Can the Miami Heat climb back up in the Eastern Conference?

With a 3-2 record in the last five games, can Miami become an Eastern Conference threat come March?

This is tough. On paper, the Miami Heat honestly look like a contender. Maybe not top-three Eastern Conference seed, but definitely top six. They were the talk of the conference last year when they completely turned their year around finishing 30-11 in the second half of the season.

They re-signed their core, kept Goran Dragic and surrounded their max contract asset, Hassan Whiteside, with role players that could shoot the 3-ball and create plays off transition runs.

The man with the golden arm Wayne Ellington, before this week, had been phenomenal shooting over 55 percent from the field. Combine that with 41 percent from behind the arc, and you got yourself the makings of a reliable 3-point weapon.

James Johnson had been averaging a combined 20.5 points per game per 100 possessions, a drastic rise from two years ago. He was even named the third co-captain along with Dragic and Udonis Haslem.

Why, then, have they been flirting for the eighth spot only to fall back down to 10th with a horrible — wait, let me rephrase that: disgusting — 10-11 record? This coming after they went 3-0 last week, ending the Boston Celtics’ 16-game win streak and tussling with the resilient Minnesota Timberwolves?

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I know, it may definitely sound like a broken record, but it’s the sad truth. Miami isn’t cut out for the big leagues. At least not yet. The true testament to this Heat season honestly just started last week. Anything before that was preparation for the long ride home. Even with a great week that saw them beat the best team in the East, Miami still finds itself with a lost identity.

Biased Heat fans are blinded to the fact that this team can still turn it around. I’m one of them. With a long season ahead of us, there is time to fix this slump. But the reality of it all is that even if they somehow magically turn this around, they’re still not ready to rise up to the top ranks of the East. They’re, for lack of a better word, mediocre right now at best.

Granted, they were coming off a tough loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers playing on a back-to-back, but that doesn’t excuse allowing the New York Knicks to shoot 60.3 percent with 26 assists in a 29-point loss. Miami looked tired and lost. Dragic and Waiters combine to go 6-for-22 for 16 points. They have 11 back-to-back games left. This can’t be an excuse.

They played without Whiteside in that game, but then again, the Knicks played without Kristaps Porzingis and still dominated all four quarters.

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Miami can be a threat, but without a true All-Star or veteran presence to lead the way, they are going to be a mediocre team with a long season ahead of them. If so, all we can hope is Pat Riley turns to trade season before it’s too late.