Tuesday, December 13th, 2011 at 9:00 am  |  123 responses

Miami Heat Say It’s NBA Title or Bust in 2012


by Marcel Mutoni / @marcel_mutoni

Given all of the craziness happening around the NBA at the moment, there is considerably less drama surrounding the Miami Heat this year (a stark contrast to last season, when they signed LeBron James, Chris Bosh and re-upped with Dwyane Wade.)

Just because less people are thinking, talking and writing about them doesn’t mean there’s any less pressure on the South Beachers. If anythng, the expectations for the Heat are higher than ever before — especially within the team’s own locker room.

From Fox Sports:

“I think we’re the best team in the league and we’re going to work like it,” said forward Chris Bosh, “We’re looking to win it all. There’s nothing else left.” Makes sense considering the Heat lost in six games to Dallas in the NBA Finals last spring. Not even a seven-game Finals loss in the upcoming season would cut it.

“If we don’t win a championship, yes, it’s a bust year,” guard Dwyane Wade said. Unlike the other two card-carrying members of Miami’s Big Three, LeBron James didn’t offer a hurry-up-and-Tweet-it quote on winning a title. But don’t get the idea he doesn’t feel the same way. “That’s our goal, ultimately,” James said of a championship. “It’s a long ways from now. But it’s our goal. We didn’t come together to make the playoffs or come together to win a playoff series. We came together to win the NBA Finals. But we know it’s a long road. We’re going to take every step and not skip a step to try to get there. We’re not going to shortcut anything. … We just hope to have a better result if we hope to get back to that point.”

The Miami Heat are considered the favorites to win the 2012 NBA championship.

I suppose it’s a good thing that the team’s superstars seem to have wholly embraced the enormous challenge, pressure and expectations that come along with being considered the sure bet this season.

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  • BBaller

    For some reason i’ve got this feeling Wade is going to miss a lot of games with an injury this season.

  • BBaller

    Not wishing it on him by all means, but how would Miami fair if that did occur?

  • BBaller

    @Datkid Nene just agreed to stay with Denver!!!

  • http://skjflf.com Jukai

    T-Money: Remember when people said the same thing about the Wade-Miller-Lebron-Haslem-Bosh combo?
    I’m not saying the Heat can’t win a championship using the lineup you described. I’m simply saying having decent bigman and decent point REALLY SHOULD HELP SITUATIONALLY. It will turn Miami into a “probably” champion into a “definite” champion.
    Plus I really don’t like the Haslem/Bosh combo. They’re the same players… they are really identical.

  • http://skjflf.com Jukai

    *turn Miami FROM a probably to a definite

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003283181574 Gametimeweezy

    they are undersized is what they are

  • http://Slamonline.com nbk

    They played with that lineup healthy for exactly 0 games last season Jukai.

  • http://slamonline.com datkid

    wait nene is gone? F*CK…. Well dalembert is still there so…

  • #6marjons

    the second year runnin

  • http://SLAM FLIGHT 9

    66 games and they should win it… they can’t get it at an 82 game season anyways.

  • BBaller

    Still, as a Spurs fan i hate the the asterik championship, it means the same as any other. All 30 teams know the rules, you have 66 games to gear for the #1 seed, and the playoff process is the same. Who in 98-99 thought the Spurs would win it? Huh ,anybody?It may benefit some teams (Heat,OKC,Bulls) but all teams start with the same outlook, although i still think last years Spurs record 61-21 was better than the Bulls 62-20,the west, especially being in the South west where every team was above 0.500. The Heat should win barring injuries and another Lechoke.

  • http://facebook.com/lijiabin justine bacnis

    it’s hard to say that they’re going to win it all this year, especially when there are so many potential title contenders in the league.

  • BBaller

    Bust like a bubble,please can some other team form a team that will punk this heat team. I respected Lebron, Wade and Bosh before they teamed up in Miami.Imagine if they won, the muscle flexing will be vomit inducing!!! Just like their parade of 1, not 2, not 3 but …..As a Spurs fan i hope the Lakers or Dallas whip them.That says a lot.

  • http://skjflf.com Jukai

    NBK: That’s true, but that still doesn’t solve the issue that Wade is seemingly too lazy to guard the point (is it optimal for Battier to do that?), Lebron and Wade both don’t want to play a “true” point guard (I’m not sure what that means but they’re pretty adamant about it), Bosh and Haslem play exactly the same (finesse fours who use their jump shot to open up driving areas for themselves. I sure hope they can play on opposite sides of the floor. It’s going to get lonely in the post if Bron isn’t there yet) and no one on that team is imposing enough to man up a giant center.
    Sure, terrible players aren’t the answer, but I was just hoping to see some type of movement. I see Przybilla, Stevenson, and hell, even Ajinca are still on the board. Just one guy over seven feet who can raise his hands up in the post for offense/defense. I do notice that there is no points out there, so hey, here’s to Mario Chalmers.

  • T-Money

    jukai: i don’t think you can make any judgment on that 4th quarter line up based on last year. haslem and miller were hurt most of the year and they had to throw that line up out there deep in the playoffs and just wing it. also, most of all, battier is not miller – i’m not counting on miller for anything this year and i’m not sure he’s needed (there are only so many perimeter minutes to allocate when wade and bron play 40 each). i don’t know if wade is too lazy to guard point guards, i just think lebron is a better defender and that’s why he was on, say, derrick rose. ultimately, that point is a bit moot because a wade-battier-bron trio can guard any team on the perimeter in crunch time. on the second point, ud and bosh don’t play the same way at all. ud can’t create for himself, he cuts to the basket and shoots baseline jumpers. bosh posts up more than you give him credit for and is someone you can throw the ball too in the mid post area and let him go to work. play your best players as long as you can match up defensively with the other teams. not that hard.

  • T-Money

    basketball is a fluid sport like soccer, positions doesn’t determine what a player is allowed to do like in football. a guy like wayne rooney can play as an attacking midfielder, left winger, support striker and lone striker depending on who else he is playing with. i see versatile basketball players in the same way. i just feel that people get bogged down with positions too much. coach k is a prime example of a coach who gets the most out of his lineups. he played melo and bron at the 4 and bosh at the 5 in beijing because he wanted his best players on the floor. he also played cp3 and deron together. at duke, he often plays with 2 PGs and no centers on the floor. i remember an interview when he said something like “if my 4 fouls out and the guy backing him up is my 9th best player, i’m going to put my 6th man in regardless of positions if the defensive match ups make sense.”

  • fitzy

    is this what we’re gonna hear for the next 3 years

  • marc

    i find it funny that he said they took no shortcuts to win a final? but isn’t teaming with arguably the best sg in the same conference a shortcut? But I do see the heat going to the finals every year. Lets be realistic if they play to their full potential no one is stopping them. It just comes down if they can execute in the finals.

  • T-Money

    having said all of this, if lebron plays to his abilities in the finals, they’re looking to repeat. it all starts and ends with bron.

  • vctmac

    the heat need another big name center or presence down low
    AND COME MARCH IF THE HEAT SIGN JR SWISH, OHH MAN< THEIR BENCH IS GNA BE FIRE CUZ UNLIKE MIKE MILLER, JR CAN DO OTHER THINGS THAN PULL UP FOR JUMPERS. JR NEEDS TO GO TO A TEAM WITH A LEADER, ITS EITHER CHICAGO OR HEAT. BUT BEWARE JR IS GNA DO IT BIG THIS YEAR. THE HEAT NEED A SHOOTER, SLASHER and A GUARD WHO IS A HIGH FLYER OFF THE BENCH. WHNE DEFENSE IS NEEDED, MOVE SHANE TO THE 2 AND JR GAURDING THE 1. IT WORKS LIKE A HAND IN GLOVE FIT.

  • vctmac

    it also gives wade,lebron more oppurtunities for a breather when they have a defense spark and an offensive FLAMETHROWER on the floor with JR SWISH.

  • burnt_chicken

    1. people sure hate the Heat.
    2. pressure is cool! Heap it on, fellas!
    3. Bosh and Haslem are not identical. One is a sub, one is a perennial All-Star. Both: deservedly so.
    4. If there was ever a sure thing in basketball it was the Runnin Rebs of the almost-mid-90s winning back to back titles. Get it?

  • burnt_chicken

    hey- refresh my memory-who were those fantastic PGs and Cs of that 90′s Bulls dynasty. Their greatness eludes me at the moment.

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