Cry Me A River

Let's be honest. The Heat are not nearly as bad as people are making them out to be. They may be 0-3 against both Chicago and Boston this season, but nobody WANTS to see them in the playoffs. That is mostly because if this squad ever figures things out, plays as one, and closes games, they will be formidable.

None of this excuses head coach Eric Spoelstra's slip up during the press conference after their loss to Chicago on Sunday:

Miami Heat Head Coach
Eric Spoelstra

"there are a couple guys crying in the locker room right now"

This is already the most hated franchise in the NBA. Opposing arenas enjoy hating the Heat almost as much as they like to cheer for their guys. They've lost four straight during their toughest stretch of the year. The world (especially the media) did not need to know that tears were shed for a regular season loss. Spoelstra's intentions were good in his admission, as he probably looked to prove that his team does care about their performance. but he undoubtedly gave his opponents and detractors more fuel.



Their losses against the league's elite have been well documented, but the playoffs are an entirely different animal. Just as recently as last season, Boston crawled through the regular season only to stomp their way to game 7 of the Finals. That team made it clear that if you click at the right time, you can have a lengthy postseason run.



But let's not avoid traditional basketball logic completely. This roster was poorly built, and very few of the pieces actually complement one another. Just look at the "Big 3". Dwyane Wade and Lebron James feature virtually the same strengths and weaknesses. I don't blame Pat Riley for snatching the most talented players possible, but he should know better than anyone that it takes more than star power to win. His legendary Lakers teams were balanced with great finishers, shooters, and defenders. It was those pieces that allowed Magic and Kareem to dominate in the clutch.



same iso, same result

Much has been said about the obvious Lebron isolation to end games. Scrap it! It's too predictable and has failed enough. Coach Spoelstra should actually try drawing up a play. In the closing minutes of that loss to Chicago, it was Mario Chalmers (yes him) that scored 5 consecutive points and put the Heat in a position to win. This team has weapons; even Eddie House has more game-winners this year than LBJ. It's the head coaches job to devise a gameplan that will propel their team to victory, coach Spo' shouldn't be making the same mistakes as Mike Brown.

Don't forget, things could change any instant. The Lakers were in this position as recently as two weeks ago. All they've done since then is win seven straight games. But LA has national support. Should the Heat keep this alarming trend intact, no one outside of South Florida will be shedding a tear for the new "Big 3".