Friday, October 10, 2008

Notes from Heat-Nets in Paris

Watched the Heat-Nets ESPN 2 game from Paris yesterday.

Devin Harris looks like he's in regular season scoring form and condition.

Rookie Chris Douglas-Roberts was impressive, as well. Coach Frank let CDR create shots off the dribble and made sure he had the ball at the end of quarters. He really knows how to use the baseline drive and can finish, and he did a nice job defensively jumping in the passing lanes (3 steals). He also moves well without the ball.

Rookie Ryan Anderson did a nice job on the defensive glass and showed his passing ability, but had five fouls. Defensively, the NJ's big men were late to help on dribble penetration.

Miami ran a lot of pick-and-rolls -- middle pick-and-rolls, step-up pick-and-rolls, and random pick-and-rolls. (The Nets forced down/iced in these actions.)

D-Wade picked up where left off in Beijing with 21 points in just 21 minutes. Rookie Michael Beasley showed that he'll be a player who has the ability to get his own shot -- and finish with either hand. He'll help take the scoring load off of Wade. Beasley scored on elbow isos and did a nice job on the offensive glass and getting FTA.

For Miami, at the point guard position, Marcus Banks played unselfishly with a pass-first mentality (7 AST, but 6 TO). Mario Chalmers got good minutes as MIA's back-up point.

Miami will need more from veteran Jamaal Magloire off the bench (no points, 2 rebs), though it looks like he might be sidelined for awhile with a broken hand.

Center Joel Anthony contributed off the bench and continues to improve. He's not an offensive threat, but plays hard and will block shots (3).

As might be expected, both teams' point guards had a lot of turnovers. In the preseason, point guards, who initiate and orchestrate the offense, have an added burden as teams are running new systems and plays. It's one reason you'll see so many turnovers in these games as players learn and adjust.

As Devin Harris put it after the Heat game: "We had a lot of turnovers getting used to this offense." As guys get more comfortable with sets and timing, the turnovers will go down.