NBA Finals 2011: How Does That L.A Lakers-Miami Heat Matchup Look Now?

Before the 2010-11 NBA season began, most observers had already penciled in the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat to meet in the 2011 NBA Finals.

The cries of "we're still here!" by the jilted defending Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics were drowned out by the rock star atmosphere surrounding LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the Heat.

Maybe people should have listened to the Celtics.

The Lakers and Heat have both somewhat fulfilled the promise that many predicted—since each are considered to be elite NBA teams.

But these days, the only people penciling them into the NBA Finals are the fans and residents of their respective cities.

Entering the final stretch of the regular season, both the Heat and the Lakers are among the top three teams in their respective conferences. The only thing is that neither team has yet to defeat the other two teams in their elite circles.

Last night's loss to the Chicago Bulls gives the Heat a combined 0-5 record against the Celtics and the Bulls, while the Lakers have fared little better with an 0-3 record against Dallas and San Antonio.

Needless to say, that's not the type of record that most people would have expected the Heat and Lakers to have against their fellow elite teams at this point in the season. If they hope to fulfill their 2011 NBA Finals prophecy, a few adjustments need to be made.

Most observers felt Miami would be a superior defensive team, but if there was a weakness to be found, then it was going to be at the point guard position and in the post.

That prediction is partly true—as the Heat have been able to compensate for their lack of strength in the post—but they have also struggled mightily against the NBA's elite point guards.

In most cases, James and Wade have been forced to defend opposing point guards when the defense of Mario Chalmers and Carlos Arroyo fails, and this creates mismatch problems at other positions.

It also leaves James and Wade vulnerable to foul trouble when they are forced to defend smaller, quicker guards.

Since Miami failed to address their point guard concerns at the NBA trade deadline, team president Pat Riley and coach Eric Spolestra must feel this is an issue they can overcome.

But contrary to what Miami's fans say, they have yet to prove that they can contain point guards like Boston's Rajon Rondo and Chicago's Derrick Rose.

The Lakers also suffer from their own issues at the point guard position; but unlike the Heat, Los Angeles has proved over the past two seasons that they can win despite that flaw.

The biggest concern for the Lakers thus far has been consistency as illustrated by their road loss at the hands of the NBA's worst team: the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Lakers had previously handed the Cavaliers a 55 point defeat, but then inexplicably lost 104-99 in a rematch right before the All-Star break.

Since then, Los Angeles has quieted some of the skeptics with a 20 point blowout win over the Atlanta Hawks; and a hard fought overtime win against the Portland Trail Blazers.

But it will be difficult for the Lakers to escape the ghosts of that loss—and the blowout loss to the Charlotte Bobcats before it.

Most Lakers fans will chalk this up to another instance of the Lakers just being the Lakers, but that line of thought discredits the teams ahead of them in the standings.

San Antonio has been rejuvenated by a talented group of younger players that complement their star trio of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker; and the Dallas Mavericks' acquisition of Tyson Chandler makes them more formidable in the post.

There is a very real chance that the Lakers will not enter the playoffs as the West's number one seed for the first time in three seasons. Even though they are talented and experienced enough to win on the road, they haven't been faced with that possibility.

Miami and Los Angeles still have time to prove that they're worthy of meeting each other in June's Finals' series, but they must first prove that they can defeat the teams above them in the standings.