http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/basketball/heat/ sfl-hornets18apr18,0,3264506.story?coll=sfla-sports-heat Davis says he'll again dominate By Ira Winderman Staff Writer Posted April 18 2004 The bravado might not last as long this time around. When the Heat faced the Hornets in the 2001 playoffs, it attempted to defend point guard Baron Davis straight up in the first two games of what then was a best-of-5 opening-round series. By Game 3, the Heat opted to trap Davis at midcourt. Through it all, Davis averaged 20.3 points on 55 percent shooting, five assists and 4.7 rebounds, as his team rolled to a 3-0 sweep. This time, even with the first round expanded to best-of-7, the Heat might not be as patient. "How much will I load up will depend on how well we can contain him without doing that, and how much their other guys are doing," Heat coach Stan Van Gundy said Saturday. "But we're prepared to do everything that we have within our system to load up on him." With Hornets forward Jamal Mashburn sidelined and defensive-minded George Lynch starting in his place, Heat forward Caron Butler could be the second defender thrown at Davis. A career 45 percent shooter, Lynch shot 39.7 percent this season. "You've got to help your teammates," Butler said. "If it's me that needs to help, I can lean that way." The initial challenge will likely go, straight up, to rookie guard Dwyane Wade. "We've worked on when he's got the ball that everyone on the floor has to know he has the ball," Wade said. "You've got to give the respect to a great player like that." Davis closed the season sixth in the league in scoring, fourth in assists and first in steals, making him just the third player since 1976-77 to rank in the top 10 in those categories, joining Gary Payton and Michael Adams. Two years ago, Davis had a dominant first-round series against the Magic, averaging 25 points. Last season, he struggled somewhat in the Hornets' first-round ouster at the hands of the 76ers. "I'm going to come out and have another breakout series like I had against Orlando," he vowed before the Hornets departed Saturday from New Orleans in preparation for tonight's Game 1 at AmericanAirlines Arena. "I know I was hurt last year, and I wasn't able to do some of the things I wanted to do. Allen Iverson hurt us, and all of that stuff still sticks with me. Now that the playoffs are here, I've got to redeem myself." Health, though, remains an issue. Davis missed nine consecutive games with a sprained left ankle before returning for 27 monitored minutes in each of the Hornets' final two games. "I think the two games he got under his belt will certainly help him during the playoffs," coach Tim Floyd said. "The thing I've been most encouraged about with Baron is that he has some explosion off that ankle and he has been able to get to the rim and penetrate, which is so critical." In addition, the swagger is back, the swagger that proved unbeatable against the Heat in the 2001 first round, when the Hornets were in Charlotte. "We know that one of our disadvantages is that we are not as athletic as they are," he said of the Heat. "But we know how to play. We know how to play in the playoffs and win in the playoffs, which we've done in the past. "I like our chances." Copyright c 2004, South Florida Sun-Sentinel --

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