Last season, the Miami Heat were on their way to their fourth straight NBA Finals appearance, with some even beginning to call the team a “dynasty” because of their consistent success on the court.
Where are they now? Fighting for their lives to get into the playoffs.
The Heat certainly are not in the pretty position they were in last season. Instead of worrying about whether they should take the time to rest and be content with the second seed in the Eastern Conference, the Heat are looking up at the Washington Wizards and the Atlanta Hawks in their division and wondering if they can still contend and be a threat in the playoffs, let alone get to the Eastern Conference Finals.
But how can a team decline so rapidly in the span of one offseason? Well, losing the best player on the team can contribute to that, but is that really as big of an excuse as some may think it is?
LeBron James was the leader in Miami, something that can’t be disputed in any way, shape or form. James held that team together and kept the Heat in games down the stretch against the San Antonio Spurs in last year’s championships. Without James, the Heat would have blown out even worse, and the result would have been downright embarrassing.
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James did so many things for the team besides be its leading scorer. He was an offensive catalyst in every form of the phrase, whether it was being a playmaker or going up for offensive rebounds and putting in the hustle to keep plays alive. James sacrificed himself to give his team a chance, but the rest of the Heat simply could not keep up.
Chris Bosh couldn’t buy a shot. Dwyane Wade continued to be nagged by injuries and decline. Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem and Shane Battier were nowhere to be found. Ray Allen looked like his days in the NBA were numbered. The team fell apart when James needed his teammates the most, which was definitely a contributing factor that led to him jumping ship and heading back to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Despite all of this, James’ loss cannot be the sole reason for the Heat’s disappointing showing so far this season. No, the team isn’t abysmal as they sit at 11-13, but this team was expected to do more, especially since Bosh and Wade are still in the fold.
The Heat added players in the offseason as well to make up for James’ loss, with Luol Deng, Danny Granger and Josh McRoberts all joining a team they thought would be contenders this season. Miami also drafted Shabazz Napier, a favorite of James’. However, none of these additions have proven to be game changers.
Deng has averaged his lowest point total (14 points per game) in five years, looking lost at times in coach Erik Spoelstra’s system. The Heat have played a style that looks for the floor to be completely spread out on offense, with shooters lined up around the perimeter in an effort to allow room for driving lanes and space for Bosh to create in the post.
Unfortunately, Deng has been kept to being too much of a corner and perimeter shooter this season, and hasn’t had a lot of opportunity to handle the ball and do a lot of the same things he did during his best years in Chicago.
Not to mention Deng hasn’t been a factor in transition because the Heat’s defense has been horrid up to this point. In terms of defensive rating, the Heat are 26th in the league, which is nowhere near where they were these past few seasons with James. Wade and Bosh haven’t been reliable on that end, and there really aren’t any other lockdown defenders on the roster either.
Rim protection has been a huge problem, and point guards have also had a field day with Chalmers, Norris Cole and Napier trying to lock them down. Little to no rotation on defense and a lot of standstill play has allowed teams to run all over the Heat, and that may be the biggest problem for the Heat offensively as well.
The Heat have gotten a lot of their points off of transition offense in the past, as James and Wade were able to force a lot of deflections and steal opportunities to get out on the break where Miami was at its best. This season, the Heat are playing the at the slowest pace in the NBA, which speaks even more volumes in terms of defense.
The Heat simply have not been able to force turnovers like they used to. Losing a captain on defense like James was certainly a big blow, but Deng, Wade and Bosh have all been in big spots before, they should know how to run a defense by now.
The Heat only have four players averaging double digits in the scoring column this season, and that’s when Wade is healthy enough to play. At this point in his career, Wade cannot be counted on to lead a team because he is not reliable. Wade has had his moments so far when he looks like a deadly offensive contributor, but that only comes after he has had multiple games off resting.
If it takes Wade this long to rest his body and get ready for the next game, how can he play a big role in the postseason when games are virtually every other night for a month and a half stretch?
Players like Deng and Bosh are going to have to step up for this team and be more vocal and focused on what it really takes to win games. A lot of this team has played on the biggest stages, so it makes no sense as to why there has been no consistency on either end of the floor. Yes, losing a superstar isn’t easy, but this team still has talent capable of making a deep postseason run.
If the Heat can get moving on both offense and defense, then there is no reason why this team won’t make it into the playoffs. Will they make it? That’s a different story.
However, if I were a betting man, I would put my money on them turning this thing around.
*Statistics courtesy of ESPN and Basketball-Reference