Buck Harvey: Heat edge: Tonight just the usual hatred

DALLAS — This time, they laughed. This time, Dwyane Wade posed in front of the Mavericks’ bench before LeBron James threw a couple of playful jabs.

And when they came apart shortly after? America loved it.

But there was a time when they cried, and America loved that, too. Those days were not unlike the final seven minutes of Game 2: Chris Bosh was as confused as Erik Spoelstra was clueless then, and James dribbled until he missed.

The Heat overcame all of that during the long season, however, and that’s what should worry the Mavericks tonight.

After this circus of a season, isn’t some embarrassment and failure just the usual for Miami?

James and his teammates have learned to live with standards that apply only to them. Kevin Durant heard far less, for example, in the Western Conference finals. Then, he strapped on an imaginary championship belt after swishing the kind of 3-pointer that Wade made Thursday.

The Mavericks rallied in that game, too. But Jason? Terry didn’t say anything about Durant then, nor did the media, when a few comments could have been said.

One possibility: Durant must have really been strapping on an imaginary diaper.

Then there’s the point that James made about Terry on Saturday. “If (Terry) runs down the court doing the whole wings expanded,” James said, “do we count that as a celebration as well?”

A few people in San Antonio have seen the Jet act and are nodding right now. Terry is far from the model of professional comportment.

“I just think,” James continued, “everything gets blown out of proportion when the Miami Heat does things.”

James brought it on himself. Still, somewhere in the middle of the taunts and the blame, with everyone but South Florida rooting against the Heat, the abnormal became the normal.

Maybe the bottom came in March, when James and Wade missed last-second shots and Miami lost its fifth game in six tries. That’s when Spoelstra, trying to emphasize how much his guys cared, said, “There are a couple of guys crying there in the locker room.”

What followed was all-star schadenfreude, and it went far beyond fans and media.

“Wait ’til I call him, man,” Carmelo Anthony said of Bosh then. “I’ll be like, ‘What are you doing?’”

What were they doing? They were enduring harsh criticism and angry arenas as they tried to contend in their first year together. At times it had to be frustrating, if not maddening, and yet here they are in the Finals.

Here they are, too, as a dominant team that threw away Game 2. Miami has played better for longer in the first two games, and it fits with what the Heat did against the 76ers, Celtics and Bulls before.

So what happens now? Bosh is back to his teary days, shooting 26 percent in the Finals. Spoelstra was out-coached Thursday. James ran no offense in the final minutes before missing threes, which is what he was doing in January. And, having given away such a game, there’s reason to wonder how they will respond on the road under Finals pressure.

Still, Miami has a few things to lean on. One is talent.

Another was there Thursday until the end, which is the Heat defense. Dallas plays defense, too, but not like this. Dirk Nowitzki calls it “almost suffocating.”

Then there’s what Wade said Saturday. “It’s going to be a hostile environment,” he said. “Nothing the Miami Heat are not used to.”

Everything has been hostile for seven months, and maybe that’s their edge now. They’ve been able to set aside their failures, and whatever anyone says about them, and the aftermath of Game 2 fits into that.

They celebrate too much?

They’ve heard much, much worse.

bharvey@express-news.net

Green shoes help spark Douglas’ 29-point S&D effort

The Knicks’ special green shoes for St. Patrick’s Day obviously agreed with Toney Douglas.

Something had to explain his unusual confidence as he blistered Memphis for nine 3-pointers en route to a game-high 29 points sparking New York’s 120-99 triumph over the Grizzlies.

“I love that color. I had two days of practice in them and everybody was like, ‘Wow, those are really loud shoes,”’ Douglas told the Associated Press. “They’re special shoes now.”

Douglas tied a team record with nine 3-pointers, joining former Knicks John Starks and Latrell Sprewell who share the achievement. 

“Once I started hitting, I felt like there was no defense out there,” Douglas said. “No matter if a man was on me, anything I threw up was going in.”

His hot night was the standout performance for Thursday’s Studs and Duds on a limited night of play across the association.

STUDS

New York G Toney Douglas: Blistered Memphis for 29 points, including 9-for-12 from 3-point range, and was plus-18 in the Knicks’ 120-99 victory over the Grizzlies.

New York F Carmelo Anthony: Scored  28 points and was plus-18 in the Knicks’ victory over Memphis.  

Chicago G Derrick Rose: Scored 21 points, was a team-leading plus-14 and turned in a suffocating defensive effort on Deron Williams in the Bulls’ 84-73 victory over  New Jersey — their eighth straight triumph and longest winning streak in six years.

Portland C LaMarcus Aldridge: Scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in only 28 minutes and was plus-37 in the Trail Blazers’ 111-70 beatdown over Cleveland.

New York’s perimeter game: The Knicks’ outside shooting erupted for a team-record 20 3-pointers and shot 55.6 percent from behind the arc in their victory over Memphis.

Portland F Gerald Wallace: Notched 17 points, six rebounds and six assists and was plus-42 in the Trail Blazers’ big victory over the Cavaliers.

Chicago F Omer Asik: Contributed 11 points and 16 rebounds off  the bench and was plus-9 in the Bulls’ victory at New Jersey.

New Jersey C Brook Lopez: Tallied 22 points, eight rebounds and two assists in the Nets’ loss to Chicago.

New Jersey F Kris Humphries: Notched 13 points, 16 rebounds and five blocked shots in the Nets’ loss  to the Bulls.

DUDS

New Jersey G Deron Williams: Went 1-for-12 from the field with four turnovers and was minus-12 in the Nets’ loss to Chicago.

Memphis G O.J. Mayo: Clanked through a 1-for-7 shooting night and was a team-worst minus-19 in the Grizzlies’ loss at New York.

Cleveland F Alonzo Gee: Missed all five shots from the field, had two turnovers and was a team-worst minus-33 in the Cavaliers’ loss at Portland.