Miami Heat: 7 Bold Predictions for 2nd Half of the Heatles' 2011-12 NBA Season

We're at the halfway point of the 2011-12 NBA season, and the Miami Heat are sitting atop the NBA with a 27-7 overall record.

While LeBron and company struggled at the beginning of the season starting out 11-5 overall, they found their groove as of late, going 16-2 in their last 18 games, with eight straight wins by double-digit margins.

It's obvious that the Miami Heat are coming together on both ends of the court, ranking first in team offensive production with an average of 103 points per game, while ranking 14th in team defense, allowing an average of only 94.4 points per game.

The first half of the season for the Miami Heat has been one of the best in franchise history, which begs the question of what the second half of the season has in store for the surging Heatles.

Read on to find out seven bold predictions for the second half of the Miami Heat's 2011-12 NBA season.  

LeBron Will Continue to Play at an MVP Rate with 28.5 PPG, 8.4 RPG and 8.0 APG

It's the halfway point of the 2011-12 NBA season and the front-runner for the 2012 NBA MVP trophy is none other than LeBron James.

With averages of 27.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game, with a league-leading PER of 32.42, there's no doubt that LeBron is well on his way to earning his third           regular-season MVP honor of his nine-year career.

While LeBron's legitimate value can be argued based on the fact that he's got Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the floor with him, there's no doubt that without LeBron's       league-leading points/assist/rebound production the Miami Heat would not be the same team that they are now.

LeBron James has had no issue producing at a consistent level throughout the entirety of regular seasons before, as evidenced by his NBA MVP trophies in 2008 and 2009, and that will be the same this season.

Before the 2011-12 NBA season started, LeBron James sat down with ESPN's Rachel Nichols and talked about the new, "for the love of the game," perspective that he's bringing to his approach. It's evident in the way that LeBron's played so far this season that he's back to playing basketball because he loves to, instead of playing to prove people wrong.

That kind of perspective is what's going to carry LeBron to the 2012 NBA MVP trophy, while carrying the Miami Heat to the No. 1 overall seed in the 2012 NBA Playoffs.

At the end of the 2011-12 NBA season, LeBron James will be one MVP trophy closer to becoming the all-time NBA leader in regular-season MVP trophies.

LeBron 2011-12 Stat Prediction:  28.5 points, 8.4 rebounds, 8.0 assists, 2.0 steals, 35.14 PER.

Norris Cole Will Surge onto the 2012 All-Rookie 2nd Team Roster

While loads of analysts saw potential in the Heat's rookie point guard, Norris Cole, he's still been one of the biggest surprises of the 2011 NBA Draft.

With averages of 8.7 points, 2.5 assists, 1.7 rebounds and 0.8 steals per game, Cole has transformed from a wide-eyed rookie to a legitimate option off the bench replacing starting point guard Mario Chalmers.

The only thing holding Cole's production back is the amount of minutes per game that he's getting. Cole's average of 21.4 minutes per game isn't bad for a rookie, but if he was on a team with less star power he would undoubtedly be getting more minutes and his production would be much higher.

Cole's had flashes of brilliance this season, already totaling 15 double-digit point games, which is one of the reasons why his minutes will continue to increase throughout the second half of the 2011-12 NBA season. 

If Cole was getting 30-plus minutes per game like Kyrie Irving, Ricky Rubio and Marshon Brooks, Cole would be in the hunt for the 2012 Rookie of the Year award.

Since he's on the star-studded Miami Heat, he'll have to settle for a spot on the 2012 NBA All-Rookie team roster, most likely on the second string.  

If Norris Cole can get five or six more minutes per game down the stretch of the 2011-12 season, there's no doubt that he can produce at the double-digit point level he'll need to earn the honor of being on the 2012 NBA All-Rookie team.

Norris Cole 2011-12 Stat Prediction:  10.1 points, 3.5 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 13.40 PER.

Dwyane Wade Will Miss More Time with Nagging Injuries

The Miami Heat had to do without star shooting guard Dwyane Wade for nine games in the first half of the season, due to nagging injuries like a bruised calf/foot and a sprained ankle.

The reality of Dwyane Wade missing time with injuries, as he has before in his career, is more of a possibility this year with every NBA team's 66-game schedule being so jam packed due to the lockout this past offseason.

The only reason I think Wade will miss a few of the Heat's final 32 games is because the types of injuries he had earlier in the season have the tendency to pop back up without warning.

Wade's bruised foot/plantar fasciitis has the possibility of popping back up, keeping Wade on the bench for at least a couple games down the stretch of the Heat's 2011-12 campaign. Wade also plays with such intensity and reckless abandon, especially on the break, that he's more prone to turning an ankle or spraining a knee than most other players.

Luckily for the Heat, if this prediction comes true and they have to play without Wade for a few games or more, the Heat won't be in bad shape, as they went 8-1 without him in the starting lineup during the first half of the season.

Dwyane Wade's health being at 100 percent going into the 2012 NBA Playoffs is a must for the Heat if they want to start their string of NBA Championships in 2012.  

Miami Will Have the Best Record in the NBA (52-14)

The Miami Heat are sitting comfortably at 27-7 at the halfway point of the 2011-12 NBA season, which puts them with the Oklahoma City Thunder as the two teams with the best record in the NBA.

The best record in the NBA at the end of the season will come down to the Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat and the Oklahoma City Thunder, and it ultimately hinges on which team is going to be able to play the most consistently down the stretch.

The nod with consistency undoubtedly goes to the Miami Heat, who were playing the most consistent basketball heading into the 2012 NBA All-Star Weekend. The Heat went 16-2 in their final 18 games before the All-Star break, and if they can manage to do that coming out of the All-Star break, they'll be sitting at 43-9 with 12 games left in the season.

Just to put the Heat's consistent dominance as of late into perspective, the Bulls only went 13-5 in their final 18 games, while the Thunder went 14-4 in their final 18 games before the All-Star break.

While the Heat's slim advantage in wins over the past 18 games might seem trivial, that kind of dominance down the stretch will be the difference between having the best record in the NBA or not.

It's important for the Heat to have the best overall record in the NBA because it guarantees home-court advantage throughout playoffs, something that the Heat didn't have last year when they lost to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Heat's remaining 32 regular-season games won't be easy, facing opponents such as the Thunder, Bulls, Magic, 76ers, Celtics and Knicks on the road.

Fortunately for the Heat, they have the depth and talent it will take to win those games and end the season with a league-best 52-14 record.

March 25th Showdown in Oklahoma City Will Be a 2012 NBA Finals Preview

Oklahoma City and Miami are arguably the two best teams in the NBA right now, tied for the best overall record (27-7) and are undoubtedly on a collision course for a seven-game series in the 2012 NBA Finals.

One of the two regular-season matchups between the two powerhouses takes place on March 25th in Oklahoma City, and it will be the first preview fans get of what NBA fans are going to see in the Finals.

While both teams don't play absolute lockdown defense, with OKC ranking 20th in points allowed per game (96.3 ppg) and Miami ranking 12th (94.2 ppg), they'll outscore their opponents with ease, which is part of what makes them so dangerous.

The Heat rank second in the NBA in overall offensive production with an average of 103.3 points per game, while the Thunder rank third in the NBA in overall offensive production with an average of 102.3 points per game.

What makes a potential Thunder vs. Heat 2012 NBA Finals so exciting to think about is that it would feature two of the best dynamic duos in the NBA: LeBron James and Dwayne Wade vs. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. 

LeBron & Wade - 50.0 points, 11.4 assists, 12.5 rebounds, 3.3 steals, 52.3 FG%, combined PER of 60.27

Durant & Westbrook - 51.1 points, 8.8 assists, 13.0 rebounds, 3.2 steals, 49.5 FG%, combined PER of 51.09

When Miami and Oklahoma City take the floor on March 25th, it's going to be an epic showdown, and luckily for NBA fans it will be a preview of the seven-game series they will see in June. 

The Big Three's NBA Championship Run Will Start in 2012

Hey, remember that time when LeBron James talked about winning not three, not four, not five, not six, not seven NBA Championships?

Well the entire NBA world remembered that moment last year when Miami's Big Three walked into the locker rooms in Dallas championship-less, after their Game 6 NBA Finals loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

While the LeBron haters rejoiced last year, the same won't be happening for them when the 2012 NBA Finals conclude, because 2012 will be the year when LeBron, Wade and Bosh's stranglehold on NBA Championships starts.

The way the Heat rolled into the All-Star break this season, on an eight-game winning streak all by double-digits, makes them the most dangerous team in the entire NBA and the midseason favorite for the 2012 NBA Championship.

Not only has Miami played ridiculously well as of late, through the first half of the season no team played more consistent basketball than the Heat, averaging 14th or better in every major team statistical category.

Miami's also proved with big wins against teams like the Spurs, Lakers, Bulls, Magic, Mavericks, Pacers and Knicks, that there's no one team in the NBA that they can't compete with and ultimately beat. If the Heat keep up their consistent play throughout the second half of the 2011-12 NBA season, it's going to be nearly impossible to stop them come playoff time.

LeBron and company's run on consecutive championships will start in 2012. The only question is, how many championships can LeBron, Wade and Bosh be able to win together? 

LeBron Will Join Elite Company by Winning Both Regular Season & NBA Finals MVP

At the end of the 2012 NBA Finals, LeBron James will join Shaquille O'Neal, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Hakeem Olajuwon, Moses Malone and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players in NBA history to win both a regular-season MVP and an NBA Finals MVP in the same season.

Winning the NBA Finals MVP trophy is arguably more important than winning any other award for LeBron James, as it will help do away with the label of not showing up in the clutch that has haunted him throughout his career.

If LeBron is able to continue playing at the elite level that he has this year, with averages of 27.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 6.8 assists with a PER of 32.42, he will be the 2012 NBA MVP front runner. If he manages to carry that kind of production into the playoffs and the subsequent NBA Finals, there's an extremely high possibility that he can win the NBA Finals MVP as well.

The one thing that LeBron needs to focus on throughout the second half of the season and into the playoffs is consistency. If he is able to play consistently in the postseason for the first time in his career, he can undoubtedly make history at the end of the year.

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