Miami Heat: The Connect Four Tour

The third stop on The Connect Four Tour ventures to an area where the humidity is so potent that standing outside for a few seconds feels like standing in the middle of the Amazon Rainforest.

The Miami Heat sputtered under the radar in the 2009-2010 season finishing 47-35 in the regular season, seeding them fifth in the Eastern Conference playoffs, where the Boston Celtics were waiting.

Boston bounced the Heat from the first round. 

Enter the present time.

The only constant holding Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra’s group together was none other than the Flash, Dwyane Wade, but the front office held their breath in suspense, while Wade explored the options of the free agent market frenzy.

In the meantime, the LeBron James soap opera had been televised around the clock.

This was the most opportune time for the Heat and D-Wade to lure in two to three high profile free agents.

Wade’s travel dates to Chicago and New York generated massive uproar, amusing the minds of owners hopeful of winning the Dwyane Wade Sweepstakes.

Wade’s trip had nothing to do with shopping around with different teams to make a fresh start; instead it was a clever disguise to do his own recruiting.

In a strange twist, it was Dwyane Wade, and not LeBron James, who held the Royal Flush in terms of constructing a championship contender.

After Miami Thrice danced the night away during an over-publicized beach party, celebrating the addition of LeBron and Chris Bosh, it was time to get down to business to finish revamping the Heat team roster.

Pat Riley wasted no time filling out a full lineup.

Losing Jermaine O’Neal on the interior hurt a little, but Udonis Haslem resigned, sharp-shooting Mike Miller traveled to South Beach from the DC Area, and the signing of Zydrunas Ilgauskas deserved a standing ovation.

Not long after, wily veteran Juwan Howard had his services enlisted in an effort to help jam the paint on the defensive end.

Of course, more help came in retaining 6'8" forward James Jones and 6'11" center Jamaal Magloire as well.

Point guard Mario Chalmers is expected to be the starting point guard for the 2010-2011 season and there is no doubt by now that he’s ready to permanently take the reins in conducting the offense.

Pinning Chalmers with Wade, James, and Bosh will undeniably raise the effectiveness of his game, and similar to Rajon Rondo, Mario is quickly making the transition into a true NBA point guard.

Draft Night proved vastly beneficial for Miami too, as they drafted shot blocking specialist Jarvis Varnado out of Mississippi State, 6'11" big man Dexter Pittman from Texas, and, possibly the best pick, in Da’Sean Butler hailing from West Virginia.

All three will find quality time as the season progresses stacking the depth and skill of coach Spoelstra’s bench.

No strenuous digging is necessary when identifying the strength of the Miami Heat.

Obviously, take the roster and stare at the names on paper. You’ll find it pretty clear the fire power this team can throw at their opponents.

Wade, James, and Bosh alone compile three-fifths of the Eastern Conference All-Star Team’s starting lineup alone.

Scoring will not be a problem, especially when points between the three only add up to 80.8 points per game.

With Mario Chalmers running the point, Miami will have a solid ball handler with ridiculously quick hands on the defensive end.

Besides Miami’s version of the Big Three, Chalmers is perfectly adept to create his own shots, if he’s not looking to dish the rock.

Mike Miller, Udonis Haslem, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas account for a deadly trio of their own counting on both size and potent scoring abilities.

Scoring aside, the Miami Heat now boast the size to, not only match-up with other Eastern Conference powers, but create several matchup problems against rosters from both conferences.

Nevertheless, the Heat's star-studded lineup is not entirely bulletproof.

The question weighing on the mind of millions continuously inflates our deep-seeded curiosity.

Can Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh co-exist on the same team for the duration of an entire season?

If we were to speculate on the bumps in the road, we’d have to start with LeBron James.

For seven years he owned the city of Cleveland, racking up consecutive NBA MVP awards and gigantic billboards, reminding all who entered Cleveland that they were officially “Witness” to greatness.

Without a ton of quality help around him, James did what he could with what he had to work with, so his me vs. the world mentality is not entirely his fault.

Can James share the spotlight with two other players of the same caliber?

Only time will tell.

For the sake of the team president Pat Riley, it’s time for him to step up to the plate to address everyone that the team still answers to D-Wade.

That includes James and Bosh.

Another potential soft zone is whether Mario Chalmers will be allowed to develop into the floor general for which Pat Riley hopes.

The star power of the new trio may forget about other crucial pieces on the floor at the same time.

In general, the downfall of the Heat is the massive clash of egos in a single starting lineup.

If the past is any indication of what will become of the Miami Heat, the Eastern Conference will turn into a two team race between them and the Celtics, before any other team finds a groove. 

"We're here to win championships. We're not here to sell jerseys, to pump our ratings,'' Wade said during a press conference afterward. "We didn't make decisions like this (to come together) for any other reason. Our goal is to win championships. And I think we're up for the challenge.''

Dwyane Wade is right.

At the end of the day this team will falter but only a handful of times.

The Celtics have their hands full.

Realistically, Miami will play their way into the NBA Finals picture if they take care of business.

They are that good.