OKLAHOMA CITY, (Reuters) – In the aftermath of the Miami Heat’s second-half meltdown in the opening-game loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals, the spotlight is focused on the spotty play of All-Star Dwyane Wade.
The Heat guard scored 19 points but hit only seven of 19 shots and was at times listless in the 105-94 loss to the Thunder at raucous Chesapeake Energy Arena on Tuesday.
Wade acknowledged that in order for the Heat to win their first National Basketball Association (NBA) championship since 2006 he will have to be more assertive and take the pressure to score off league Most Valuable Player LeBron James.
He added, however, that he did not want to overreact after one game of a best-of-seven series.
“That’s when you start thinking too much, too many questions start coming up in your mind, you start over-analyzing things,” he said. “I want to score more points, I want to get my team to give us an opportunity to win the series.
“I’ll be more aggressive. Looking for my opportunities a lot more, probably more than I have of late. So that will be my change.”
Oklahoma City, playing in its first championship series since 1996 when the franchise was located in Seattle, outscored the Heat 24-4 on fast-break points in the series opener.
Heat Erik Spoelstra vowed to slow the Thunder’s frenetic pace while finding ways to free up Wade, an eight-time All-Star and former NBA scoring champion. Game Two of the series is Thursday night in Oklahoma City.
“We’re used to having the advantage on fast break opportunities, and they dominated that area 24 to 4,” Spoelstra said. “When we defend and we impose our will by being disruptive and aggressive, it opens up opportunities for us in the open court.
