What happened to the Miami Heat in the Finals? They cruised through Game 1, squandered Game 2, won Game 3, then the wheels fell off. Through one and a half games, it looked like the Heat were going to sweep the series, but eventually lost in six. It’s one of the most mind-boggling things I have ever seen.
You could pinpoint many reasons why the Heat underachieved, such as Erik Spoelstra’s coaching mistakes throughout the series or the Heat’s inability to hold 4th quarter leads. But the chief reason has to be the play of LeBron James. There are undoubtedly countless blogs written today that are bashing LeBron, and that is not my intent. But he clearly played poorly in this series and he even acknowledged it by saying “Sometimes you got it, and sometimes you don’t”, following last night’s loss. That was his only explanation. If LeBron would’ve just played up to 70% of his potential, the Heat would’ve easily won the series. He was a passive shell of his normal self and I’m still waiting to learn why.
If there’s one good thing that the Heat can take away from this season is that they were ahead of schedule. Many thought it would take a few years for them to even get this far. Their deficiencies as a team were highlighted at certain points of the season and they must address those holes this off-season. But immediately following the game, the broadcast crew of Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy were wrapping up by giving their thoughts on the series and otherwise, and Jeff Van Gundy said something very interesting regarding addressing holes during the off-season:
“I think that Wade and James, going forward, they have to evaluate: Is that the best compliment they could be? Or should they make a play for Dwight Howard using one of those two guys, to get a more balanced team? That’s for the offseason.”
I’m not sure where that came from considering all year long Van Gundy picked the Heat to win it all, but I couldn’t believe what I heard. His comment is a bit premature, since they’ve only been teammates for 11 months, but they do need to add ancillary pieces. During the playoffs, I personally came to the realization that I believe Chris Bosh will be traded within the next few years, but I don’t see any conceivable way the Heat ever move Wade or James. Not even for Dwight Howard. They’ll find a way to win with those two guys on the roster.
If you’re looking for your everyday, predictable basketball talk, then go somewhere else, because Kevin Burke of The Kevin Burke Project brings provocative, thought provoking content about basketball as only he can. Kevin also hosts The Hoop Doctors weekly podcast show, which you can subscribe to for free on iTunes. Follow Kevin on Twitter and Facebook
