Miami Heat's Problems? No "I" in Team, but Two in Miami.

Every component has been tackled regarding Miami's Jekyll and Hyde persona on the court.

Spoelstra; holes at the 1 and 5 position; hardly any bench production; chemistry, etc.

Yet, with each close game the Heat manages to let slip out of their hands, the more narrowly focused the scope of the problems has become on the stars of the team, particularly Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.

It is at this point that Heat fans reconcile themselves with the fact that any significant shakeups will not happen anytime soon if only because the Heat's hands are tied. Free agency isn't until the summer, the trade deadline has passed and the deadline for players to be bought out and sign with another team has come and gone.

Besides that, Erik Spoelstra is working closely with Pat Riley behind the scenes to rectify this problem, which only means that Riley will not be taking the reins on his own anytime soon. In addition, a marked difference between the circumstances surrounding Stan Van Gundy back when Riley replaced him and with Erik Spoelstra now is that the players respect Spoelstra.

Finally —and this is a reality I've had to come to terms with despite watching the Heat repeat their same problems like a broken record —Miami will never trade either Wade or LeBron.

And you know what, maybe that's not a bad thing.

But, major changes do need to take place internally, and they need to start at the top with Wade and LeBron.

At the heart of the reason there seems to be problems on the court, particularly in the fourth quarter, is due solely to the egos of both Wade and LeBron.

Before everyone in the media was so quick to criticize the unity of Wade and LeBron, no one took the time to consider whether they were ever truly comfortable with the reality themselves.

At the end of the day, it seems that these two have never come to terms with the fact that their roles have changed now that they are on the same team.

Brought together by their friendship, as well as a keen awareness that the league's elite (Celitcs, Lakers) possessed at least two superstars each, Wade and LeBron rationalized that joining forces would simply overwhelm their opponents from a pure talent standpoint without any conscious effort on their own.

The reality, however, is that isolated talent never wins championships, and Wade and LeBron need to sacrifice their own production and egos to build their trust among the teammates around them.

Meanwhile, and even more pressing, they need to soothe their egos enough to be able to play with each other.

Listen, it's understandable that both of them feel a measured reduction of self respect as basketball players for joining forces.

It also didn't make things easier that literally everyone around the NBA has ridiculed their pride.

And now, here we all stand, watching them endure the journey through the criticism of their alliance, without any of the legitimate benefit that should be accompanying it.

Heck, if Wade, LeBron, or Bosh told you they haven't lost sleep debating whether joining together was a good idea, they'd be lying to you.

Instead, they only keep lying to themselves.

If there is a team in the NBA that could probably sympathize with the Heat, it's the Celtics.

Last year, the Celtics led themselves into a similar quagmire when alpha dog issues were plaguing them right up until the playoffs.

It was almost as if a switch went off and they realized that the playoffs meant it was time to forget about placating their egos and focusing strictly on basketball.

Maybe that's partially why they got Jeff Green right before the deadline, fearing that Miami's big three might wake up and realize that something much bigger is at stake besides their own doubted self-worth.

Then again, Boston had the fortune of enjoying championship success in 2008, which probably made that transition considerably easier.

In any case, this will surely be a big test for both Wade and LeBron, especially considering how visible their profiles are already.

This will mean that LeBron must relinquish his stranglehold on the ball in the fourth quarter.

It will mean that Wade must re-establish himself on defense instead of worrying about his points.

It will mean that both of them come to terms on who the Heat's established closer is (my vote is for Wade).

Finally, it will mean that they forget about their own visible profiles, and start worrying about the team's, which should invariably lead to an onus of anger, motivation and redemption for every loss they suffer, instead of the dirt of the shoulder approach they have exhibited again and again to every fan's dismay.

The stakes? Oh, they are high. This team has enough talent to contend for a championship. Unfortunately, it's also proven that it has enough ego that it could be destined for a first round playoff exit.

And that's a decision that will likely weigh more heavily on Wade and LeBron during the playoffs than the one that ended up bringing them together.

Let's hope they make the right one.