5 NBA Teams Standing Between the Miami Heat and an NBA Championship

The Miami Heat made great strides as one collective unit last season by persevering through a 9-8 start to finish 58-24 and grab the second seed in the Eastern Conference. With the second seed firmly in place, the Heat would go on to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls in 15 games before falling to the Dallas Mavericks in six games in the NBA Finals.

The run might have ended in a disappointing fashion, but the fact that they made it all the way to the final series in the NBA is unbelievable. LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade had to learn how to play as teammates for the first time while also having to deal with the loss of key role players in Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem. Miller was hampered all season long with various injuries, while Haslem suffered a torn ligament in his foot in November and is just recently at 100 percent.

With Haslem and Miller returning healthy, the Big Three having a greater understanding of each other's games and the possibility of key players being signed over the offseason, the Heat will only improve as the seasons wear on. It doesn't exactly mean that the team will be able to skate through the regular and postseason, though, as there will be a number of teams that will also be improving and looking to knock the Heat off.

Every team in the NBA made it a purpose to try their hardest against the Miami Heat as a means to potentially say that they beat the super team of the NBA, which made it a lot more difficult for this team when they actually had to give an all-out effort in every game, and it made it considerably more difficult when it was three players doing more than 80 percent of the work every game.

The Heat managed to do well, and it nearly paid off with a championship win. The next few seasons will be crucial as they attempt to secure their first championship with this roster, and they'll need to be able to best these five teams if they think of doing so.

New York Knicks

The New York Knicks Big Three is in no way similar to that of the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat...yet.

The Celtics set the standard for these modern day Big Threes springing up across the NBA by bringing in two solid veterans in Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to join Paul Pierce. Allen came from Seattle, and Garnett came from Minnesota. Both players had never seen too much success aside from a Conference Finals visit.

Once they joined together, it was an instant hit. Each player fit into their niche well, played for the purpose of winning a title before their looming retirement and played as veterans would by having a great understanding of the game and how to move the ball to ensure the easiest and quickest points necessary.

The Knicks don't have that. They feature a solid veteran floor general in Chauncey Billups and two of the league's elite pure scorers in Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire. In the few games they all played together, they managed to win games, but not in the matter that we expected. The ball movement was erratic, the defensive effort wasn't there as originally expected and it didn't appear that 'Melo and 'Stat could play as second scoring options.

They have their flaws, but the Knicks still match up very well with the Miami Heat at a number of key positions that are neutralized. LeBron James and Chris Bosh are two of the league's top scorers, and it gives the Heat a definite advantage over the majority of the leagues teams. Carmelo Anthony has always seen success against James, and Stoudemire has the size and athleticism to best Bosh in a one-on-one matchup even with Amare's lack of defense.

Not to mention that Landry Fields has shown signs of being a quality perimeter defender considering that he's 6'7", is lengthy, quick and has the strength to keep up with guards that rely on their build like Dwyane Wade.

The Knicks don't have many quality defenders, but they have one at a key position that could possibly neutralize the Heat's shooting guard, as well as the small forward and power forward positions.

The Heat do hold a clear advantage when it comes to their bench, with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller clearly out-performing the Knicks top bench contributors in Toney Douglas, Shawne Williams and Roger Mason.

Aside from the bench and shooting guard, though, the Heat don't hold too many advantages against the Knicks, and they could be a dangerous showing in a potential one vs four matchup in the playoffs.

However, I wouldn't look too much into it. The Heat pride themselves on their defense and athleticism, an attribute that several key players on the Knicks don't possess. With supreme perimeter defenders in Wade and James and solid post defenders in Haslem and Joel Anthony, the Heat would still win this series strictly because of their defensive strength that the Knicks will never be able to matchup with.

Dallas Mavericks

Even as a longtime and disappointed fan of the Miami Heat, you have to respect a team like the Dallas Mavericks that prides itself on a complete team effort from each and every player that steps on the floor, a healthy scoring balance between their Finals MVP in Dirk Nowitzki and the rest of the team and a strong defensive unit on the perimeter and the paint that forces their opponents out of their comfort zones and playing into the Mavericks plan.

The Mavericks have one of the oldest teams in the league with all but one player in the starting lineup being over 30 years old, with point guard Jason Kidd leading the way at 39 years old. Shooting guard Caron Butler just clipped 30, Shawn Marion is halfway to 34, the Finals MVP at 33 and the only exception being the man in the middle in Tyson Chandler recently turning 29.

Dallas may have what is considered to be old team and a lack of athleticism throughout the starting lineup and bench, but they possess a roster that has an excellent balance that's willing to pass the ball around with the team using a great number of players off the bench. They have a number of stellar, consistent perimeter shooters that can step it up when called upon on one end and a tremendous understanding of each other on the defensive end when it comes to rotating and switching off of their assignments.

On offense, they get their obvious help from Nowitzki and the always-lethal Jason Terry, but it seems that Kidd never gets the recognition that he deserves. He keeps the offense in check and dictates a solid tempo that each member of the team could work at, can hit the three-pointer at a rate that he's never hit at before and can play great defense on any player that resides from the one to three spot, as he showed with his defense on LeBron James and Kevin Durant.

The main reason why this team is successful is because of the number of veterans that can lead the team at just about every position in the starting lineup and off the bench. They understand the game better than teams with young starting lineups like the Heat, know how to play basketball the right way and make quick adjustments that only a veteran team like Dallas would be able to make.

The Mavericks are one year older and are coming off of their first championship in franchise history with a victory over the Miami Heat, and they have showed that they're not willing to back down even in their darkest times. Through perseverance and determination, the Mavericks were able to win a title and are an easy favorite to contend for their second next season.

Boston Celtics

On their journey to their second NBA Finals appearance in franchise history, the Miami Heat still had to go through a gauntlet of elite teams before taking on the Western Conference's best in the Dallas Mavericks.

In the Eastern Conference, they were given the first round assignment of a dangerous Philadelphia 76ers team that matched up well and had a quality bench, a Conference Finals visit with the MVP in Derrick Rose and the NBA's No. 1 team record-wise in the Chicago Bulls and possibly their most difficult matchup coming in the semifinals against the Boston Celtics. All three teams were beaten in five games, with a majority of those wins being decided in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter.

The series wins over the 76ers and Bulls were fun, but their triumph over the Celtics was a relief as a huge weight was lifted off the shoulders of the big three and the rest of the Miami Heat. Chris Bosh and his Toronto Raptors were constantly on the losing end of the Celtics exploits since they were in the same division, Dwyane Wade was coming off of a five-game series loss to Boston the year before, and LeBron James was coming off of a six-game series loss to the Celtics the year before.

All three players had a personal vendetta against this Celtics team, as the veterans had always seemed to win in the most improbable ways. The veteran leaders and one of the league's top point guards in Rajon Rondo had constantly stymied each of those players when they were on their former teams and had continued to do so even when those three players joined up in Miami by losing three of four games in the season series.

The Heat managed to persevere by hitting big shots at the end of games and utilizing their athleticism to wear the worn-down bodies of the elderly members of the Boston Celtics. By the time the fourth quarter came around, the Celtics defenders were so worn out from attempting to keep up with James, Wade and Bosh that they didn't have the energy to keep up the same defensive tempo over the first three quarters.

Even though the Heat managed to make it back, they still need to be careful of Boston, as they are one defensive presence in the post away from giving the Heat a serious run for their money. When the team lost Kendrick Perkins to a trade and Shaquille O'Neal to an injury and were forced to start the lethargic Jermaine O'Neal, they lost any hope of shutting down James and Wade on their drives as they lacked the strong defensive presence that would have greatly helped limit those two.

The Celtics big three may be old with Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, but they're all strong team defenders that know how to play the game the right way and are all stellar jump shooters, with Allen actually coming off of a season where he hit a career high field goal percentage from deep despite being 35 years old. Athleticism wears down and jump shots don't, which allows these three to continue thriving in a young man's league despite facing the prospect of retirement within the next few seasons.

Boston's angry and they don't like to be embarrassed like they were by the Miami Heat in a 4-1 series loss. Since the "Boston Three Party" joined up following the completion of the 2007-'08 season, they had never lost a series without at least going to a Game 7. That streak ended when they ran into that buzzsaw in South Beach, and with possibly one last significant run in them, there's no doubt that the Celtics will be doing all in their power to take back the Eastern Conference crown.

Oklahoma City Thunder

One of the most dangerous and athletic teams in the league has somehow found itself to the heart of Oklahoma City, where Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook lead a Thunder team that was a few fourth quarter meltdowns away from facing the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals. In their Conference Finals series against Dallas, the Thunder had held a lead in the fourth quarter in each one of their losses to the eventual champions.

Durant can hit the big shots when called upon, but finding himself out of a rhythm with Westbrook taking a number of shots and strong defenders in Shawn Marion, DeShawn Stevenson and Jason Kidd all taking turns on defending the two-time scoring champion threw him out of his comfort zone, as he faltered down the stretch and couldn't hit the shots that he usually makes.

Before that doomed series against Dallas, however, the Thunder were wiping the floor with their opponents with a seven-game series win over the Memphis Grizzlies and a five-game series win over the Denver Nuggets.

Prior to the start of the postseason, the Thunder had finished 55-27, which was good enough for their first division title since moving to Oklahoma City. That is quite the accomplishment when in a division with quality teams in Portland, Denver and Utah.

So, how did a team as young as the Thunder reach these heights after starting out 23-59 in their first season in OKC? Maturity and talent has definitely played a large part.

Since getting drafted as a 19-year-old in 2007, Durant has been the team leader and has managed to help the Thunder improve their win total after every year. He has averaged over 20 points per game every year since joining the NBA and will be defending his scoring crown for the third consecutive year whenever the season starts.

Durant is definitely inferior to LeBron James on the defensive end, but he's an unbelievable offensive threat that has a top-tier jump shot with the range to go with it as well as the uncanny ability to drive despite being wire thin at 215 pounds. He's a scary player that has the capability to go off whenever, and he showed off when he hit a series of perimeter jumpers against James in the Thunder's win in the regular season in Miami.

Durant is supported by a plethora of young, athletic players with Westbrook leading the forefront at point guard, the team's defensive minded power forward in Serge Ibaka and a lethal three-point shooter in James Harden.

Including Durant, none of these players are older than 24, and the prospect that these players will only improve with age should strike fear into the hearts of every opponent that has to take the Thunder on over the next decade.

While the team may be in a bit of an identity crisis with Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant both attempting to assume the role of team leader and primary shot taker in the fourth quarter, it's nothing that an understanding between the two players that would put an end to any of that talk. Durant is the clear leader of this team, and it has shown in the overall progression of this team that is strong on both sides of the ball.

With a bunch of 23-year-olds leading a franchise to the Conference Finals, the Miami Heat will need to be wary when potentially taking this team on in an NBA Finals in the near future.

Chicago Bulls

Never before has a 4-1 series victory been so deceiving. That was the result of the Miami Heat's Conference Finals victory over a 62-20 Chicago Bulls team that possessed the league's top record and the reigning MVP, who was coming off an elite season where he averaged 25 points, eight assists and four boards per while leading the team to a 21-win improvement from the year before.

Joining him would be center and the always prevalent defensive threat in Joakim Noah, a high scoring and rebounding power forward in Carlos Boozer, the always solid Luol Deng and those that ride the pine that call themselves the "Bench Mob," which includes the likes of Ronnie Brewer, Kyle Korver and Taj Gibson. The Bulls are an extremely dangerous team through and through, and they were another scorer away from possibly pushing the Conference Finals to seven games.

Alas, they didn't get that scorer, and they suffered a devastating loss that ended with a frantic Heat comeback where they erased a double-digit deficit in the final five minutes to steal a victory in front of a stunned United Center. The Bulls couldn't pull out more than one victory over the Heat because they just couldn't find any consistent scoring from the perimeter or from anyone not named Derrick Rose, and even that was a stretch because the MVP couldn't hit water from a boat in the fourth quarter.

Rose sometimes becomes too dependent on his inconsistent jumper rather than relying on his speed and athleticism to get to the rim, and it greatly hurt a Bulls team that needed him more than ever in the Conference Finals. With LeBron James defending him, Rose couldn't utilize his speed or strength, as the two-time MVP was able to keep up with every move that Derrick that tried to use on him.

Boozer was by far the biggest disappointment, however, with an embarrassing showing on both sides of the ball. Chris Bosh dominated him the entire series on defense and he couldn't find any sort of rhythm on the offensive end, which led to the Bulls No. 2 scorer being left in the dust and losing a key matchup between the two teams that could have gone either way.

The Bulls top players faltered down the stretch, but it's tough to believe that they're going to be that same disappointing team from the Conference Finals. Rose is only going to improve as a player and a jump shooter, the young guns off the bench will continue to develop into possible starters and the Bulls will be able to find another scorer in the starting lineup that the team can depend on at a consistent rate.

All four wins in their matchup featured the Heat coming through with key plays down the stretch. All winnable games for Chicago, but they're going to need to find that second consistent scorer and leadership down the stretch from Rose if they want to persevere and best the Miami Heat in the coming seasons.