Rule of Thumb....Haslem Definitely OK......Game #3

ATLANTA HAWKS 78 - MIAMI HEAT 107 (2-1)

My, my!

I think we can safely say that the Hawks got unceremoniously battered in his one. The starting 5 for the Miami Heat all registered double figures with D-Wade on 29 (yes ONLY 29) and J.O hitting 22 points and 10 boards.....Udonis Haslem joined him in the double/double stats with 12 and 13......at one point, in the first quarter last night you could have been forgiven for thinking there were TWO Udonis Haslem's on court...he was everywhere.

Okay so the thumb isn't eally a factor then? Didn't seem like it, the way he was rebounding....awesome.

As critic in chief of Coach Spoelstra I'd like to say how good it is to see him look slightly more assured....he has most definitely fostered a team ethic with tiger-ish defense and the scoring being spread. Even with Cook and Beasley ( two fairly potent scorers ) as non-factors offensively, last night, the Heat had too much for the mis-firing Hawks. He has looked towards his All-Stars and they haven't been found wanting. Both Wade and O'Neal have lead by example and to our delight the response has been electric...and the scoring balanced.....if things continue in this vein they'll be a handful for anyone.

The fact that the Heat are now starting to look more like favourites than underdogs will mean that Michael Beasley will have make full use of his court time....seasoned players like Haslem, Jones and O'Neal, who've been over the course before are showing their true worth. I know I've been calling for Beasley to start but that was when I thought UD was injured badly...he isn't...he starts....okay.....it's fairly obvious that Spoelstra, now, cannot afford any disastrous slip-ups and Michael can be prone to them....development over.....I just hope that if his time comes and he's needed to give us a spark from the bench he grabs the opportunity.

If, on the other hand, he screws up I hope it doesn't cost us a game....that would be tough on the kid.

100% from the free throw stripe last night AND 52.2% from downtown...not 58% but still excellent...James Jones 3-3, including one that bounced off the top edge of the backboard and in....keep an eye on him, his luck could be turning.

The pendulum has swung and The Heat have assumed home court advantage....game #4 is huge.