I was always a Jermaine O' Neal fan...maybe because while I lived in the West Coast, for some odd reason the Indiana Pacers were my East Coast team (after MJ retired of course), and that's where the best Jermaine played...I was watching the Lakers vs. Heat game, and I was looking at the Heat to see what's wrong with them..why is Beasely not getting any playing time in the 4th quarter...wasn't he supposed to be good but he's young give him a break(you know who else is young...dequan cook; just giving him a shoutout cuz hes from exit 30 something on Highway 75 aka Dayton, OH and he went to my alma mater)....why is Udonis Haslem still on the team ..and why did Quentin Richardson stop doing that cool thing he used to do with Darius Miles after every dunk when they played for the Clippers (prolly cuz after you play for the knicks you lose every iota of swagger u ever had)...anyways..then the second half started and it was make or break time...everyone on the heat was doing their part (especially Quentin..he balled out and special mention to Carlos Arroyo who stepped up and made some big shots in the game...always liked his game dunno why), everyone except Jermaine. This game would have never went to overtime if it wasn't for some critical mistakes he made...the unnecessary extra step on the screen with 42 seconds left to turn the ball over, the missed shots, the stupid fouls (one at the end of overtime when they were up by 5 points with 1 second left in the game)...and the list goes on..just look at the list of every play he made from the third quarter on and you will see the problem...but the sad part is that it's not just a one game thing...Jermaine has been slowly dwindling away and today's game just emulated the overall stage of his career..it has moved on from the dominance he portrayed with the pacers to bumping around in the key(just like he has been bumping around from indiana to toronto to miami to...?) and throwing up shots here and there...and getting a few free throws to bump up the ppg...and with the back and hip problems, it looks like the end is approaching..and it's approaching fast for Jermaine..I'm not saying he won't play for 4 or 5 more years(if healthy), he can definitely be more productive than Udonis Haslem every single game, but it's just airy to have to watch him play like this when you have seen him ball the way he did in Indiana...but could he be a role player in a DWade, Chris Bosh/Amare Stoudamire led Miami Heat team come next year...helll yeah..and maybe that possibility of getting a championship could spark a little bit more hustle out of him..but all I'm saying is long gone is the Jermaine O'Neal of the Indiana days, and if the Heat were expecting anything more from him, well they should have seen this coming...
BEGINNING OF SECOND HALF
O'Neal Jump Shot: Missed -
O'Neal Rebound (Off:1 Def:2) -
O'Neal Turnover : 3 Second Violation (2 TO)
O'Neal Turnaround Jump Shot: Made (9 PTS)
O'Neal Jump Shot: Missed
O'Neal Layup Shot: Missed
O'Neal Turnover : Lost Ball (3 TO) Steal:Brown (3 ST)
O'Neal Substitution replaced by Magloire
O'Neal Foul : Shooting (3 PF)
CRUNCH TIME
2:08- O'Neal Turnover : Lost Ball (4 TO) Steal:Odom (1 ST)
:42- O'Neal Foul : Offensive (4 PF)
:42- O'Neal Turnover : Foul (5 TO)
OVERTIME
O'Neal Rebound (Off:1 Def:3)
O'Neal Free Throws 2 of 2
O'Neal Alley Oop
O'Neal Defensive Goaltending to tie the game
O'Neal Personal Foul with 1.7 seconds left and a 5 point lead...
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