For those that had an opportunity to watch the Miami Heat’s remarkable comeback win over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday, there was one big lesson to be learned … and this was to “Seize the Moment” when opportunity presents itself!
Doesn’t matter what your game performance looked like in the previous minutes. It always comes down to your Mindset, your Discipline and your ability to Block out all Distractions! There are no better examples than to look at two of the Heat’s most accomplished veterans – Chris Bosh and Ray Allen.
Before touting their accomplishments, in recent weeks, media talk was rampant that Bosh would be traded if the team lost out to the Spurs in the Championship Finals. Some accounts were labeling his play as ‘soft’. Even his hometown fans were booing his play on the court. As for Allen, he has been a frequent seat warmer on the bench during his team’s last two playoff series. So one would expect his shooting rhythm to be off kilter somewhat.
At Tuesday’s game, Allen had missed four of his first six shots, including his first two attempts from 3-point range. But despite his misses, Allen put himself in position to be on the court at the most critical stage. Down by three. He rose up and buried the game-tying shot, his only 3-pointer of the game, with 5.2 seconds left in a season that was ticking away to its end. If you stayed with the game to the overtime conclusion, you would have also seen Allen make two very clutch free throws in OT to eventually help the Heat seal the win at 103-100.
Said Allen on his shot that prevented San Antonio from winning the NBA Championship in regulation play: "I had to get myself in a position where I was ready. Once the ball came off the rim, I just knew to get to the 3 point line. We needed a three. Two points isn't going to cut it. So my mental checklist is really to have my legs ready and underneath me, so when the ball comes, if it comes, I was ready to go in the air. Once I get my legs there, I let the ball go. I'm going to give myself the best chance to make it."
Added LeBron James: "He's got ice water in his veins! Ray can be 0-for-99 in a game and if he gets an open look late in the game, it's going down. That's just the confidence he has in himself.”
Allen’s shot doesn’t happen, however, if Chris Bosh doesn’t fight through the clutter of bodies jammed around the net in the waning seconds of regulation to snare the biggest rebound of his career - and flip out the basketball to Ray Allen who was standing open from the far corner - the Spurs were going to be crowned NBA Champions!
Know going into that moment, Bosh’s game performance was adequate at best. Offensively, he was 5-12 shooting from the floor and was criticized by the fans and broadcast media for not being more aggressive around the net. Even more concerning to those watching the game was how Tim Duncan of the Spurs just dominated the paint against Bosh. Everyone saw Duncan run wild and score 25 points in the first half alone. With the clock ticking down to the end of the season (that would have been classified as a major disappointment) and the hometown fans leaving the arena by the thousands, Bosh found a second gear at the ‘put-up or shut-up’ time in the game to not just rebound the ball but to have the court awareness to also see Ray Allen open at the corner and get him the ball.
"Offense, it wasn't going for me. That's going to happen sometimes,” said Bosh. “But you still have to be in some kind of rhythm and help the team out in some kind of way during the game. I just wanted to stay with it and play good defense."
Then as the remaining fans and Heat players were rejoicing in Allen’s magic, the Spurs had one last shot to take the title in regulation. And there was Bosh, again, coming to the rescue and keeping the Spurs away from celebrating a title, by blocking Danny Green’s last second shot attempt at victory. During the OT with the Heat now clinging to a one-point lead in the closing seconds, Bosh, for the third time in a matter of minutes, sprung out of nowhere to get a hand on Tony Parker’s shot to help preserve the Heat’s unimaginable comeback win!
"I think part of being a great athlete is continuously proving yourself to doubters,” said Bosh. ”I don't think that will ever go away. There's always another hurdle to jump over until you retire."
It doesn’t matter if you’re the starter or coming off the bench, leave no regrets when you get your opportunity to perform!
All the best always!
Jim Loria
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"Continuous effort -- not strength or intelligence -- is the key to unlocking our potential" – stated by Liane Cardes
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“When you expect success, your mind focuses on success” – stated by an unknown author
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"Nothing on earth can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude" – stated by Thomas Jefferson, American Founding Father who was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and our 3rd U.S. President
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“It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves” – stated by Edmund Hillary, one of the world’s greatest explorers
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