Beat The Heat!
It has been a while since I’ve written anything but I’m back hopefully for good!
With NBA free agency under full swing, fans and analysts alike are starting to formulate ideas of how teams are taking shape going into next season. Of course the headline that caught the most eyes was Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh each signing with the Miami Heat. This move could conceivably shape the NBA Finals outlook for the next 4-5 years.When you have the second, third and sixth best players on the planet on one roster, its not much of a stretch to say that.
In case if you were wondering, I still have Kobe Bryant listed as the best player on the planet for now, but sometime next year I expect LeBron to lay claim to the undisputed best player on the planet. With that said, playing alongside Wade and Bosh will undoubtedly take some of Lebron’s individual shine away from him.
Of course this is where I hit you with the whammy, I do not think the Miami Heat will win the NBA Championship for the 2010-2011 season.
First off, the additions of Lebron James and Chris Bosh and the re-signing of Dwayne Wade looks more like a collection of great individual talent rather than team talent. I know that may sound short-sighted, let me explain. Each one of those players were the cornerstones of their respective franchises. Lebron won two MVP awards and has a Finals appearance under his belt, Wade has an NBA Finals MVP trophy and Bosh was an immensely talented player on a poor team. In essence they were each “The Man.” Now that Lebron and Bosh are added, the question begs: Who is the man now? It’s unreasonable to think that at some point in the season that egos will not clash. In Cleveland, the offense ran through Lebron and in Miami and Toronto the same situation applies for Wade and Bosh. Who will it run through now? I’m sure there are plenty of interesting answers to that but it remains to be seen how the offense will run. I am also aware of that these three guys have experience playing together internationally but that is not nearly the same as the NBA where money and image precede winning.
Secondly, let us take a look at the rest of the roster, they sorely lack the depth of a championship squad.
The Heat were smart in acquiring Zydrunas Ilgauskas. He was a solid player in Cleveland for a long time, but we are talking about a guy who has missed 42 games over the last three years and has seen his scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage decline each year in that span. At 35 years old, he’s clearly looking at retirement at the end of this season.It also remains to be seen if he can even remain healthy for a full season and based on his age and recent injury history, I would say it is doubtful.
Mike Miller was a solid acquisition because he represents the only legitimate spot-up shooter on the roster not to mention the only viable threat from downtown. He’s a good player and it is unclear whether or not Miami will use him the starting lineup or off the bench.
The rest of the role players, we already have an idea of what they bring to the table. Udonis Haslem is cagy veteran presence but is unspectacular in just about in every facet of his game and Mario Chalmers actually got worse from his rookie year to sophomore campaign. Haslem has a ring but are the other guys really championship caliber role players? It remains to be seen but as of now I say an emphatic “NO!”
A bigger question is how the offense is going to be run. Lebron and Wade have very similar playing styles in the sense that they are both explosive players to the basket but both have mediocre mid-range and perimeter games. However, they both can not clog the paint at the same time. The big advantage for both of those players is their uncanny court vision, so I expect their passing abilities will help alleviate this probleml but it is a concern going into training camp nonetheless. How Bosh will fit into this crowded paint area will be interesting because you’re going to have three exceptional players whose individual strengths lie in the paint. Floor spacing is going to be a big issue especially when you only have one good deep threat.
With the lack of depth, each of the superstars are going to be called on to play big minutes and throughout an 82 game season, fatigue could be a factor that works against them as they enter the playoffs. Playing in the notoriously weak Eastern Conference will be beneficial to this team. The lack of consistently tough competition will probably allow this team to work out its problems on its way to a high playoff seeding.
I expect this team will win a championship in the coming years, I just do not think it will happen this year. There are other teams in the hunt who are just as hungry and although may lack the individual talent have better overall team chemistry. I will address the other contenders in my next blog so stay tuned! Real Sports. Real Talk.