and Novak single-handedly gave the Heat a 7-0 run.
I'm just not getting this though. When? Miami had cut the lead down to 5 very early after the half. The Heat didn't even score 2 consecutive baskets when he was in. Lead actually went from 7 up to 9.
Maybe his mistakes just are magnified by how bad they can be - that I get..but I really just didn't feel like he turned the tide of the game that badly.
I'm not even a Novak fan though, so don't mean to defend him. Didn't think he belonged on the floor vs MIA last year, and doesn't this year.
The problem with Novak is that Wade or Battier finds a way to match up against him and then they take advantage. If a capable defender was on them at those moments, the lead would've been even greater. I agree with you on the statement of Novak not belonging on the court against miami in more that 2-3 mins intervals. Lord knows they get calls, so we wouldn't even need to burn timeouts to sub him out.
I remember one point where he got blown by twice, got a rebound taken out of his hands with ease, and bricked WIDE open shots
That's it. I don't remember the score or exact time. Or the order each happened. But something along those lines happened all in one brief window and it was extremely frustrating to watch.
Novak messed up in key moments of the game, specifically the 3rd quarter. Thats why people are upset with him.
1. Letting Wade walk right by him when he was 20 feet away from the basket. And scoring a few more times before that.
2. Losing a rebound to Battier when the ball was in his hands. That lead to 2 points in the possession.
3. Missing 2 wide-open 3 point shots. His only job out there is to make 3's. He didn't even do that.
We NEED Novak to make his three's, because its one thing If JR or Kidd makes them, but it's another totally different matter when Novak makes them. It spreads the floor and allows Melo and our slashers to work and potentially allow Chandler to get an offensive board. It's a respect thing, and defenders know when Novak is making shots, they better press up.
It's purely a psychological thing.
On the real though, it's our complaining and lack of discipline that will cost us games in the future. Not Novak or JR or whoever had a bad game. Had not complained about calls and gotten back on defense, Miami wouldn't have taken advantage and capitalized. That's difference between a good team and a great team. There's still a lot of immaturity on this Knicks team.
