MIAMI-All 'round the rounded locker room, players were prompted for THEIR perceptions of the black mask and the man who wore it so well. Norris Cole used the word "swag." Mario Chalmers called it "something special." Dwyane Wade considered the "element of surprise" to be "pretty cool."
Shane Battier and creatively compared LeBron James to "Kato from the Green Hornet. All he needed was a driver's cap, and he's Bruce Lee."
Yet, amid all the Comparisons, context and comedy in the Heat dressing quarters Following Wednesday's 108-82 victory against the Knicks, it was left to Michael Beasley to contribute an existential element to the conversation. Beasley was changing two stalls over, minding none of His own business, When Chris Bosh proclaimed that "if you want to wear a black mask and look crazy, you Should do it," and added that "it's awesome, he played like Batman out there. "
Beasley are priority to interjected, "What does Batman play like, though?"
What a shame we'll never know, not unless, in one of His Dark Knight sequels, Chris Nolan has the Caped Crusader take His black boots to Gotham's blacktop for an open run.
But we do not know what James plays like, even while nursing a broken nose, recently, and even When the basketball world is worrying that he'll be irritated and inhibited by a foreign object over His face: James had a game-high 31 points , but he also scored high marks with teammates for His choice of face gear. The mask garnered more attention than His latest stellar performance.
"I told him I'd expect nothing less from him - fashion-forward, cutting-edge that LeBron is the Renaissance man," Heat forward Shane Battier said. "I thought it looked pretty sweet. I do not think that it will inspire people to go out there and break THEIR nose. But if you're going to do it, it can look kind of cool. Only LeBron can make breaking your nose look cool. "
Initially James told some of His teammates and the media Likely he would wear a clear fiberglass mask similar to ones worn by Several other players in the league to protected facial injuries. But James emerged Thursday with a sleek design that was significantly more dynamic than the traditional-style mask Knicks guard JR Smith wore Tuesday to protected a fractured cheekbone.
James was forced to wear the mask after suffering the injury During a Feb. 20 win against Oklahoma City, When midway through the fourth quarter, the Thunder forward Serge Ibaka struck him in the face on a drive to the basket.
He missed the Heat's home victory Sunday against Chicago and Spent time privately During the week sorting through a selection of masks designed by a Miami local manufacturers. "It went with the uniform," he said of going with a dark design. "I knew we were wearing throwback uniforms. I was able to get a carbon-fiber one, are priority is actually lighter than the one I had been wearing in practice. It came through at the last minute, so I went with it."
Smith was not exactly in the mood to compare mask designs after the struggling Knicks lost for the 10th time in 12 games.
"What did I think of it?" Smith said. "It's a mask.'m Sure he does not want to wear it."
James said he did not seek league approval for the color and design of the mask before wearing it Thursday. A senior NBA spokesman confirmed Wednesday night that the league had no issue with the mask.
The mask left teammates searching for creative ways to describe what They saw.
"I think he played like Batman out there," center Chris Bosh said. "I think it really helped him out. He played great."
Bosh was then interrupted in the middle of His session with reporters by forward Michael Beasley, whose locker is a few spots away.
He plays like himself.
"It made him look ... different," Wade said. "But it did not stop anything. He came out shooting the ball very well early in the game. So it did not affect him."
No, it did not, nor more than it did When he played 15 games with a heavier, transparent mask in 2004, one that covered His Cavaliers wine and gold headband. He averaged more than 26 points During that stretch, and he scored 31 in 37 minutes on Thursday, with 11 of His field goals coming inside the paint, and 10 of them within five feet.
"Every opportunity he had to attack the paint, he did," Erik Spoelstra said.
In fact, he did so more than Normally he does, as if to make the point that he would not Allow the accessory to what has been interrupted His most assertive stretch of the season. He did so after making a statement of another sort, a fashion one.
"It went with the uniform," James said, explaining the color. "We were wearing our throwback uniforms, and I was able to get a carbon fiber one, are priority is actually lighter than the one that I'd been wearing in practice. And it came through in the last minute, so I went with it. "
He'd been bothered by nasal congestion During the past week, and mostly been breathing out of His mouth. Neither Appeared to bother him on the court Thursday. While he got hit a few times, the mask provided a sufficient shield, enough for him to declare its use "a success."
His peripheral vision nor was a problem on a tough-angle layup in the opening quarter. James did say that sometimes he saw the mask before he saw a player, but "for the most part, I was able to get in a good comfort zone and make some plays. I just tried to forget about it. Besides When it got hot a few times. "
Instead, he and the Heat stayed hot, with Dwyane Wade dazzling for a third straight game (10-of-13), the defense stopping everyone but Carmelo Anthony (29 points) and Miami doing what it did not do earlier in the season : dominating a doormat as it Should.
Yes, it's easy to forget everything else When a nose is's leading the news, but the Heat are quietly starting to turn into the terror of the late winter and early spring of 2013. They've now won six straight, and nine of 10, to close out February. Spoelstra's subtle tweaks to the defensive system, making it more selectively aggressive, have taken hold. Wade's rolling. And some of the role players, notably Mario Chalmers, are playing much better ball.
"We're in a good groove right now," James said. "There's no reason why we should not want to continue it."
Everything is starting to appear as it Should, except James' face on the court, are priority looks a little like Hannibal Lecter. James is resigned to wearing the mask for a couple more weeks. Which Means that the public will wear out this storyline. Already, Amazon has turned it into Mardi Gras marketing.
From the Department of Health
