Did I speak too soon?

Days after I gave James praise for his clutch performance in saving the season and finishing off Boston to win the Eastern title, he reminded Tuesday night why I had felt the way I did for so long. After last season James was criticized for his lack of productivity in the fourth quarter. Last night proved to be no different as the MVP was 2-6 from the field, 3-4 from the line, for a total of 5 points in the fourth quarter. He did, however, lead the Heat with 30 points, 9 rebounds 4 Assist. Now of course we can't place all the blame on James, I know, BUT shouldn't the 4th quarter be a time where the MVP steps up and gives his team the extra push they need  during crunch time? Not fade away and add a few free throws and defensive rebounds? Warren Sapp tweeted late in the game "Amber Alert: Missing 6'9 PF in 4th Quarter of NBA Finals! #Lebron" Yes, I saw it and re tweeted it, shoot me. I know it seems at times its James vs the world but frankly when you put a bulls eye on your chest, win the MVP but frequently disappear during crunch time, people are gonna talk about you. That is just how it is, especially when you're matched up against Durant is who arguably the best in the game right now. Durant, who posted 36 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assist caught fire in the fourth going 6-8 scoring from the field for 17 points and 4-4 at the line, now that's a clutch 4th quarter "MVP" style performance.

Game one definitely didn't disappoint as the Thunder fans were rocking and rolling all night long and rallied behind their team who put together another 2nd half rally erasing a 13 point lead en route to a 105-94 victory. In doing so, they take the drivers seat of the finals series. However, with games 3-5 in Miami, winning again tomorrow night in OKC will be CRUCIAL for the Thunder and could go a long way in ending this series in five or six games.

Hard to say what I expect out of Game 2. Again I think the home court plays a big role in the advantage for OKC and they must capitalize on it. Miami needs to make some adjustments on the defensive end and find someone on the roster other than Wade, Bosh or James to make a significant impact for the rest of the series. As I stated in a past post, you aren't gonna get "Game 7 vs Boston" type performances out of Miami every night so the other guys and the bench HAS to step up and give Miami's big 3 some help. That being said, I don't think Miami gets that together yet and if they do, it still might not be enough. Durant seems near unstoppable, especially in the 4th when he turns into an animal. Best case scenario for Miami is to try and score as much as humanly possible and pray that its enough to hold off the notorious 4th quarter Thunder rally.

Prediction:
Until Miami can prove it can stop Durant and play four full quarters of basketball, Oklahoma City will continue to win. I picked them to win Game 1 and I'm picking them to knock off the Heat yet again in Game 2 however I expect a "closer" game than what the finals score suggested last night. Not to take anything away from the Thunder, but I don't see another 11 point win coming in game 2. Expect another down to the wire game, and for the sake of both teams, I hope they practiced their free throws tonight while they were off, they will be a strong determining factor in deciding the winner of Game 2.