Do you remember that first game the Miami Heat played, that loss to the Celtics, and everyone said ‘oh the Heat suck, LeBron’s an idiot’. Well, of course one game does not a season make, however, at this point, it may be safe to say that the Heat…suck.
All the proof you need is in these two little numbers: 10 and 8. That’s the record of the Heat after about a month into the season, 10 wins and eight losses, a .556 winning percentage for those who care; good enough for third in the Southeast division, behind the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks.
But wait, don't three of the top 20 arguably best players in the NBA play on this team?
LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh, all made the decision to play there, this year. So what if I told you that at the same point in the season, after 18 games, last year, that the record of the James and Bosh-free Heat was 10 and 8.
One year ago, before this mess happened, the Heat had the exact same record, with just Wade as its star. And since we’re throwing numbers out there, the Cavs had a record of 13-5.
What’s wrong in South Beach then?!
Maybe it’s the lack of leadership. Who’s team is this anyway?
Wade’s, James’s, Riley’s? The media has crowned it King James’s, but just like in Cleveland, he didn’t want it. It rightfully belongs to Wade, but he has nights where he goes 1-13, 2-12, and 6-21, all losses by the way; it’s hard to turn you into a leader. And then there’s good ol’ Pat Riley. He orchestrated this whole sideshow; rumor has it Riley tossed a collection of his Championship rings on a table in front of James and said ‘try one on’; how Godfather of him
The scene is playing out for Riley to swoop on in and save the day yet again. Erik Spoelstra has basically lost the team and is now looking over his shoulder on a daily basis. Riley essentially did this back in 2005 to Stan Van Gundy and he’ll do it again to Spoelstra. If this guy still has a job by Christmas consider him lucky.
So, other than the lack of leadership, the Miami Heat are also missing that all important focus and drive. They were told they’d win 70, that isn’t happening, and neither is 60 at this point. They’re in Shaq-mode; you know where you take a week off here, a week off there, half-heartedly contribute, pick it up around February. Well, when you’re made up of a team of three players doing that and the other two are Carlos Arroyo and the eternal Zydrunas Ilgauskas, someone’s gotta step up and play.
Clearly the great experiment isn't working, this team needs a leader, so who's it going to be?
