Story lines ever changing in these conference finals
Warning: This is about the NBA conference finals. Anyone prone to motion sickness or whiplash should use caution.
The situation keeps changing, like a ticker from Wall Street. East or West, when the teams aren’t zigging, they’re zagging. What is true today might not be true tomorrow.
Trying to formulate an opinion on either series? Reserve the right to change your mind — nightly. And that is what might make both into classics.
The Boston Celtics are too old to hold on. That was after they were down 0-2.
The Boston Celtics are too proud to go away. Now that they’re tied 2-2.
The Miami Heat are on a mission and can’t be stopped.
The Miami Heat are being out-gritted and can’t be trusted.
The Oklahoma City Thunder need more aging. That was after they lost the first two games.
No, they don’t. That was when they won the next three. The San Antonio Spurs might run the table. Twenty victories in a row!
The San Antonio Spurs might not survive the week. Three defeats in a row after Monday night! Nobody can lose at home. Until Monday, it was nobody can win on the road. Rajon Rondo is petulant and rash. A technical foul here, a tantrum there.
Rajon Rondo is in the heads of the Heat like a bad sinus infection. Forty-four points here, a halftime verbal jab there.
The ESPN reporter asked Rondo how was he exploiting the Heat defense. “Them complaining and crying to the referees in transition,” he answered. Ouch. Maybe next time the Celtics should send Sasha Pavlovic to the halftime interview.
The Spurs are balanced and savvy enough to understand how to fix any problem.
The Spurs have no answer for Kevin Durant in the fourth quarter.
The Celtics, after blowing a big lead in Game 2, are finished.
The Heat, who keep falling behind by double digits, are in trouble. Chris Bosh? Miami is doing fine without him. Chris Bosh? Do the Heat ever need him? Wait till you hear the cheer if he shows up to play today. San Antonio is deeper than Oklahoma City. Maybe not. In Game 4, Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison went 22-for-25 for the Thunder.
The Heat are getting all the calls. How can LeBron James go to the line 24 times in Game 2?
The Heat aren’t getting any calls. How can Dwyane Wade go to the line zero times in Game 3?
Nobody is getting any calls, not even the stars. How can James and Paul Pierce foul out of Game 4? According to the officials, this series has more charging than a Macy’s checkout counter.
James is playing with steely purpose, averaging 32.2 points a game in the series.
When’s he going to win one of those games at the end? Cheers for Wade, back to scoring early and often. Questions for Wade, who went 7-for-22 in Game 4. Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks needs to make adjustments, since the Spurs are older and wiser.
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich needs to make adjustments, since the Thunder are younger and more athletic.
Two more wins, and the Heat can start talking about redemption in the NBA Finals.
Two more losses, and the Heat can start talking about a breakup in the offseason. James is the most compelling figure to watch. No, it’s Tony Parker. No, it’s Durant. No, it’s Rondo. Looks like both conference finals could be sweeps. Looks like both conference finals could go seven games.
And so it has gone, each day bringing a shift in fortune and scenario. This is the Celtics’ last stand, or the Heat’s moment of truth. The Thunder’s coming of age, or the Spurs’ second wind.
Among the variables is Miami’s lineup, which changes with the breeze. Udonis Haslem played no minutes in Game 6 against the Indiana Pacers, 16 in Game 3 against Boston and 36 in Game 4. Now, here comes Bosh.
“We’re reinventing ourselves daily,” coach Erik Spoelstra said.
Aren’t they all, in two series without straight roads?