So Jeff Van Gundy is ready to hand Miami the title. According to his mini media tour on everybody’s favorite 4-letter sports network, Van Gundy thinks they will break the single season win record (72), break the Lakers win streak (33) and won’t lose back to back games all year. Well, stop the presses, cancel the season and let’s give Lebron and Bosh their first rings and save ourselves the trouble of going through the motions of an NBA season only to do what Van Gundy is already sure will happen.
But the bigger question is: why is this news? It’s one former coach who had a moderate level of NBA success making a prediction about an NBA team. Great stuff Jeff, who cares? Is it news tomorrow if former President Bill Clinton likes the Toronto Raptors to take the title(that actually might be news to the Toronto Raptors too). But I suppose it is news in the 24 hours a day endless news cycle. It’s the constant need for information that keeps all predictions relevant and all opinions at least worthy of a look.
But I guess the more important question is if Van Gundy is right? The first thing we know is that this team is loaded with two top level players in James and Wade and one second tier player in Bosh (and before I get trashed for it I’m putting Bosh on the same level as Amare, Chris Paul, and Derrick Rose). We know their supporting cast is a mix of some veterans and younger players. We know that they will be playing in an Eastern Conference that is certainly weak in many areas. The only teams to worry about at all will be the Celtics, Bulls, and Magic. So it would be very difficult to predict that the Heat, barring injury, won’t finish with a 60 plus win season. But that’s where my safe predictions stop.
The fact is that no matter what happens, this is a team and a team needs to do 2 things well. They need to gel, which is something that often takes time. And they need to play defense, something the Heat may not do well. Wade can play some good defense when he’s inspired to do so. Lebron has become a much better defender. But Bosh couldn’t guard anyone.
We do know that there will be immense pressure on these guys. Every loss will be magnified and if they get bounced in the playoffs the season will be a colossal failure. They need to win and win now. They need to dominate and they need to figure out who’s team this will be. Who is bringing the ball up? Who is setting the plays? Who is taking over in crunch time? And who is getting the accolades when the team starts rolling? I know there are people who will disagree and say that these guys just want to play together and they will put all ego aside and just play ball and that winning matters most, but I’m not convinced of that yet.
It’s because we’ve seen it before where teams try and buy their way into a ring. The Yankees tried it for years by acquiring the big names rather than the best fits for their teams. The Lakers did it when they went out and got Karl Malone and Gary Payton. The Rockets tried it and it never worked. The Heat have 3 guys in their prime, so maybe their overwhelming talent is enough to get them a title but I just caution against assuming anything too early.
And I’m guessing before all is said and done, Kobe will have something to say about all of this?
