DALLAS – More Shaq. More Rileyball. A whole lot less finesse.
Those are the big ideas in the Miami Heat's plan for Game 2 of the NBA Finals tonight. If coach Pat Riley's club can execute it, this championship series could become a different kind of ugly.
Now that the opening-night jitters have dispersed for the first-time finalists after the Dallas Mavericks' unattractive, unsatisfying 90-80 win in Game 1, both teams see Game 2 as a chance to start over with a better scheme.
Before their workout yesterday, the Heat predicted it'll get a devastating performance from Shaquille O'Neal, who had 17 points against constant double-teams in the opener.
The Heat also promised a more physical overall effort that might even evoke memories of the Riley-coached teams that shoved and bullied their way through the NBA in the 1990s, when the “Rileyball” moniker evolved to describe them. Riley stayed quiet on his plans, but his players know it's time to get mean.
“We did give up too many layups, so we have to do a better job – foul, go for the ball, make them go to the free-throw line,” said Dwyane Wade, who took a few hard shots from the Mavs in the opener.
“I'd rather them shoot free throws than give up layups.”
Along with four championships in Los Angeles and an entertaining run with the Knicks, one of Riley's NBA legacies is the promotion of a physical, sometimes mean-spirited style of play that got results, but wasn't fun for opponents or fans.
Some called it Rileyball, and others called it the worst thing to happen to the NBA since short-shorts.
Both in New York and in Riley's first stint on the Heat bench, his players were involved in a steady series of fights stemming from overtly aggressive play. Mourning did his share of scuffling for Miami, including his famed 1998 playoff fight with New York's Larry Johnson in which Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy ended up clinging to Alonzo Mourning's leg like a human ankle bracelet.
But this Miami team hasn't really thugged it up in the postseason – except when James Posey got a one-game suspension for clobbering Chicago's Kirk Hinrich on a fast break in the first round.
That's actually one fewer suspension than the Mavericks, who lost Jason Terry (one game for punching Michael Finley) and D.J. Mbenga (six games for entering the stands) for postseason misbehavior – and don't forget, owner Mark Cuban was fined $200,000 for on-court complaining and derogatory blogging about the officiating.
Instead, Miami has won largely with steady physical efforts against opponents who couldn't match its consistency. Miami knows it might need to get tough against the Mavericks, who have been able to adjust to any style in the playoffs – and then play it better than their opponents, from San Antonio's defensive groove to Phoenix's hard-charging offense.
“If they step it up and play more aggressively, we've got to be ready to match it,” said Dallas' Jerry Stackhouse, who already got a three-stitch cut on his nose from O'Neal in Game 1.
That aggressiveness should extend to the offensive end, where Mourning was among the Miami players waiting for their Superman: O'Neal, with the “S” tattoo on his arm and a hunger for his fourth ring.
“You'll definitely see the big fella with the ball in his hands,” said Mourning, who also hopes to get more action in the middle. “I think we kind of got away from what got us here, which is throwing the ball inside and punishing people inside.”
