Thunder coach Brooks must keep Durant off James
- Last Updated: 5:45 PM, June 19, 2012
- Posted: 3:20 AM, June 19, 2012
HOOP DU JOUR
MIAMI — The Thunder have discovered what the Heat already knew and continue to demonstrate despite the Heat’s 2-1 series status: The first three rounds of playoff pressure is nothin’ compared to the stress and strain of the NBA Finals.
Except for the referees, whose calls remain consistently challenging to comprehend no matter how prominent the playoff round, no one is immune.
Not the kings of the court. Not the worker bees. And certainly not the esteemed coaches.
The Game 3 stat sheet showed the Heat winning Sunday by six after coming from 10 down and taking a two-point lead to close out the third quarter. But a look inside the ledger shows enough mental and physical errors to revolt the squeamish. Who better to bludgeon foremost than Scott Brooks? Whoever thought Erik Spoelstra was capable of outcoaching anybody? Then again, maybe it was a case of Brooks simply coaching incoherently.
One way or the other, either he changes some tactics and techniques tonight in Game 4, or the Thunder may as well call in sick Thursday for the formal detonation of LeBron’s predicted title wave.
Of paramount importance, Brooks must reassign Kevin Durant from LeBron to Shane Battier or whoever else is manning the third front-court position. Two straight games in foul trouble is two games too many, especially since it sentenced Durant to the dungeon for almost six minutes in the third quarter, which coincided with a 16-7 Heat wave.
We get the refs’ five-by-five message: Durant cannot go near LeBron or Dwyane Wade or be held by Chris Bosh on a screen without hearing a whistle blow in his disfavor ... contrary to the other way around.
I’m guessing the meaning is equally loud and clear to Brooks.
More power to Durant for trying to defend the indefensible. And, no, guarding LeBron evidently did not adversely impact his finals’ record-breaking fourth-quarter production (17 and 16 points) in Games 1 and 2.
Still, it makes eminently more sense to devote the majority of his élan on offense (12 points in the final 12 minutes) and pray LeBrawn’s strength can be somewhat sapped, if not entirely zapped, trying to stick the league’s 3-time leading scorer.
This is one alteration — sic Thabo Sefolosha on LeBron — Brooks must make. Shiver me timbers if it’s not. That does not mean, of course, Durant’s visitation rights with LeBron should be permanently canceled. Waivers are always obtainable for special occasions.
Now let’s discuss some other numbskull decisions that helped advance the Heat halfway to paradise. Oops. Which brings us back to Brooks, who didn’t have a really good night.
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