There are some basic must's and must not's in sports that held sacred. You must always play hard, you must always try your best, you must always repect the game, and you must always play to win. You musn't bet on the game or the team you play for (sorry Pete), you musn't cheat by using performance enhancing drugs (sorry Roger and Barry among others), you musn't lolly gag while your playing, and most of all you musn't disrespect the game by not putting the best players you have on the field or in this case the court. That is what the Miami Heat are doing. They are disrespecting the game.

     Pat Riley seems to think the game isn't worth this very basic concept. The man is a hall of famer and he is making a mockery of the game by resting his so called "injured" players and taking a few days off to scout for the draft. How in the HELL can David Stern not open his eyes and see what is going on and put a stop to it. Ok, I'll give Dwyane Wade a pass. He has been playing injured all year and he is the franchise so you sit him down much like the Knicks shut down Eddie Curry this past week. What I, as a fan of basketball and of sports in general, can not take is when he sits 6 of his possible 15 allotted players for "injuries" that they would play through if their games mattered. What he is failing to realize is that to the teams his team is playing these games are important. He has an obligation to field the best team out there regardless of his team's situation. He is playing out the string, practically guarantying his team will lose just about every game they play from this point on to obtain those precious ping pong balls for the draft.

    So if that is the case why don't my beloved Knicks do the same or how about Memphis, Seattle, Minnesota, Milwaukee, and the LA Clippers. That would make for some exciting basketball down the stretch. It is a travesty and what is worse they are still charging for admission. If I were a Heat ticket holder I'd ask for a refund of my remaining seats, and for those who bought single game tickets they should receive the same courtesy. Unreal. It makes me so angry that they are allowed to do this. It is unfair and wrong on so many levels. I hope the ping pong balls fall and the Heat pick 12th. That way their evil plan will go to waste. I am thinking of forming a petition on behalf of those Heat ticket holders who want their money back. If anyone is with me e-mail me and I will draw one up and I am not even a ticket holder so I am not receiving anything from this other than a hope that the right thing is done. Jc