Miami Heat's Erik Spoelstra Sitting on Top of the Hot Seat?

Being the head coach of a professional sports team is no simple task.

When the athletes don’t perform well, who does the media point their fingers at first?

When a team doesn’t live up to its hype, who’s there to blame besides the coach?

Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat hold a record of 9-8 on the season, good enough for sixth best in the East.

The Heat entered the current season with arguably the most hype and expectations that the league has ever witnessed.

After 17 games, it’s safe to say that the team looks discombobulated.

Wade and James don’t seem comfortable on the court alongside one another and neither is playing the basketball that many expected them to play.

To add fuel to the fire, the team is in desperate need of a legitimate starting point guard and center.

Carlos Arroyo does not complement the big three and all three centers for Miami are either too old (Dampier and Illgauskas) or lack offensive talent (Anthony).

Power forward Udonis Haslem suffered what could be a season-ending injury and the team doesn’t get sharp-shooting Mike Miller back for at least another month.

ESPN reported that a source has stated that head coach Erik Spoelstra has been too tough on the team.

“He’s jumping on them,” one source said. “If anything, he’s been too tough on them. Everybody knows LeBron is playful and likes to joke around, but Spoelstra told him in front of the whole team that he has to get more serious. The players couldn’t believe it. They feel like Spoelstra’s not letting them be themselves.”

“He’s not a motivator,” one of the sources said. “Instead of coaching he’s at the point where the players are starting to sense that he’s fearing for his job.”

Miami’s President, Pat Riley, has stated in the past that Spoelstra’s job is secured and that Riley himself will not return to the sidelines to coach the Heat.

Most analysts and fans would take that statement with a grain of salt due to the fact that anything could change overnight in the crazy world of sports.

Right now, it seems like Miami’s situation could not get any worse: They’re 9-8, chemistry is completely lacking, and worst of all, their coach is starting to panic.

But is Spoelstra the one to blame?

Chemistry isn’t something that players can build overnight and one factor for the slow start could be attributed to Wade being sidelined for the entire preseason—missing Wade for those seven games could’ve delayed the teams ability to coalesce on the court.

Instead of pointing fingers, the Miami Heat players, especially the big three, need to look at one another and find the heart of the champion within.

Do you think Erik Spoelstra will be fired before the end of the season?

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