Dwyane Wade Injury: Could Miami Heat Dynasty Be Derailed Before It Began?
Just three minutes into the NBA preseason, the Big Three became the Big Two.
It was deja vu for Miami Heat fans as guard Dwyane Wade left the team's preseason opener 3:17 into the game with a strained right hamstring.
LeBron James and Chris Bosh both shined in Miami's 105-89 victory over the Detroit Pistons, but the biggest storyline from the new look Heat's debut isn't how well the team played.
It's an all too familiar feeling in Miami that Wade can't stay healthy, and Heat fans could be disappointed just a few short months after LeBron's 'Decision' sent the city into unparalleled celebration.
Heat fans know that a championship caliber team in Miami needs a healthy Big Three.
But if Wade can't stay healthy, will the Heat's champion aspirations go up in smoke?
Here's a look at the top 10 reasons why Wade's injury could derail Miami's title hopes before the season even begins.
10. Home Court Advantage Will Help LeBron
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In any arena outside of Miami that LeBron walks into this season, he will be bombarded with profanities, angry chants, and taunts, but very few cheers.
He is the most hated man in the world.
Well, maybe not literally, but he is up there. And no matter what type of expression he shows on his face, it's probably going to affect him.
That's why LeBron and the Heat need a wealthy Wade, so that Miami will have home court advantage in the playoffs.
LeBron needs to play in front of a friendly crowd when the games matter the most.
9. Hamstring Injuries Tend To Linger
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If this was any other preseason and the Heat didn't have a completely new roster, Wade would probably do the smart thing and shut it down until he was 100 percent ready to go.
But this was the new look Heat's first game together, and Wade likely wants to play as much as possible to reach a certain comfort level with his teammates.
Wade may want to be on the court, but is it the smart thing to do?
Even minor hamstring issues tend to linger if they don't fully heel, so Wade might be risking further injury if he makes his way back into the team's staring lineup too soon.
8. The Other Contenders Are Healthy (For The Most Part)
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Before the 2010-11 season begins, there seems to be only four surefire NBA title contenders: the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Orlando Magic, and Miami Heat.
Aside from Andrew Bynum, the most important players from the three biggest threats to a Miami Heat championship are relatively healthy.
We saw in the 2010 playoffs how could good a healthy Celtics team could be, and the Lakers and Magic are obviously two of the best teams in the league.
Even without Bynum, the Lakers are still an NBA Finals contender.
7. Wade Makes Everyone Better
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Any which way you spin it, LeBron, Bosh, and Wade need to be on the court at the same for Miami's Holy Trinity to be succesful.
Take LeBron out of the equation, and the pressure on Wade increases exponentially.
Take Wade out of the equation, and the pressure falls on LeBron's shoulders. And so on and so forth.
6. The East Better Than The West?
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During the offseason, the Eastern conference may have overtaken the Western conference as the best in the NBA.
Obviously the Heat themselves improved dramatically, but the Celtics, Bucks, and Bulls also made significant additions to their teams while the the Magic and Hawks didn't forget how to play to basketball.
The balance of power in the NBA seems to be shifting, and the Heat will need a healthy Wade to contend in a packed group of contenders in the East.
5. Mike Miller Is No Dwyane Wade
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Any time Wade gets injured, his replacement in the Heat starting lineup will be Mike Miller.
Stating the obvious here, but Miller is clearly no Dwayne Wade.
The only thing that Miller does better than Wade is shoot the three, but he's better served providing Miami with a reliable shooter off the bench than he is as starter for the Heat.
4. Wade Is The Heat's Closer
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When the game is on the line, Wade will have the ball in his hands.
LeBron and Bosh are certainly great NBA players, but the killer instinct that LeBron often lacked in Cleveland can be found in Miami.
Only it won't be because of some inner soul searching he does. He'll find it in Wade, who is the league's second best finisher behind Kobe Bryant.
3. The Supporting Cast Isn't Great
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When LeBron took "his talents to South Beach" to join Wade and Bosh, the biggest question surrounding the Heat was how the team would fill out the rest of its roster.
Miami was expected to have a bunch of scrubs--and it does have some--but the Heat also managed to sign (or re-sign) some quality reserve players like Mike Miller, Eddie House, and Udonis Haslem.
Still, a prolonged absence from any of the Big 3, especially Wade, makes the Heat more like a 50-win team than one who will threaten the Bulls' single-season wins record.
2. LeBron Can't Be The Next Magic Johnson Without Wade
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Sure, we've all heard the theories by now that LeBron will play point guard for the Heat and be the second coming of Magic Johnson.
That's all fine and dandy, if Wade is on the court.
But if Wade is out for any extended time period, LeBron isn't going to threaten to average a triple-double on his way to becoming the 2010-11 version of Magic.
He is going to have to drop 30 points for the Heat to win every night.
How is that any different from what he did in Cleveland?
1. His Injury Isn't a One-Time Thing
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Dwyane Wade has never played an entire season.
That is not entirely because of injuries--some of it was just Wade resting--but the Heat's superstar guard has had three seasons in which he played just 61, 51, and 51 games respectively.
His current hamstring injury isn't as serious as his knee or shoulder injuries in the past, but any time Wade goes down, Heat fans should hold their breaths.
