Miami Heat Blow Lead to Utah Jazz: Dethroning the Team That Never Was

I just witnessed one of the most exciting games this season from the unexpected Utah Jazz. I rarely watch games other than Lakers, unless it’s vital that I watch for the sake of assessing the Lakers match up against a certain team.

But I decided to tune in when I received word that the Jazz was coming back from a 22-point deficit.

93-98.

Eh, there’s no way they’re gonna win this one, even if they manage to go into overtime.

Deron jumps in the air to hit a sweet three-pointer. 96-98. Whoa. Carlos Arroyo gets fouled in the next possession and goes to the charity stripe.

They’re not gonna miss. Even if they foul, they’re just gonna keep hitting the free throws.

Lo and behold, Arroyo hits his shots. Jazz ball. Deron Williams surveys the court for opportunities, but finds himself double-teamed. He passes to Paul Millsap. And he jumps. 

What? He hits a clutch three. He doesn’t shoot threes. The commentator announces that this is his second clutch three. He’s 2-2 from beyond the arc. WTF?

Arroyo gets fouled again, and proceeds to grab another two points for the Heat. 99-103. 10 seconds left on the clock. Utah calls time out.

10 seconds and four points to go. That’s a quick three, a foul and hopefully another three. This isn’t gonna happen.

Deron’s got the ball again, but I’m not convinced. He looks for another shot, and ends up handing it off to Millsap. No way. I yell out of unexpected excitement as that ball makes its way into the net from downtown. 102-103. Millsap destroys my preconceived notions.

Deron Williams fouls out. Did he forget that he had five? Or was it necessary? I can’t remember. But the Jazz lost their star player, against the trio of all-stars. It’s over.

Wade misses his first shot. Wait… Makes his second. 102-104. So much for clutch. Can they win? Can they hit that three?

4 seconds left. C.J. runs to the corner pocket, and shoots! Short… Yeah it was a bit…

Millsap jumps and hits the putback. 

Oh, my God!

104-104. Time to hit up Facebook and let the world know that Miami is not as invincible as they seem. I’d be content with the fact that Jazz took the Heat to overtime on their own court. There was enough evidence to say that the Heat had a lot more holes than we think, especially after losing to the undefeated Hornets.

Ah, well. This game is worthy of an article. Even if they lose, I’m okay. There’s no way they can win without D.Will.

Wade hits the next straight seven points for Miami, and after watching Ronnie Price miss on an ugly lay-up, it was bound to be over. But it’s still close. 109-111.

Then Wade misses, and Kirilenko drops a three. 112-111. Still, there’s too much talent in Miami to let this go. And the damnedest thing happens. Haslem fouls on the Jazz’s inbound pass that went horribly wrong.

Millsap wasn’t paying attention and missed the pass from Kirilenko, but somehow the ball is retained in Utah’s possession. To make it anti-climactic, the remaining 20 seconds were spent mostly at the foul line, with Eddie House throwing up a prayer that goes unanswered in the final 0.4 seconds.

Holy s—.

I bum-rushed Facebook with manic updates about Jazz’s win over the Heat. Nobody cares, but me. Ironically, this game spoke volumes about the mortality of Miami’s “invincibility.” How the hell did Jazz beat the Heat? On Miami’s court?

Well, for one, it’s a team that decided that 22-points was not enough of an uphill battle to call  it quits. Celtics, Hornets, and the Jazz have won by a very small margin, but a win nonetheless. I suppose perseverance is key, since two out of the three heads in Miami are labeled as quitters.

And secondly, Jazz didn’t buy into the Miami hype. If you think about it, Miami’s wins in their eight game record have been against lower-tier teams with the exception of Orlando. Philadelphia, New Jersey, Minnesota… nothing too impressive. And with the loss to Celtics and Hornets, this third one to the Jazz poses a lot of questions about the validity of all the summer propaganda.

But what really transpired in this game? Well, one clear truth, and one that is constantly being exploited, is the lack of defense from Chris Bosh. He struggled against the Nets’ Lopez, the Celtics’ bigs, Orlando’s Dwight, Hornet’s Okafor, and now Jazz’s Millsap, who dropped a 46-point game tonight.

Chris Bosh, you are the weakest link.

If the Lakers can take advantage of this black hole in Miami’s defense, (and we certainly can, with Odom, Gasol and Bynum prowling in the paint) they will eventually have to double-team the inside man, who can kick it out to one of the wings. And if tenacity is the game, then we certainly have the upper hand.

Why do I write this article? Well, during the summer, Bosh made some comments about challenging the Bulls’ 72-win record. Good job, Jeff Van Gundy. Way to instigate stupidity and irritate the rest of us. Since then, the hype has been puffing up to proportions unimaginable. With the Heat’s third loss in less than 10 games into the season, I’m hoping that people will realize that the Miami Heat were never really deserving of that Pantheon-status.

But, in all honesty, I’m writing this article because I just hate the Heat that much. Is it that much of a surprise?