Moving south for the next preview, it’s time to take a look at the extremely unpredictable Miami Heat. For the preview I recruited Alex A.K.A @NBAtipoff to break it down.
Alex Curtis-Slep is a basketball blogger on his grind at NBAtipoff. He lives and bleeds basketball, and never, ever gets enough of it!
The Miami Heat are going into a season where, I think it’s fair to say, expectations are the same as last year–if not lower. The East is getting ever stronger, especially in the top tier. While the Heat do have a few nice young pieces, as a whole they are not close to a title-contending team. When was the last time you dreamt of Joel Anthony holding the Larry O’Brien trophy? I remember, he was getting the MVP trophy and … on no, wait, that was Kobe.
The only way for the Heat to improve on last year’s 43-39 record is to make a blockbuster deal or for young guns like Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley to make giant leaps in their development. Since the Grizzlies actually spent some money this summer, I don’t think any big coup-type deal is possible. Chalmers will make some strides, but it won’t be enough to change the record. Beasley just has to be more than a solid big who can shoot jumpers. That was his role last year. He needs to get more minutes and get his feet wet this year. If he can diversify his contributions, he can help the Heat gain a game or two on last year’s record.
Wade will again lead the league in scoring. He’s got to be in the top three in order for this team to have a chance. For Heat fans, that is a reason to be scared going into the summer of 2010.
At best, I’m predicting a second round exit for Wade and crew.
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Last Season Record: 2-1
The Raptors were deplorable last season but managed to win their season series against the Heat (yep, I was so surprised and had to check twice). Both the wins came before the mid-season trade which ended up favoring the Raptors in the win/loss column but it was Miami who made a return to the playoffs. Bosh and Bargnani took turns tearing up the Heat front court while Wade carried his team with little help from teammates. The last game of the series turned out to be a shoot out of sorts and the Heat scored just enough to avoid the sweep.
Stacking Up
The Bigs: The Raptors should continue to dominate the Heat with their front court. The added depth should make this even easier. Even a healthy Jermaine O’Neal should not stand in the way. Haslem is solid but undersized, O’Neal and Magloire are just not agile enough and Joel Anthony is still very raw. There is no reason why Bosh and Bargnani shouldn’t average about 20ppg each against this team. Miami may have a slight edge in rebounding and blocks but the Raptors should still be able to put up the points. On offense, Wade still remains the focus and Bosh and Co. will have to focus on setting up layers of defense for him to get through before seeing the basket.
Edge: Raptors
The Wings: As I write this, I am trying to picture Amir Johnson D’ing up Beasley. Fresh out of rehab, Beasley should be focused on making his mark now. There is no Marion to steal his minutes and will get a chance to play both PF and SF this season. He has a tough challenge against the Raptors, as I am not sold on his ability to contain a player like Hedo. This spot will be played out on the perimeter and Beasley has yet to become comfortable there. The Heat don’t have much size on their roster and we could see a player like Belinelli playing the 3 – again more on the outside which should keep challenging Miami’s defense. They also added Q Richardson who can heat up in hurry but is never going to be in the running for DPOY. Speaking of all this defense… I don’t think we see much of that in this series and it will come down to who can make more of their open shots.
Edge: Raptors
The Guards: Two words – Dwyane Wade. Another two – Game Changer. He is the driving force of this Miami team and there is not a single player on the Raptor team that will be able to shut him down. The goal should be to contain him with a group effort. Put different guys on him, make it harder for him to find the open guy and try to limit his access into the lane where he does most of his damage. Wade is going to get his, but Miami has some great outside shooters on this team. Open shots for players like Wright and Chalmers would only spell disaster. The Raptors hopefully will work on that perimeter defense which has been a major issue for them over the years and make this a one man show. On offense, they will get their chances since the Heat are not known for their D, but it will be tough since so much energy is spent on the other end.
Edge: Heat
Predicted Record: 2-2
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