LeBron James and the Miami Heat Can Restore Image with NBA Title

The Miami Heat sent out a statement last night: Do not make them angry.

For three quarters they could not get things going. Dwyane Wade struggled to maintain his dribble, conceding nine turnovers, let alone make a basket. LeBron James played pedestrian on offense. Chris Bosh hit a few nice shots, but remained quiet due to lack of touches.

Then Carlos Boozer made the dense play of the series when he smacked “the King” across the face when he went up strong for a layup towards the end of the third quarter. No one hits “the King” and gets away scot free.

I don’t know if he was trying to send a message, but if he was, Miami heard it. The Bulls weathered the short run that the Heat went on after that play, but the damage was already done. The sleeping beasts were now attentive and fuming over their rude awakening.

The Bulls reeled in fear through the beginning of the fourth quarter, trying desperately to put the game out of reach. Luol Deng made a trey. Derrick Rose spun across the lane to hit a neat floater. They knew a team with two closers would make one final push. It was not enough.

Miami has made a habit out of ending games with obnoxious runs. In Game 5 of the Boston Celtics series, the Heat closed out the series with an astounding 16-0 run in the last two minutes to turn a six-point deficit into a 10-point win. In Game 5 versus the Chicago Bulls, they out-did themselves, again.

Erasing a 12-point deficit with less than four minutes remaining, the Heat kicked down the door leading to the NBA Finals. James, Wade and Bosh ended the game on an 18-3 run, making nine consecutive shots. Wade and LeBron had the lion’s share of the points, but Bosh hit two massive free throws to keep the run alive.

Coach Spoelstra after the game commented on how his guys know when it’s “winning time” and they showed that again last night. Pat Riley added to that sentiment saying, "You can see that we have two, three players that have no fear."

The Dallas Mavericks may not fear the big three but they should. They keep getting better. All their frustration, emotion and growing pains have come to fruition here in the playoffs and Miami is now on the cusp of starting what could be a scary dynasty.

LeBron’s obnoxious, self-indulgent decision last summer has left quite the bitter taste with several fans. He went from being the beloved starlet of the league to arguably the most hated player in the span of a one hour made-for-TV special.

Let me repeat that: one hour.

Every star athlete makes an ill-advised choice. Michael Jordan chose to take his talents to baseball. Kobe Bryant committed adultery that led to a publicized trial. Shaquille O’Neal starred in Kazaam. It happens.

Jordan went back to playing the sport in which he has talent. Kobe bought his wife a multi-million dollar rock for her finger. Shaq went back to rapping and retired his genie bottle.

LeBron knows what he has to do. Win. America has an infatuation with winners. Winning pulls the proverbial sheep’s wool over our eyes. "I say we've got about a month left. About a month left of continued hate. We'll see what happens next year" suggested James after last night’s Eastern Conference Championship clinching win.

He knows the hate must end eventually.

What about next summer? If winning the championship this year does not cure most of America’s ill feelings toward “the King” and the big three, next summer just might. What is America going to do when they find themselves rooting for the big three as they start for the U.S. national team in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London? Boo them?

LeBron will have to go back to Texas to try and win a title. Except this time he has an adequate supporting cast. Nowitzki will be the beloved superstar for these 2011 NBA Finals, but James is playing for more than just a championship. The Heat know that they are the team that people love to hate. It comes with the territory. They also know that if they can win four games against the Mavericks that their collective decision to play together will be validated.

Dirk has been a man on a mission throughout these playoffs trying to win his first championship. Jason Terry has a tattoo of the Larry O’Brien trophy on his arm. Sure, that is motivation at an extreme. The difference between these two teams is not that they both want to win a championship. Oh no, the Miami Heat are hell-bent on subduing their villain image.

In order for that image to wane away they must achieve vindication by winning a championship in dramatic fashion. For the team labeled “Hollywood as hell” by Joakim Noah after their captivating Game 5 ending 18-3 run, they will earn fans back by continuing to follow their own script, not America’s.