Expectations are High Among Miami Heat Fans—As They Should Be

The final 30 games of the season begin tonight for the Miami Heat, and the expectations among Miami Heat fans couldn’t be higher. With the acquisition of Jermaine O’Neal to solidify their post presence the Heat have someone in the middle for the first time since Shaq or ‘Zo were running the floor of the American Airlines Arena who can legitimately be called a top-tier center.

Jermaine O’Neal, who the Heat have likely already altered their playbook a bit to accommodate, will provide Miami with a solid post-up and shot-blocking presence in the paint, and will provide ample double-teams to free up lanes for Dwyane Wade to be himself; namely a whirling dervish the NBA has come to know as Flash.

This alone has allowed Miami Heat fans to re-imagine the days of only a couple of years ago when the Heat looked unbeatable at times. This alone gives them hope that Wade not only will rack up numbers that put to shame those of any other player not named LeBron or Kobe, but will fly to the hoop to rain down thunderous dunks aplenty.

Tonight against the Timberwolves will be the first test of the newly revamped Heat squad, and there is no indication Miami shouldn’t pass it with flying colors. The American Airlines Arena should be rocking as Dwyane Wade slashes to the basket. The fans should be cheering with glee as they see an O’Neal once again toss an opponent’s attempt into the second row numerous times.

They should be euphoric at the sight of newly acquired Jamario Moon catching an alley-oop from Wade or Chalmers to slam it in the face of one of the Minnesota defenders. And they will likely come right out of their seats with shouts of joy as their reigning Three-Point Shootout Champion, Daequan Cook, fires daggers into the hearts of the Timberwolves faithful from beyond the arc.

Tonight is the moment the Miami Heat possibly once again resume their rightful place in the Eastern Conference as a legitimate championship contender, and the Miami Heat fans should be nothing but ecstatic over that possibility.

For who could have believed at the beginning of the year such a possibility could even exist this season? Sure, Heat fans had hope, as any fan of any team always does entering a season. But were those hopes realistic?

The Miami Heat ended last year with the worst record in the NBA, at 15-67. That debacle of a season garnered them the second pick overall in the NBA draft, and the rights to Power Forward Michael Beasley.

Many were disappointed the Heat hadn’t been lucky enough to get the No. 1 pick, as their record says they should have, and been able to draft a needed point guard in Derrick Rose instead. Some still think Chicago got the better end of the deal.

I’m of the opinion, however, that the Heat came out ahead. Not only did they get a power forward in the mold of an Amar’e Stoudemire, they’re able to allow him to learn his position over time. Miami has been able to allow him to be tutored on defense by Udonis Haslem, one of the fiercest defenders in the league.

And, not only is Udonis teaching him how to play defense, he’s helping to instill in him his passion for giving 100% every night. He’s imparting to Beasley the will to go after loose balls, and the intelligent, fundamental skills he’ll need to dominate the game.

These lessons will certainly bear fruit this season, but they’ll ripen into a full harvest next year when Beasley is expected to push Haslem to the bench in a supporting role.

Michael Beasley possesses all the right tools. He has a sweet mid-range jumper. He’s able to post-up opposing forwards at will, with a set of moves and dazzling footwork capable of allowing him to get a shot off at any time (his turnaround shot is legit). He’s got soft hands and a shooter’s touch.

And more importantly, he’s got the knack for scoring. While Riles and Spo are serious about developing him into a premier defensive forward as well, they don’t have much work to do on his offensive skills. He’s the kind of player who knows instinctively how to put the ball in the basket.

Lest we forget, Michael wasn’t the only gem the Miami Heat got from the draft. Mario Chalmers has come in, and at times made people wonder if he, and not Derrick Rose, was the premier Point Guard coming out of last year’s draft. And yes, he’s had his growing pains at times; as all rookies will.

However, he’s shown a passion and ability to play defense better than any point guard I’ve watched since possibly “The Glove”, Gary Payton. And while he doesn't dish ten asssists a game and won't soon be compared to Steve Nash in that department, this is more due to the fact Wade handles the ball far more than most shooting guards. His assist-to-turnover ratio though should raise eyebrows. The man knows how to handle the rock.
Miami is currently the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference due to the losses of Detroit and Philadelphia (who have each fallen a full game behind the Heat) on Tuesday Night. They’re also only 2-1/2 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the fourth seed; as Atlanta lost their game against the Lakers as well.

Surpassing the Hawks and moving into the fourth seed would give the Miami Heat homecourt advantage in the first-round of the playoffs, and allow them to launch themselves into serious contention in the postseason. I fully expect Miami will fly past the Hawks so fast Atlanta will be shedding feathers.

This ascension of the Heat won’t be easy. They face 18 teams over their final thirty games with winning records. They have numerous games left against solid Eastern Conference foes. They have three games left against both the Celtics and Pistons, as well as two games left against Orlando and Cleveland. But despite the difficulty of the Heat’s schedule, there is no despair in the locker room.

Wade has said about the teams they still have left to face, “Those teams are playing well, but, at the same time, we’ve played all those teams tough, besides Boston. We’ve played Detroit tough, we played Orlando tough, and we played Cleveland tough, as well.”

Udonis Haslem, in explaining why he believes the Miami Heat will succeed despite such a tough schedule said, “Ever since I’ve been in the league, when this team has been in a playoff race, it has always been a team that has made a tremendous push over the second half of the season.”

Dwyane Wade added, “We have to understand that for the rest of the year we’re going to have to win ‘em on both ends of the floor, together. Once we really understand this, and really understand what we can become in the playoffs, then we’ll be alright.”

I think this indicates Wade and the Heat know what’s at stake. I think it shows they are aware that they have to step up their game; and with the acquisition of Jermaine O’Neal and Jamario Moon, as well as the continued good play of Udonis Haslem, Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers, and Daequan Cook, I think they’re confident they can do just that. Their expectations, just like the hopes and dreams of their fans, are high.

As Haslem put it, “It’s going to be a race to the finish. We’ve got Philly right up on us, Detroit, and we’re chasing Atlanta. All of those teams you throw them in the pot and it’s going to be a race down the stretch.”

It’s clear the Miami Heat players know the consequences of each game. They know that in order to have any shot at doing something special this year (possibly even winning a title) they need to play smart, intelligent, passionate basketball. They need to move up in the standings and secure themselves a seed that will allow them to progress and build on their new acquisitions.

Miami Heat President, Pat Riley, tempered the excitement when he said, “We keep talking about finishing fourth and that’s an honorable thing. I mean, we won 15 games last year and, really, what you want to do coming off that kind of a season is get into the playoffs,” but showed even he has caught the bug, as he finished with, “and, then, if you have enough pieces, anything can happen.”

This statement should give hope and excitement to all Heat fans. Anything can happen.

Of course, Jermaine O’Neal will have to remain injury-free; Jamario Moon, James Jones, or Yakhouba Diawara will have to provide some solid play from the small forward position; Michael Beasley and Mario Chalmers will have to continue to progress and not suffer a let-down in play; and everyone will have to play outstanding defense the rest of the year and will have to mesh and turn on the switch come playoff time.

“Hopefully,” Dwyane Wade said, “that switch turns on.”