Miami Heat: Takeaways from Heat's Double-Digit Win Against the New York Knicks

Well, there's no doubting the fact that Wade is back at 100 percent.  After missing six consecutive games, Wade made his return by accounting for 27 points, four assists, two rebounds, two blocks and five steals.

A majority of Wade's offensive production came on explosive drives to the rim and alley-oops from LeBron James, which just solidified the fact that Wade and his injured ankle appears to be back at 100 percent.    

Wade wasn't the only member of the Miami Heatles who impressed Friday night.  LeBron James put up impressive numbers, accounting for 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.  The most impressive part of LeBron's performance against the Knicks though, is that he went 9-10 from the free-throw line, which has been a struggle for him all season.  

Now that we've adequately praised the return of D-Wade back into the Heat's starting lineup, and LeBron's 30-plus-point performance, it's time to pick apart the other aspects of the Heatles' big double-digit win over the New York Knicks.

First of all, who forget to send the memo to the Heat about defending the three-point shot against the New York Knicks on Friday night?  It looked like the Heat didn't realize that the Knicks were managing to stay in the game solely by relying on hitting three-point shots late in the shot clock.

The Knicks managed to jack up a ridiculous 43 three-pointers, and while a majority of them were last-second heaves at the end of the shot clock, the Knicks still managed to make an impressive 18 of them, shooting 41.9 percent on the night.

On the year, the NBA team with the highest average of three-point attempts per game is the lowly New Jersey Nets, who put up an average of 25.6 three-point attempts per game, putting the Knicks' absurd total of 43 attempts into perspective.

While the Heat managed to close out the game against the Knicks and get the win, the lack of perimeter containment is a reason for concern, primarily because it's one of the main reasons why the Dallas Mavericks kept the Heatles from winning their first NBA title in 2011.

Over the span of the Heat's four losses in the 2011 NBA Finals, they gave up an average three-point percentage of 41.8 percent.  Remember the Dirk Nowitzki three-point dagger in Game 2 of the NBA finals and Jason Terry's three-pointer over LeBron that sealed the Heat's fate in Game 5?   

The point is that a lack of perimeter containment and a lack of perimeter defense proved to be the Achille's heel for the Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals—if they don't improve on that, it will be more of the same in 2012.

The one commonality between the majority of the Heat's losses is that they've come in games where the Heat have been closed out by big shots on the perimeter.  Remember Dorell Wright's three-pointer that sunk the Heat in Golden State?  Those are the kind of shots that the Heat continue to give up, and if they want to become the best team in the NBA, they have to put an end to that by improving their perimeter defense.

For the first time in awhile, the Heat shot over 85 percent from the free-throw line and turned the ball over 10 times or less.  Those statistics prove that if the Heat are going to continue to win games, they have to do so by getting to the free-throw line and protecting the ball, which starts on the defensive side of the ball and transitions into the Heat's fast-paced transition offense.

If there's one key to the Miami Heat winning the NBA Championship in 2012, it's their performance on the defensive side of the ball.  With Wade back in the lineup, the Heat's defense returned to its tenacious form, scoring 15 points off 19 forced turnovers.

The importance of the Heat's play on the defensive side of the ball isn't that it keeps their opponents from scoring, like it did against the Knicks in the fourth quarter.  The value of the Heat's defense is that it jump-starts the Heat's transition offense, led by both LeBron and Wade, making it nearly impossible to stop.

Watching the Heat battle back and forth with the Knicks, ultimately pulling away in the fourth quarter, was a beautiful sight for Heat fans, with LeBron hitting two mid-range jumpers and going 5-of-6 from the free-throw line, accounting for 11 points down the stretch to close out the Knicks.

While the Knicks are struggling, and a home win against them without Carmelo Anthony in the starting lineup doesn't mean too much, the way that the Heat played teaches us a lot about the kind of team they are at this point in the 2011-12 season.

While the Heat undoubtedly need to work on their perimeter defense, their ability to run an absolutely explosive transition offense that starts on the defensive side of the ball, and their success from the free-throw line late in the game, are positives to take away from their double-digit win over the Knicks.

Next up for the Heatles is a visit from Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls, who hold an Eastern Conference best 17-4 overall record.

The Heat will have to improve their perimeter containment and continue to run their offense through the transition game if they want to take down the mighty Chicago Bulls.