LeBron James vs. Chris Bosh: Who Had a More Effective Season for the Heat

It certainly wasn't a picture-perfect season. It wasn't even close to a perfect season either. The Miami Heat may not have accomplished their preseason goal of taking home a championship, but they did at least get many positives with only a few negatives mixed in.

For one, you have to give the team some credit for how deep into the post season they managed to get despite not having their two best contributors for the majority of the year. Not even a core consisting of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh could overcome that much adversity for the majority of the season, but they still managed to make it all the way to the NBA Finals after a dominant post season run.

That's saying something when replacing the likes of Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem with Mario Chalmers and Joel Anthony. Miami won each series in the Eastern Conference playoffs in five games with Chalmers, Anthony, and James Jones as their top contributors.

The Heat managed to get by because of the sheer talent and will of the big three. There wasn't too much of a three-man effort in each series, but rather one or two players taking over and the other member taking a backseat. Wade and Bosh did most of the damage against Philadelphia, James and Wade against Boston, and then James and Bosh against Chicago.

It's truly a beautiful thing when you have three superstars that can take turns in winning a game, or a series, for your team. That's the greatest benefit and advantage that the Heat hold over every other franchise: the fact that they have three players that they could rely on individually any given night to will the team to victory.

It's that way because each player had done so for the seven years prior to joining together in Miami. The main reason these three joined together was not only because of the easier chance to win a title if they banded together, but because how much easier it would be to win games. Rather than carrying an entire team on their back for a regular season and then doing that and then some in the post season, they decided to do the wise thing by joining up and relying on each other to win instead of themselves.

We immediately found out at the beginning of the season that this experiment wasn't going to go as originally expected. The opening night loss to the Boston Celtics made it clear and evident that throwing three of the league's best players in the game on the same team didn't exactly spell out immediate success, especially when they were lacking a consistent point guard to lead the offense and a legitimate big man to control the paint.

It was interesting to see the progression of this team because of just how long it took for them to actually develop a team chemistry and play as teammates rather than individuals. With Wade being the only member of the big three to play alongside a superstar in the past, Shaquille O'Neal from 2004-2007, it was difficult for all three players to learn each others' tendencies and distribute the ball equally amongst each other.

It was obvious that LeBron James and Chris Bosh had more trouble adjusting to their new surroundings because of their past. Neither player had any experience whatsoever in playing with another superstar and it showed once they hit the floor. They had been the focal point of their team for so long that they had no understanding of how to play with teammates that were on the same level and caliber.

In the case of LeBron James, adjusting would prove to be difficult. He was under constant pressure all season long from his peers, analysts from across the country, and just about anyone that wanted to speak up as they expected him to immediately lead the team to success. It was his decision to choose the Heat over the Cleveland Cavaliers and he now had to prove to everyone he wronged that he was right in his decision.

His mental psyche was one of many obstacles that James would have to overcome since he was playing with a teammate that was equal to him in nearly every way aside from his stature. James and Wade share very similar playing styles since they both heavily rely on driving for the majority of their points with both players possessing inconsistent jump shots.

Obviously wires will get crossed once in awhile. With both players having to rely on driving for their offensive production, they would encounter some problems. They'd have to deal with sharing time on their drives while also sharing the ball. Both players also had to learn to play off the ball, a style of play that neither player had become too accustomed to in years prior.

James had basically played point forward for the Cavaliers for seven seasons.

For Chris Bosh, we expected him to struggle from the outset. He had become accustomed to the role of first option with the Toronto Raptors and was now being reduced to the role of a third option that might not even touch the ball on some plays. With Wade and James dominating the ball and getting easy scores around the basket, Bosh would sometimes be forgotten, especially in the second half if the game was on the line.

It's difficult to ask for the ball when you play with two teammates that love hero-ball more than nearly any other play in the league.

Bosh would have the benefit of playing as the teams lone post threat however. If the ball ran through Bosh, the team saw guaranteed success because of just how effective he could be when being upgraded to the role of first option. He could attract attention from the mid-range thanks to his consistency from 15-20 feet

The only problem with that was the fact that he didn't see too much action on the offensive end. The ball hardly ran through him and the team spent most of their offensive possessions waiting for LeBron James or Dwyane Wade to make their moves along the perimeter. When the ball ran through Bosh, the offense would have at least some fluidity to it. They could work an inside-outside game and the two slashers would have more room to work with since Bosh was getting some necessary looks.

Even with the lack of touches, Bosh still managed to average 19 points and eight boards per. It wasn't the 24 and 10 that he was averaging the previous season with Toronto, but we expected a drop in production from every member of the big three.

LeBron James had just as quality a year by leading the team in scoring at 27 points per to go along with eight rebounds and seven assists per. Some people were disappointed to see that James didn't average a triple-double for the season, but it was a far-fetched idea to begin with in the first place: it's a feat that's just as easy to reach as averaging 50 points per game.

Both players had their struggles and both had a lot to overcome. They had to deal with the criticism of leaving the teams that drafted them in favor of the 'easy way out' and then had to learn how to play with each other rather than relying on themselves. Each player managed, but even at the end of the season it's still tough to determine who had the better year.

Bosh is still looking for his identity and role in the offense, while James is still looking for his identity all together. Chris made great strides in getting involved in the offense, but it's going to be up to the organization and the coaching staff of how they want to handle him being integrated into the offense at a more significant rate.

James was hit the hardest by the teams recent Finals loss. He knows that he's the one that carries the most blame for the loss and he wants to improve, thus the reason for his practices with Hakeem Olajuwon. The loss may have been the worst for James career, but it could have also been the best thing that's ever happened to him.

Losing at that stage after that much hard work can completely change a players psyche. James is going to be hungrier and more motivated than ever to win a championship and there's no doubt that we should see a man possessed if he does truly want to win the ring that has eluded him for so long. Losing the championship hurt James, but winning it the next season would only make it sweeter.

The added motivation and hunger is the exact reason why James had the better season. The loss hurt everyone involved in the Miami Heat, but it affected LeBron more than anyone else because he knew he let the team down after leading them to that point.

With that being said, it's James that had the better season. It's the failure at the end of the year that could lead to success for years to come if he has his head in the right place.