season. He is developing much more consistency with his mid-range shot and has even gone out to the three-point line more often. The young man has been nothing more of spectacular -- and his numbers will only improve once three-point specialist James Jones comes back from injury.

It is not all Wade, though. Beasley, Shawn Marion and Haslem average double-digit scoring for Miami. Beasley is Miami's second-leading scorer with 14.5 points per game. He is the only player on the Heat who can create his own shot whose last name is not Wade. Beasley seems to be adjusting well to his new role off the bench, but the 6-foot-9 forward who averaged over 12 rebounds per game in his lone season at Kansas State is not attacking the boards enough.

Daequan Cook has also emerged as a bit of a surprise, highlighted with good games against Phoenix and Golden State. Sure, he has shot the ball when he should not have, but Cook has been solid. Him and Wade have such good chemistry together. Every time Wade drives to the rim, it seems like he knows where Cook is. Cook made clutch buckets against the Warriors and had a strong game off the bench against Phoenix. Cook and Beasley are proving to be a solid one-two punch off the bench.

More broadly, this team is finding its identity. On defense, the Heat is a scrappy team that will make opposing teams pay for their mistakes. Miami averages nine steals per game and Anthony has a knack for blocking shots. Offensively, Wade is the catalyst for everything. He can provide easy baskets for his teammates or take it to the rim himself. And when Wade is not on the court, Beasley has done a fine job as the second unit's offensive focal point. This can also give Wade more rest. As a player who has dealt with injury problems his whole career, Wade's rest is appreciated.

This team has a rookie coach, a nine-man rotation with no one taller than 6-foot-9, and six players in the rotation with less than three years of wearing an NBA uniform. It is not bad for that team to be floating around .500. But this is the Eastern Conference, and it already looks like Boston, Cleveland, and Orlando are pulling away from the rest of the pack. The Heat may be able to get the fifth seed in the East, a huge jump from winning just 15 games last season. Miami is two games behind Atlanta for the fifth seed. After going unbeaten through its first six games, the Hawks have been just as up-and-down as the Heat. The ball is in Miami's court. All they have to do is get the job done. A fairly successful road trip is a great place to start.

Heat Make Utah Sing Blues

The Miami Heat finally broke its up-and-down pattern last night against the Utah Jazz with a 93-89 victory that gave Miami (10-9) a winning record on its five-game West swing.

Do not be fooled by the final score. The Heat did not almost lose to the Carlos Boozer-less, Andrei Kirilenko-less Jazz. Shawn Marion's steal with two minutes and 52 seconds left to play made it a 93-82 game. Utah just made a last-minute surge that ultimately came to no avail. Six players hit double figures in points for Miami, with migraine-riddled Dwyane Wade leading the way.

The game stayed close for the entire first half, and Miami led 47-45 at intermission. The Heat won this game in the third quarter. Wade, who started off cool, scored nine points in the third quarter, helping the Heat make a decisive 16-2 run. With three quarters in the books, Miami led 65-74. On the defensive end, Miami was able to shut Utah down with the help of center Joel Anthony. Anthony blocked four shots in the third quarter, but also altered a few more shots and made Utah's perimeter players settle for jump shots.

Miami's lead stayed around 10 or 12 points for the first 10 minutes of the fourth quarter. Mario Chalmers had two nice steals off of Jazz star Deron Williams in the final period, both leading to easy fast-break opportunities. Chalmers was eaten alive by Utah's pick-and-roll offense, but those two moments were highlights for the rookie point guard.

Chalmers finished with 10 points on five-of-five shooting from the free-throw line, five assists and three steals. On the other hand, Chalmers had five turnovers, not a good sign from your point guard. Chalmers' assist-to-turnover ratio last night was 1:1, something that cannot continue for the Miami Heat.

The player who one may expect to have the most turnovers on Miami is Dwyane Wade. This time, however, the 6-foot-4 guard out of Marquette did not turn the ball over once. Wade was limited to 32 minutes of playing time due to foul trouble, but this is an encouraging sign from Miami's star guard. Wade also had 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field, five rebounds, five assists, four steals and two blocked shots. And yes, he still leads the League in scoring.

Erik Spoelstra's forward duo of Marion and Udonis Haslem delivered again. Marion had 15 points on 7-for-12 shooting and eight rebounds while Haslem finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds, eight of which were offensive boards. Marion and Haslem were also helped that they did not have to defend Andrei Kirilenko or Carlos Boozer, who were both out with injuries.

Rookie Michael Beasley had another solid offensive game off the bench with 12 points on six-for-nine shooting. Unfortunately, Beasley only got 18 minutes of playing time. That was probably because Beasley had two fouls in the first quarter and turned the ball over five times. I like the fact that Spoelstra is making Beasley earn his minutes. People have told me that Pat Riley should have drafted O.J. Mayo, but Mayo is playing 39 minutes per game. Beasley is only playing 28 minutes. And the fact that the star forward out of Kansas State is having to earn his minutes will make him a better player.

Last night, it was Daequan Cook, not Beasley, who did most of the damage for Miami off of the bench. Cook had 10 points in the first half before missing everything the rest of the way. But Cook's first-half contribution should not be understated. Wade and Beasley both got into early foul trouble, and Cook's shooting helped Miami to a two-point halftime lead before the third quarter run.

Not only were Boozer and Kirilenko out, Williams (who recently suffered a hip flextor) and All-Star Mehmet Okur also had off shooting nights. But this team is improving. After a blowout loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, this team won three of its next four games on the road trip. This team could be beginning to feel buoyant. Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, Orlando and Atlanta are the only teams more than one game above .500 in the East. The door is wide open for the Heat to rise up in the standings.

After Heartbreak, A Heartbreaker

A mere 48 hours after Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade offered up profanities after Miami's heartbreaking loss to the L.A. Clippers in a 96-97 loss, the leading scorer in the NBA embraced his teammates after a wild 130-129 overtime win over the Golden State Warriors.

The game was tight for the entire game, especially in the second half. Jamal Crawford, who finished with 40 points and seven assists, hit a three-pointer with just under five minutes to play in regulation to put Golden State up 105-101. But on Miami's ensuing possession, Daequan Cook answered with a three of his own. Cook, who finished with 11 points on three-of-four shooting from downtown, later made another triple with 1:59 left to tie the game at 111 all. Warriors center Andris Biedrins would make an and-one layup on Golden State's next possession, giving the Warriors another slight lead. Later a bucket from each team, it was a 115-113 game for the Warriors with a chance for Miami to tie it up or take the lead with just seven seconds left.

Wade drove to the rim and kicked it out to rookie Michael Beasley for a 10-footer. He missed, but Udonis Haslem grabbed the rebound with just 2.4 seconds to go and made the point-blank layup as the time expired to send the game into overtime. The late Monday night game wound up being a very thrilling meeting between two offensive fire powers. And it only got better in overtime.

Crawford remained red-hot in the extra period, connecting on a fade-away jumper to put Golden State up 125-123 with 1:35 left to play. With just seven seconds to play in overtime, Chris Quinn connected on a catch-and-shoot three that tied the ballgame at 129 all. The Warriors would then in-bound the ball, bringing back memories of Wade's steal off of Baron Davis' in-bounds pass and then resulting in an inadvertent whistle by one of the referees that could have tipped the game in the balance.

Somehow, Beasley managed to do what Wade could not. It was surprising, seeing as how Beasley celebrated and walked back on defense after Quinn's three. But right before Biedrins made the in-bounds pass, Beasley turned around and reached for the ball. He got it, and was not falling out of bounds. The game was in his hands.

Beasley's first baby-hook attempt was blocked by Biedrins, but he stayed with it and got fouled on his second attempt for the game-winning shot. Beasley made one of the two free-throws, but the Warriors would still have a ray of hope. There were 3.6 seconds in a one-point game and the Warriors' timeout advanced the ball to their three-point line.

Stephen Jackson got the ball to Crawford, the Heat-killer. The man who scored a career-high 52 points against Miami two seasons ago. The man who registered a season-high 40 points against the Heat last night. He drove to the paint and tried the jump-shot, but got the unlucky bounce. The game was over. After a heartbreaking loss to the Clippers, the Heat delivered a heartbreaking loss to the Warriors.

None of the plays I highlighted were on baskets connected by Wade. But if you just looked at the boxscore, you would probably think that Miami's heroics were delivered by Flash. Wade registered 37 points on 12-of-28 shooting to go along with 13 assists, five rebounds and three blocked shots. He forced a few shots and tried to do too much ball-handling in the late stages of the game, but had a spectacular game overall. Wade now leads his buddy LeBron James for the scoring title by .9 of a point.
Shawn Marion was very pedestrian in the Clippers game, but was alive and well last night. The four-time NBA All-Star had 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting, 15 rebounds and three steals. Unfortunately, Marion fouled out in the game, having to watch the last moments in the game on the bench.

Marion and his forward partner, Haslem made quite the duo. Haslem matched Marion's point total of 21 points and nearly evened him in rebounds with 13 boards. Haslem continues to appear more comfortable at the four, and this cannot be overstated. In his games starting at the four, Haslem has averaged 18 points on 62% shooting and 10 rebounds. The Miami native is playing at a star level.

Rookie Mario Chalmers had a solid game, with 12 points on four-of-eight shooting to go along with six assists. Chalmers was vulnerable on defense. Crawford was Golden State's "point guard" and stands at 6 feet and 5 inches. Miami ultimately went to a zone, which did not protect the rim for the Heat. This was why this game was so high-scoring and defense-less.

Beasley again provided instant offense off the bench. The 6-foot-9 rookie out of Kansas State had 19 points on 7-of-15 shooting and six rebounds in just 24 minutes. Beasley, however, continued with his poor decision-making on defense, and that will probably keep him on the bench at the start of games for the next string of games.

Cook and Quinn also provided sparks off the bench, finishing with 11 points and eight, respectively. Wade trusts Cook, and looks for him when he is driving to the rim. Quinn, meanwhile, also can connect on open shots. But Quinn's clutch three came off of an in-bounds pass. He came off of a screen, caught the ball in the corner and threw it up in the air while falling down. And it went in: no easy task.

Despite the nice win, one player performed poorly. Joel Anthony was not a defensive presence, and struggled against the athleticism of the Warriors. Anthony also failed to be a rebounding force, finishing with just two boards. Marion and Haslem did most of that work, and the Heat easily won the battle of the boards by a count of 51-36.

Erik Spoelstra had some fans scratching their heads when he inserted Marcus Banks in the game in the second quarter, who has been a walk-on for nearly the entire season. Banks committed two fouls in five minutes, and did not see playing time again. Was this an attempt to showcase the $4 million man to other General Managers or has Banks impressed Spoelstra during Miami's latest practices? Only time will tell.

Playing against the smaller Warriors, Spoelstra put Shaun Livingston on the active list and had Jamaal Magloire wear street clothes last night.

The Heat, back at .500 and in a three-team deadlock for the final two playoff seeds in the East, will finish up its road trip Wednesday night against the Utah Jazz at 9 p.m.