Why the Heat made it look easy : Rebounding and pushing the ball to the rack

There is one statistic in this game that stood out to me more than anything else. It was not the scoring, which the Heat did often. It was not the lock down defense we saw, and it was not the amount of dunks LeBron, Wade, and Bosh had (even though that was very fun to watch). It was rebounding. The Heat out rebounded the Nets last night, grabbing 44 boards (including 6 offensive) to the Nets 41.

You may look at that statistic and say that it is really not that big of a difference. However, against the Hornets, the Heat gave up more rebounds than they grabbed, and they lost the game. Rebounding is something that Miami is going to work on, and I think tonight they did a great job. I like the rebounding the most because it consisted of a team effort. We did not see one player in particular dominate the boards, but rather a whole mess of people crashing the basket every time.

Furthermore, Miami decided to run the ball via tip outs and strong boards by James and Wade. We all know that this is fun to watch, but it also creates a fast paced offense that the Nets have a very hard time slowing down. I liked the way they were fast breaking as much as the Nets allowed them to. They were not forcing anything, but at the same time, they took advantage of everything that the Nets gave them.

Many people wonder why Miami does not run the ball like that all the time. I actually am one of those who like the fact that they don't. Something that separates Miami from the rest of the league is their potential for versatility. The Heat need to know how to slow the ball down and run a solid half court offense and speed up and push the pace to points where other teams can't keep up. Team's like Boston are not going to want to run with them, and will do everything they can to grind out the game. By the same rule, teams like OKC and Golden State are trying to run teams out of the gym. The Heat have to get into the pattern of being able to change pace at will. We all know Miami can push the ball with James and Wade effortlessly against MOST teams. However, this is not what is going to win Miami a championship this year. What is going to get the Heat the title is the ability to do both, and I really like the way coach Spoelstra has handled this team and made them aware of the fact that one offensive style is only scratching the surface of their potential. Overall, a great win in Miami.

The Heat have a few days to rest before their next game on Tuesday. Look for this opportunity for them to correct the mistakes they made in New Orleans, as well as iron out some details from New Jersey. I expect the Heat to come out firing this Tuesday, so lets all get excited.