Q: Ira, I enjoy watching the games, but I don’t consider myself an expert by any means. What I don’t understand is the way they played on Friday and the way they played on Sunday. The coach said his team played hard in both games. But they were the same players. Does that mean it was coaching or strategy? –Sid.
A: As with all of these examples, you also need to consider the opposition. The Pelicans, even without Brandon Ingram, arrived Friday with a better quality squad than the injury-decimated Cavaliers on Sunday. But no, it wasn’t like the Heat had a bad game plan on Friday and a great game plan. on Sunday. Part of the reason for this is the old idea that it’s a make-or-break league. The Heat missed on Friday and succeeded on Sunday. But there was also more energy and commitment from the Heat on Sunday. For me, the problem is that the Heat have been a “sometimes” team too often this season. This Heat roster isn’t good enough to be a “sometimes” team. And often, the outcome fits where the Heat are right now, as a middle-of-the-pack team. That said, it can sometimes turn into all the time, as happened with the Heat in last season’s playoffs.
Q: Ira, please tell me that with all these injuries, Jimmy Butler won’t be taking any more time off this season. – Raoul.
A: Based on the Heat’s valuable playoff positioning, the hope would be that it is. But the Heat still have two straight sets, which could lead to decisions regarding Jimmy Butler at his best for the playoffs. Next week, there’s a home game Thursday against the 76ers that could be a critical tiebreaker, followed by a game Friday at Houston. Then, the final week of the regular season, there’s a game in Atlanta followed by a home game against the Mavericks the next night. In each case, conference play carries significantly more weight in tiebreakers.
Q: Hello, Ira. I read with interest your story on legalized gambling in the NBA. I despise it and think it dehumanizes players; turns them into pills in a roulette wheel and promotes gambling addiction. I wonder how Adam Silver would feel if thousands of people bet on the NBA’s quarterly profits and held him responsible. –Ray, Deerfield.
A: The 30 owners essentially are. But where it has gotten out of hand is proposition betting, where fans don’t even back a team or even an income, just that a certain player makes two or more 3-pointers. This is what blurred the lines, the NBA being a willing partner in this blurring.
