The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Heat can’t mask glee as hot streak nears milestone Posted: 12 Mar 2013 09:29 PM PDT
A comfortable 98-81 win over the Atlanta Hawks yesterday made it win number 19 and after a 'red-eye' overnight flight to Philadelphia, the defending champions will be back in action again, taking on the 76ers for number 20. For coach Erik Spoelstra, the winning streak is a topic he avoids in his team-talks as he focuses on drilling good habits into the team before the games that really matter — the playoffs. "I'm not going to bring it up. I haven't brought it up once yet, the streak," he said. Spoelstra said that even if he reflected on the run of form privately, it would only be to compare it with the feeling of the franchise's worst season back in 2007/08. "I don't think about it much but if I were to think about it, I would think about the 15 win season and how awful it can be," he said. The players try their best to keep with Spoelstra's mantra but after the Atlanta game LeBron James eventually conceded, it was something unique worth acknowledging. "Let's be honest guys, we aren't sitting here and saying this is not something special — this is an unbelievable streak, we are playing great basketball, we are winning in different phases of the game and we are playing different styles," he said. "I'm not going to say it's not special but we just can't get caught up in it too much and not seize the moment that we are in each and every night," he said. The moment is one that the Heat players are certainly enjoying — on and off the court. One can sense it in the Heat locker-room where the banter flies or see it in the madcap 'Harlem Shake' video the team posted online. "Winning makes it more fun," said Spoelstra. "What comes first though, the winning or the camaraderie? I don't see a lot of camaraderie on losing teams and we have been part of both," he said. It is Spoelstra's job to maintain the focus and ensure that the message goes out that every quarter of every regular season game is part of the process of getting ready for the business end of the season. In the locker-room there is an acknowledgement that the bonds they are building in this winning run are rare ones. "This is a special group of guys and it has been a blast this season, we have been working hard but having fun at the same time," said centre Chris Bosh. "We like coming to work. My dad told me 'you want to like your job, because it sucks when you hate it' — and he was speaking from experience. "It's nice not only to play basketball but to play with the best team in the world, with the best team-mates in the world. "It's great, guys are funny, we laugh and joke, of course we take care of business but we like being around each other," he told reporters while being interrupted mid-sentence by a yelling James. It would make, suggests the team's long-standing leader Dwyane Wade, for a great reality show. "We are not a team that lets the cameras in often where they can follow us and see this team but if we did, we would have a number one hit show, no doubt about it," he said. — Reuters |
| Wenger lost knack for hidden talent, says George Graham Posted: 12 Mar 2013 08:56 PM PDT
"In the last few seasons, the standard has slipped because the players coming into the club, in my opinion, are inferior to the players that were there seven years ago," Graham, who managed Arsenal from 1986 until leaving under a cloud in 1995 following a scandal over illegal payments, told Talksport Radio. "His first spell at the club was phenomenal: three League Championships, four FA Cups, finishing in the top four for 15 years — that is a phenomenal record. "But he has raised his own bar and he has to ask himself if he has fallen a little bit." Arsenal have sold some of their most influential players in the last two years including Cesc Fabregas, Robin Van Persie and Samir Nasri and are approaching an eighth season without winning a trophy — something that was unimaginable in the first half of Wenger's reign. After Graham left, Arsenal were managed by Bruce Rioch for a season before Wenger arrived in September 1996 and transformed the club. Graham, who led Arsenal to the title in 1989 and 1991 and also won the FA Cup, League Cup and European Cup Winners Cup during his tenure, continued: "It's all about players. If you are a great manager, it's down to the players you put on the pitch. "Arsenal have never been big spenders. When Wenger first came to the club, he was buying them at bargain prices and making them into world-class players. "He has been brilliant with what he has achieved at the club — building a new stadium, building a new training ground. "But the last few seasons it's been slipping away gradually. The onus is now on finishing in the top four, whereas before the onus was on winning the Premier League. "The first thing you have got to ask is who is bringing the players to the club? Is it Arsene or is it the scouting staff? Who has he got, not just in England, but all around the world? "You've got to ask who is bringing in the players of the quality that was brought in during his first six or seven years at the club. "That has been the problem. The quality coming in now is not of the quality it was when he first came." Arsenal are fifth in the Premier League and battling for a place in the Champions League for a 16th successive season. — Reuters |
| You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Sports To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 ulasan:
Catat Ulasan