Why NBA Teams Must Still Fear Fear the Miami Heat

After recent losses to Chicago, Boston, Memphis and Oklahoma City, the Miami Heat have looked somewhat more vulnerable that at any other point in an otherwise dominant season. 

That could mean we're in store for an epic postseason, but it certainly doesn't mean the Heat are any less a contender than most pundits predicted it to be—that is to say, they are just still as good as any other elite team in the league.

All we've really learned from Miami's imperfect play of late is that on any given night, a great team can still beat Erik Spoelstra's seemingly immortal club. Those great teams might even be able to take Miami in a seven-game series—but that won't be as easy as many might wishfully predict.

Even if they don't "fear" the Heat, Miami's competition in the Eastern Conference certainly must respect what Miami's been able to do over the last two seasons.

Dwyane Wade has successfully managed to make an All-Star impact while allowing this to become LeBron's team. For LeBron's part, the MVP hopeful has become an efficient scorer who may be harder to contain than he's ever been before. Even Chris Bosh seems content with his role.

The Big Three has never been bigger, and it's hard to find a core with anywhere near this much talent.

Chicago's hopes rest entirely upon how quickly Derrick Rose will return to form. Without him in prime condition, Chicago's offense just won't be able to score enough points against Miami over the course of a series.

Even with a perfectly-tuned Rose, Chicago could still struggle to stop this team. Bosh seems to relish opportunities to score on the Bulls, and Wade has something to prove every time he returns home to Chicago.

The Celtics have looked good against Miami this season, but there's no telling how those old legs will hold up over the course of a physical series. Even though Boston is a stout defensive club, there's no telling whether or not they can contain Miami's advantage in sheer athleticism. 

The Heat are less-tested against the Western Conference, but there's no question the San Antonio Spurs have reason to gear Miami's ability to play above the rim. Gregg Popovich's stellar rotation may find itself helpless in the face of an alley-oop highlight reel.

The Thunder and Lakers feature the kinds of centerpieces that much up well with Miami on paper, but there's still no reason to believe Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant or Russell Westbrook can consistently outplay their superstar counterparts on the Heat.

The bigger question mark for Miami may be its ability to beat these teams away from home. The 17-13 road record is warning sign to be sure, but we'd do well to remember those were all regular-season games.

The postseason is a different beast, and Miami proved it can handle that kind of pressure last season. The addition of Shane Battier, a healthy Mike Miller and an improved Mario Chalmers give the Heat good reason to believe it can do so again this time around.

Maybe even in the NBA Finals.