The Sports Inquirer

Music to listen to:  We Got The System to Fight The System by Maserati

Time to review what we learned about the NBA on Christmas Day:

-The Heat are going to be really, really good…in the regular season.  The Heat are the most athletic team in the NBA with the Thunder trailing closely in second-place.  What this means is that Miami is going to get about  five to six wins this regular season because they can outrun their worn out opponents within this condensed schedule.  We saw Miami employ a lethal secondary fast break, when the offense is aggressive driving the ball up the court after an in-bound pass, that will be useful throughout the season. 

-Udonis Haslem may be the third-most valuable player on Miami.  Yes, LeBron James had a 37-10-6 night and Dwayne Wade chipped in 26 points himself, but if Miami is finally going to get that elusive championship, it will need more efforts from Haslem like it did against Dallas.  He helped the Heat outrebound the Mavs 51-31, which would have been reason for a celebration last year. 

-Don’t make too much into Dallas’ loss.  Numerous teams, especially in the NBA, have lost their first game in the new season after winning the championship the previous year.  Athletes are creatures of habit and when you throw in a long pre-game ceremony with a banner being raised in front of home fans, bringing up memories of last season, and getting championship rings all at one time, the rhythm of the team can get thrown out.  You could tell from the first quarter that Dallas was in trouble.  The Mavs have to adjust to not having Tyson Chandler on defense, JJ Berea off the bench, incorporating Lamar Odom into the rotation and numerous changes from last year.  Furthermore, with Dirk Nowitzki struggling with his shot despite notching 21 points, Dallas took the loss.  They will still be a top contender in the West.

-Derrick Rose is a man.  He controls the flow of the game better than any point guard in the NBA.  I know the Bulls struggled offensively in the second half and Rose had a few too many turnovers, but when the game was on the line, Rose stepped up with the game-winner.

-Kobe Bryant is also a man but his supporting cast leaves some desiring.  He’s not going to hold up this entire season if his teammates don’t help.  When your rotation includes Steve Blake, Metta World Peace, Troy Murphy and Andrew Goudelock, you have problems.

-Pau Gasol needs to get out of his funk for the Lakers to have any hope.  Several minutes during the telecast of the game was spent on Gasol’s salty feeling about being traded by the Lakers to Houston to have it rejected by the NBA.  He has to get it together because last night’s effort won’t be good enough for this season.

-Lob City still needs work but will be nasty in March.  When the Clippers win a season opener on the road by 19 points and there’s a sense of disappointment, you know things have changed for the organization.  If Chauncey Billups can hold up as a shooting guard, Caron Butler finds his shots and DeAndre Jordan continues to play defense, the West may come through a different Los Angeles team for the first time in decades.

-Carmelo Anthony and Rajon Rondo may be a legitimate MVP candidate in his own right.  When I did my preseason predictions, I didn’t even include either man in my top-five for MVP but after yesterday’s performance, I need to rethink my rankings.

-How does Dwight Howard only get 12 shot attempts against Oklahoma City?  Discuss