Have The Miami Heat Finally Figured It Out?
After an abysmal start to an era where it was assumed LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh would wreak havoc on the NBA, it appears the Big 3 have figured out how to right the Miami Heat ship. The Heat have reeled off six straight wins after starting the season with an eye-popping 9-8 record. Even I was compelled to kick their hype in the shins. But with six straight wins— including an impressive 111-98 pummeling of the very Utah Jazz team that beat them 116-114 in overtime earlier this year—one has to wonder if the Heat are finally getting it right.
The short answer is: Yes, finally.
Over the six game stretch, they have outscored their opponents 608 – 509. It proves they have their offense on track, but more importantly, they have played some solid defense. Not to mention LeBron and Dwyane have figured out how to play better when they are both on the court at the same time. It helps tremendously when the duo are in sync, which allows Chris Bosh to light teams up who are too busy watching LeBron and Wade.
But the long answer to the question is: We’re not quite sure yet.
The six wins were against four teams with a current combined record of 28-59 and two of them are cellar dwellers (Detroit and Washington) while the other two aren’t too far behind (Cleveland and Milwaukee). Quite simply, they were supposed to stomp a mudhole in them. But honestly, this Heat was expected to drag a majority of the NBA through the mud this year. So does a six game winning streak really say that the Heat have arrived? Nope.
The real test will be when they have a three-game stretch which finds them playing Dallas at home (Dec. 20) and then hitting the road to play at Phoenix (Dec. 23) before rolling into Los Angeles for one of the most hyped games in recent memory when they take on the Lakers on Christmas Day. This is when their strength as a unit will be tested. Regardless, their current run does say that something is right. We’re just not sure how right it is yet.
