Miami Heat: Dwyane Wade Is the Heat's Best Closer Because of LeBron James

Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh recently made a ripple in the news when he was asked during an interview, who would be his choice to take the final shot for the Heat in an end game situation.

For some reason people seem surprised that Bosh quickly, and without hesitation, said Dwyane Wade.

Wade, after all, has won both an NBA championship and a Finals' MVP, and he has demonstrated the ability to capture a moment and make it his own. But that doesn't make him a better player than his teammate LeBron James.

The interviewer didn't put Bosh on the spot and ask him that question, but since he appeared to be confident in his first assessment concerning Wade, would he also give LeBron just credit where it is due?

Wade may indeed be the Heat's top closer, but he wouldn't be in a situation to seal games if it weren't for LeBron guiding the team into that position.

The timing of Bosh's words couldn't have been worse, considering LeBron's failed three-point attempt in the closing seconds of an overtime loss to the Golden State Warriors.

That missed shot—and a few more late in another overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers the next night—has rekindled the familiar questions about James' inability to hit the big shots when it really matters.

There are several mental hurdles James may have to overcome before he can answer those questions, but outside of crunch time James still looks pretty MVP-ish to me.

In the Heat's loss to the Warriors, Wade led the Heat in scoring with 34 points, but James' 26 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists were felt all over the court.

Against the Clippers, James led the Heat in scoring, rebounds and assists, and he wasn't the only player on his team to miss critical shots in the fourth quarter or overtime as James, Bosh and Wade combined to miss seven shots in the extra period.

Each of those players had miscues in the game's clutch moments, but would the Heat have even been in a position to win without James' ability to dominate the stat sheet?

James may not be one of my favorite people and the Heat are certainly not one of my favorite teams, but they are early title favorites because of LeBron, and if they are to fulfill their promise, LeBron will carry them there.

Wade is a great player and he deserved his Finals' MVP trophy, but let's not forget who was manning the middle for Miami in 2006.

The 2006 version of Shaquille O'Neal was far different from the one that LeBron had the privilege of playing with for a year, but LeBron still managed to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to consecutive 60 win seasons and an Eastern Conference Finals' berth.

And LeBron did it without the benefit of a superstar player beside him.

There are numerous people who claim that Wade is really a better player than James, but that title must be hidden beneath the numbers that say James leads the Heat in scoring, assists, field goal percentage and steals. And James is second in rebounds as well.

I will give credit to Bosh for being honest when faced with a tough question that could potentially divide his teammates, but he could have smoothed the situation by crediting LeBron for putting Wade in the position to take that last shot.