Four giveaways after the Wizards (2-6) made their first five shots and got a Gilbert Arenas dagger from six-feet behind the three-point line at the end of the first quarter but blew a 49-41 halftime lead in Miami and extended their current losing streak to five with a 90-76 loss to the Heat (6-1):
If Arenas had shown the same kind of focus and intensity that he had arguing calls with referee Dan Crawford after the game had already been decided – enough to earn himself a dumb technical foul – back during his 7-turnover third period, perhaps he might not have rung up the most dubious of double-doubles: 21 points, a career-high 12 turnovers. Even with eight assists, that A-to-T ratio ended in negative land.
Dwyane Wade bettered his 40-point performance in last week’s Heat win over Washington at Verizon Center by one, but tonight far more of his points were gift-wrapped by Arenas, who nearly single-handedly erased the Wizards’ 11-point lead in the third quarter with his sloppy play. On four consecutive possessions, Arenas gave the ball away – three bad passes and one offensive foul. And when was the last time you saw an unforced backcourt violation? Actually, that one didn’t hurt as much directly since Jermaine O’Neal missed his shot at the other end.
No judgment yet on Randy Foye, who left in the second quarter after rolling (spraining) his right ankle over Michael Beasley’s shoe. But Andray Blatche also looked to be cringing after a couple plays, and DeShawn Stevenson’s been popped more than once, too. Hey guys, spend tomorrow on South Beach — not in the bars on South Beach — then come home rested.
Tough night for Brendan Haywood, who was spurned by the NBA and left off the 2010 All-Star ballot despite coming into the game averaging a double-double and 2.1 blocks per game. He also kept up that pace with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks against the Heat. He stuffed Beasley twice and O’Neal once on three consecutive Miami possessions in the first quarter. Blatche, making his first start of the year, came in a close second behind Haywood, with 13 point, 10 rebounds and 5 assists.
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