The reason I bring up the Zone is that it would allow us to run some really big lineups out there. Felton, Gallo, AR, Amar'e n Turiaf/Timo. That's a lot of length out there to try and score against. MDA could even go no PG and run a guy like AZ out there in place of Felton. For some defensive substitutions we have more flexibility in "gotta get a stop" time.

But what's odd is the way people are describing MDA as some defensive tactician. Sorry, but I can't visualize MDA spending much time coaching, instructing or strategizing about defense.

Markji wrote:How to beat Miami? They have poor outside shooting. Play a zone, force them to shoot from outside the 3 pt arc, batter them when they drive in; and we can win. They don't shoot well from 3 pt range except Mike Miller. That was very unfortunate that he signed with them. Without Miller they have no one from outside.

Their percentages last year and lifetime from 3 pt range

Wade 30%; 29%
LeBron 33%; 33%
Bosh 36%; 30% but only avg .3 attempts/game, so no real threat.
Chalmers 31%; 34%

Udanis H 0%; 0% - no attempts
Miller 48%; 40.5%

We need some tough inside guys who like to put bodies on the opposing players. That will be good to stop the Big three. And then to win, Gallo needs to hit 5 three pointers in a row in the last few minutes.

We can pack the paint and force them to shoot from deep and it's hard to shoot a high % from there, especially with our length now.

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

Markji wrote:How to beat Miami? They have poor outside shooting. Play a zone, force them to shoot from outside the 3 pt arc, batter them when they drive in; and we LA, Boston, and Orlando can win.

Fixed.

At the end of this season you may wind up being pleasantly surprised at how competitive the Knicks will be. Teams won't be just walking over this team as it seems you may be insinuating. Miami will have their own growth issues to deal with too.

When we finally got some decent PG play and our defense stood up, this team was able to play with any team in the league. The problems we had at PG and with Size and defenders at multiple positions, have been fixed. We even added an All Star big to the mix. We'll be better on both offense and defense IMO and not just a little bit better. We should be a LOT better compared to what we put on the floor the last 2 years.

We have more shooting, athletes, defenders with shotblocking, a real PG and an All Star to boot. We no longer have selfish, poor shooting, problem children. This team wants to be here and wants to win. To me there is going to be a marked difference in what we see from this team this year. We just changed out most of the team and improved at almost every spot we replaced in terms of fit and need.

Duhon, Hughes, Harrington, Nate... all non winning players, are gone! What is the basis for thinking we aren't going to make a huge improvement this year? Just cuz we didn't add Lebron, Wade and Bosh? OK so this isn't going to be the 70 win miracle team in the NBA this year, but we will be much better than we have been and I think we're better than a .500 team. I honestly think we could end up winning 46-50 games this year.

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

nixluva wrote:

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

Markji wrote:How to beat Miami? They have poor outside shooting. Play a zone, force them to shoot from outside the 3 pt arc, batter them when they drive in; and we LA, Boston, and Orlando can win.

Fixed.

At the end of this season you may wind up being pleasantly surprised at how competitive the Knicks will be. Teams won't be just walking over this team as it seems you may be insinuating. Miami will have their own growth issues to deal with too.

When we finally got some decent PG play and our defense stood up, this team was able to play with any team in the league. The problems we had at PG and with Size and defenders at multiple positions, have been fixed. We even added an All Star big to the mix. We'll be better on both offense and defense IMO and not just a little bit better. We should be a LOT better compared to what we put on the floor the last 2 years.

We have more shooting, athletes, defenders with shotblocking, a real PG and an All Star to boot. We no longer have selfish, poor shooting, problem children. This team wants to be here and wants to win. To me there is going to be a marked difference in what we see from this team this year. We just changed out most of the team and improved at almost every spot we replaced in terms of fit and need.

Duhon, Hughes, Harrington, Nate... all non winning players, are gone! What is the basis for thinking we aren't going to make a huge improvement this year? Just cuz we didn't add Lebron, Wade and Bosh? OK so this isn't going to be the 70 win miracle team in the NBA this year, but we will be much better than we have been and I think we're better than a .500 team. I honestly think we could end up winning 46-50 games this year.

I do think I will be pleasantly surprised with the Knicks this year, as opposed to previous years. But again, I think you're getting too involved with the scrutinization of the Knicks matching up with the Heat. It comes down to the horses, and the Knicks aren't there yet. You can talk about zone defense and Miami's long distance shooting all you want, but the Knicks roster is much more flawed than the Heat's, and not anywhere near as talented. They have 2 of the top 5 players in this league. And their 3rd banana is just as good as our best player. I bet if this trio was on the Knicks, you'd have posters predicting an 82-0 regular season record and 16-0 postseason record. But since they're on the Heat, they can be easily beat.

You're getting caught up with false hope and unrealistic scenarios rather than being realistic here.

Mavs vs. Warriors man.

In terms of all those guys being on this team, you have those here who don't want the gut the team to get CP3, so I think there would be some people that had doubts the team could win it all in year one. I have doubts that they can win it all just as I did about Boston when they got the big 3. Things worked out for Boston, but that situation is a bit different for Miami. Close but who is to say that things will go perfectly for them.

We have a puncher's chance against them. The best shot to knock them off may be in year one of 3LW.

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

nixluva wrote:

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

nixluva wrote:

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

Markji wrote:How to beat Miami? They have poor outside shooting. Play a zone, force them to shoot from outside the 3 pt arc, batter them when they drive in; and we LA, Boston, and Orlando can win.

Fixed.

At the end of this season you may wind up being pleasantly surprised at how competitive the Knicks will be. Teams won't be just walking over this team as it seems you may be insinuating. Miami will have their own growth issues to deal with too.

When we finally got some decent PG play and our defense stood up, this team was able to play with any team in the league. The problems we had at PG and with Size and defenders at multiple positions, have been fixed. We even added an All Star big to the mix. We'll be better on both offense and defense IMO and not just a little bit better. We should be a LOT better compared to what we put on the floor the last 2 years.

We have more shooting, athletes, defenders with shotblocking, a real PG and an All Star to boot. We no longer have selfish, poor shooting, problem children. This team wants to be here and wants to win. To me there is going to be a marked difference in what we see from this team this year. We just changed out most of the team and improved at almost every spot we replaced in terms of fit and need.

Duhon, Hughes, Harrington, Nate... all non winning players, are gone! What is the basis for thinking we aren't going to make a huge improvement this year? Just cuz we didn't add Lebron, Wade and Bosh? OK so this isn't going to be the 70 win miracle team in the NBA this year, but we will be much better than we have been and I think we're better than a .500 team. I honestly think we could end up winning 46-50 games this year.

I do think I will be pleasantly surprised with the Knicks this year, as opposed to previous years. But again, I think you're getting too involved with the scrutinization of the Knicks matching up with the Heat. It comes down to the horses, and the Knicks aren't there yet. You can talk about zone defense and Miami's long distance shooting all you want, but the Knicks roster is much more flawed than the Heat's, and not anywhere near as talented. They have 2 of the top 5 players in this league. And their 3rd banana is just as good as our best player. I bet if this trio was on the Knicks, you'd have posters predicting an 82-0 regular season record and 16-0 postseason record. But since they're on the Heat, they can be easily beat.

You're getting caught up with false hope and unrealistic scenarios rather than being realistic here.

Mavs vs. Warriors man.

In terms of all those guys being on this team, you have those here who don't want the gut the team to get CP3, so I think there would be some people that had doubts the team could win it all in year one. I have doubts that they can win it all just as I did about Boston when they got the big 3. Things worked out for Boston, but that situation is a bit different for Miami. Close but who is to say that things will go perfectly for them.

We have a puncher's chance against them. The best shot to knock them off may be in year one of 3LW.

Mavs vs. Warriors was an extremely rare case. So was Denver beating Seattle during the Mutumbo days. If you're trying to say that upsets are possible, than of course I agree with you. I'm just telling you that you gotta go with the odds. And as of today, the odds of the Knicks beating Miami in the 1st round are very slim. If this team is what you're saying it is, then we won't have to worry about facing them in the 1st round. That is what they need to focus on.

With so many new faces, isn't this "year one" for the Knicks as well ? Let me guess, the Knicks will gel perfectly from day 1 all the way into the postseason, while Miami will struggle to find its identity all year long, and lose in the 1st round.

Markji wrote:

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

nixluva wrote:

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

nixluva wrote:

JrZyHuStLa wrote:

Markji wrote:How to beat Miami? They have poor outside shooting. Play a zone, force them to shoot from outside the 3 pt arc, batter them when they drive in; and we LA, Boston, and Orlando can win.

Fixed.

At the end of this season you may wind up being pleasantly surprised at how competitive the Knicks will be. Teams won't be just walking over this team as it seems you may be insinuating. Miami will have their own growth issues to deal with too.

When we finally got some decent PG play and our defense stood up, this team was able to play with any team in the league. The problems we had at PG and with Size and defenders at multiple positions, have been fixed. We even added an All Star big to the mix. We'll be better on both offense and defense IMO and not just a little bit better. We should be a LOT better compared to what we put on the floor the last 2 years.

We have more shooting, athletes, defenders with shotblocking, a real PG and an All Star to boot. We no longer have selfish, poor shooting, problem children. This team wants to be here and wants to win. To me there is going to be a marked difference in what we see from this team this year. We just changed out most of the team and improved at almost every spot we replaced in terms of fit and need.

Duhon, Hughes, Harrington, Nate... all non winning players, are gone! What is the basis for thinking we aren't going to make a huge improvement this year? Just cuz we didn't add Lebron, Wade and Bosh? OK so this isn't going to be the 70 win miracle team in the NBA this year, but we will be much better than we have been and I think we're better than a .500 team. I honestly think we could end up winning 46-50 games this year.

I do think I will be pleasantly surprised with the Knicks this year, as opposed to previous years. But again, I think you're getting too involved with the scrutinization of the Knicks matching up with the Heat. It comes down to the horses, and the Knicks aren't there yet. You can talk about zone defense and Miami's long distance shooting all you want, but the Knicks roster is much more flawed than the Heat's, and not anywhere near as talented. They have 2 of the top 5 players in this league. And their 3rd banana is just as good as our best player. I bet if this trio was on the Knicks, you'd have posters predicting an 82-0 regular season record and 16-0 postseason record. But since they're on the Heat, they can be easily beat.

You're getting caught up with false hope and unrealistic scenarios rather than being realistic here.

Mavs vs. Warriors man.

In terms of all those guys being on this team, you have those here who don't want the gut the team to get CP3, so I think there would be some people that had doubts the team could win it all in year one. I have doubts that they can win it all just as I did about Boston when they got the big 3. Things worked out for Boston, but that situation is a bit different for Miami. Close but who is to say that things will go perfectly for them.

We have a puncher's chance against them. The best shot to knock them off may be in year one of 3LW.

Mavs vs. Warriors was an extremely rare case. So was Denver beating Seattle during the Mutumbo days. If you're trying to say that upsets are possible, than of course I agree with you. I'm just telling you that you gotta go with the odds. And as of today, the odds of the Knicks beating Miami in the 1st round are very slim. If this team is what you're saying it is, then we won't have to worry about facing them in the 1st round. That is what they need to focus on.

With so many new faces, isn't this "year one" for the Knicks as well ? Let me guess, the Knicks will gel perfectly from day 1 all the way into the postseason, while Miami will struggle to find its identity all year long, and lose in the 1st round.

JrZ, the question was "can we beat the Heat", not "how easy it will be", or "how often"? I pointed out Miami's weakness. I agree with you that their strengths are so dominant, that it will be very hard for any team to beat them. But it is possible. If they are forced to shoot from outside and they get cold, then they can lose. Not very probable, but it is possible.....and I sure hope theydo lose and never win a championship!

I just said our odds aren't that good.