A teary-eyed LeBron James has announced he will make the move to South Beach and play for the Miami Heat with fellow superstars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Looks like the old adage, "defense wins championships," as well as the idea that depth wins championships, will be tested next season in Miami. I fully expect the chokefest that has highlighted LeBron's career to continue with this star-studded stint in Miami. Have fun, LeBron.
PS -- I'm very sorry for Cleveland fans out there. It would have been one thing to make a simple announcement without the build-up, a la Amar'e Stoudemire leaving his long-time Phoenix Suns. But having an ESPN show, titled The Decision, for an hour on national television, during primetime, to announce you're leaving them in the dust -- low blow.
PPS -- What's the vote? Will the Heat beat the Celtics and company in the East and get to the finals next year? Vote 1 for they will do it with ease with all that star power. Vote 5 for LeBron is a choker for life.
Dwayne Wade,Chris Bosh,LeBron James, Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers. Hard to imagine a "chokefest", more likely a dynasty.
ReplyDeleteI don't care what three players you have, if you don't have a supporting cast, you don't play defense, and you don't have size, you won't win championships. Boston doesn't win the 2007-08 title without James Posey, Rajon Rondo, Glen Davis, & Kendrick Perkins. LA Lakers don't win the title without Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Fisher, Artest, Odom. Who do you think will defend Dwight Howard in the playoffs? Gasol or Bynum for the Lakers? Bosh is a finesse big man. Unless the Heat acquire a big body for the post and some players who can actually contribute off the bench (Beasley is likely to be traded, and spare me the Mario Chalmers case... 10 ppg in 32 minutes per game isn't all that impressive) they won't be ready for a title.
ReplyDeleteAnd, if history repeats itself, LeBron James will choke when it matters most. A la their two consecutive best-record-in-the-NBA regular seasons that amounted to what?
I would bet money the Heat don't win the title next year, nor will they become the "dynasty" you believe they will become.
Looks like I was right... Beasley just got traded. I guess that part of the argument backfired on you.
ReplyDeleteThey've got Dexter Pittman and will sign a couple other big bodies to hold down the post defensively..those three will take care of everything else offensively..and a good offense will create a good defense. As long as they bring in some raw size to contest players like Gasol and Howard, they will be fine..Howard isn't gonna score 50 points a game. Aka the offense of lebron, dwade, and bosh will outscore any other teams 5 starters, and with such good offense, the opposing teams offense will suffer, in effect creating a "good" defense for Miami.
ReplyDeleteAt least one superstar will be on the floor at all times. Teams often take advantage of an opposing team when it sends there superstar to the bench for a breather..no team will have a chance to do that with three superstars on one team.
It will be interesting to see what happens. It sounds like a simple plan, and they will be very tough to beat with 3 legitimate stars. But there's always a human element to everything. In a video game, this would win you an NBA title. In real life, egos will need to be managed, and they WILL still need to play defense. Good offense makes your defense better, but offensive superstars also tend to cheat the defensive side of the ball and turn the ball over. LeBron will need to take on a new, lower scoring role. Coming from a guy who called a 1-hour primetime national TV spotlight show to announce his long awaited decision and to spit in Cleveland's face on the air, the jury is still out on whether he can become a team player and reduce his role, play better defense, rebound the ball, and want to win more than build stats and MVPs.
ReplyDeleteThere's no doubt the Heat can do it. It's a matter of personal opinion when I say I strongly believe they won't do it.