Miami Heat: 6 Bold Predictions for 2011-12

With the lockout ended and a 66 game season salvaged, NBA basketball will soon be back on, and the Miami Heat will continue to be the most talked about team in the universe.

With a new season comes much of the same expectations as tip-off time last year, which is to say thoughts of golden basketball nets are already dancing in their little noggins, as the basketball world waits for the Evil Empire to complete its nefarious plot to take over the NBA.

It wouldn't be a preseason without predictions, so the following is a list of six things I see happening in the upcoming season, which I'm dubbing "The M-pire Strikes Back."

Let's start with the obvious...

6. It Begins...

Let's be honest here, there's absolutely nothing bold about this prediction. If ever there was such a thing as a foregone conclusion, a Heat championship would be it.

Whether or not free agency works out for them, whether or not LeBron learns to play the post and whether or not they develop better chemistry, the Larry O'Brien is theirs to lose. The only thing that kept them from it last season was a perfect storm of freak occurrences not likely to ever reoccur... and even then they were barely edged out.

Sure, there will be those who sing that old midseason song to rationalize any underachievement; they have no post scoring, they can't strike an offensive balance, they have no depth behind the Three Banditos and Coach Spo is bush-league. It's a wonderful buffet of potential cop-outs.

These problems with the Heat are merely an insurance policy to fall back on in the event the Heat's season once again ends in a pooch screw. The reality is none of these were an obstacle to Miami in the playoffs, so while they may be weaknesses, they are not excuses.

As they've already shown, the Heat are too ridiculously top-heavy for any of these issues to stand in their way. They could start Pat O'Bryant and an un-retired Matt Maloney and still dominate.

All told, anybody who tells you Miami isn't the clearcut favorite to win the next few Finals is simply not paying attention.

5. Most of Their Critics Will Remain

When Miami lost the 2011 Finals, there were a number of people who suggested it was time to let them move beyond the villain role. There were a few articles suggesting that we start taking it easier on LeBron and the team in general, that there was no longer a need to fear or despise them in light of their loss.

Apparently these people are unconcerned with Miami winning cheap championships, so long as they endure a sufficient amount of ridicule along the way.

Then again, there are even more people who will tell you that Miami is still to be feared like the black plague and will be for as long as they're a threat to win a title. After all, isn't the main criticism against them the way they're going it win it?

For these people, it will be a dark day in basketball when they pull it off, regardless of how long it takes, which is ample reason to continue rooting against the Heat with every fiber of their being, as long as this roster is together.

Also, as Miami's all-world super-swag is (sadly) unlikely to disappear, the number of people they put off with their attitude is just as unlikely to decrease. In fact, when they actually do take home the title, their overblown sense of accomplishment will only grate on people even more.

This being so, you can expect the boos, internet jokes and journalistic cheap shots (guilty) to continue as this team insults its way to the promised land.

At the risk of getting blatantly editorial, those who change their tune now—with the exception of Clevelanders who've finally moved on—never had any business singing in the first place.

4. They Will Own Every Season Series Except One

Now we already know that this team was formed specifically to eat the entire league for breakfast, and is quite capable already of doing so. This alone would make them a candidate to sweep or dominate every season series they see, to say nothing of the dents in the competition.

The rest of the league, for the most part, will still be reeling from the lockout and what is sure to be a highly taxing shortened free-agency period.

Who knows what the Mavericks will look like by tip-off? The Lakers and Celtics will likely need to find their legs, during which time they'll concede a few gimmes to Miami. The Bulls no longer have their number and most other teams would have so sell their collective souls to Gozer to even earn a season split.

There's only one team with a clear shot at owning the Heat, if such a thing is even thinkable; that team is Oklahoma City. The Thunder have already shown themselves capable of going toe to toe with the big bully, and their young stars are currently on a steeper upswing than the Three Banditos are.

Russell Westbrook will make Miami's point guards cry and Durant will score no matter who checks him. Add Serge Ibaka—who has the toughness of a million Chris Boshes—and Kendrick Perkins—who was the first and last thing Miami had to fear about the Celtics—and you have a slew of unanswered questions for Erik Spoelstra.

I don't see the Heat finding all the answers in a truncated season and assuming they lock horns twice this season, I see OKC going a hard-fought 2-0. Should they meet in the Finals however, I predict different results, if for no other reason than I'm a pessimist.

3. LeBron's Post Game Will Still Be in the Oven

Not to call The Dream's tutelage into question: Who better to learn from than the most graceful post player ever?

But it seems many people are expecting results to just happen, like some kind of auto-upgrade naturally born when Hakeem's knowledge meets LeBron's virtuosity. This overlooks certain things.

Lets not make the mistake of downplaying Hakeem's incomparably educated feet. Chances are LeBron's romping, stomping footwork would need to be un-learned a little before he could put anything he's learned to good use in game situations.

Plus, being outside LeBron's head as we are, we have no way of gauging his degree of motivation. What we do know is: a) he has thus far been mostly disinclined to work very hard on the things that didn't come naturally, and b) he is quite capable of faking anger and motivation, mostly via Twitter (read: "now or never" and "mental notes") and then doing nothing about it.

So to those who simply assume he'll use last season to fuel his fire and finally work harder on himself, I say wait...

Chances are he picked up a drop step and and a semi-polished fadeaway, both of which he will go to from time to time, not because it's the best idea, but as a subtle flip of the bird to his doubters. Still, he has so many other ways to confidently hurt you that for the most part, he'll need to be pressured into entering the post.

A few flashes aside, LeBron the low-post MVP probably won't be in the building anytime soon.

2. They Will Set the Record for Highest Winning Percentage... *

You know what that asterisk means...

Obviously Chicago's 1995-96 mark is untouchable in a 66 game season, but that probably won't stop Miami from threatening part of that record immediately.

Aside from that mega-mismatch they enjoy against everyone this side of Jesus, they will also have (alleged) preparation in their favor. One story in an ocean of slow news days this past lockout, was that the Heat were planning to go back into training on schedule, regardless of the lockout.

With many among the competition more likely to be adjusting to new faces, missing players overseas and just plain rust—and with less time to do so—Miami will likely continue down the path of unbeatability, with a shot at matching or even besting their win total from last year.

Which is precisely what it will require to make history.

Mathematically, 58 wins would put the Heat at .879, beating the '96 Bulls by .001 for best win percentage all-time. Seeing as it takes a decent stretch of the imagination to picture a depleted and poorly-prepared field beating Miami nine or more times, the smart money is on a new record come April.

As a small consolation to Miami's more vehement critics, it will be at least one more year before they officially knock the Bulls off the books. This record meanwhile, will have a nice, big star next to it.

Source: http://aol.sportingnews.com/nba/story/2011-09-03/chris-bosh-expects-miami-heat-to-start-workouts-soon-lebron-james-dwyane-wade

1. Dwyane Wade Will Win His First Regular Season MVP

With Miami both a lock to top the standings and in possession of the two best players in the world, they're also the odds-on favorite to produce this season's MVP. From there, it's merely a question of LeBron or Wade.

In terms of regular-season production, expect to at least see the same thing we saw last year; neck-and-neck scoring as well as defensive numbers, with an edge to LeBron in boards and dimes. A key issue could be which of the two will be just plain madder about last season.

While many may question LeBron's ability to exorcise his anger on the court, most are firmly convinced of D-Wade's. Expect Flash to come out with the Finals fresh in his mind, willing and able to make all his perceived persecutors eat their unkind words at choice moments throughout the season.

Not to be overlooked, the Heat's greatly clarified pecking order. As the longtime leader of the team and—as of the Heat's last five games—the only player on the team who doesn't have an off button in a crisis, Wade's stature is reaffirmed. Some argue it never should've been second guessed to begin with.

Should it come down to the usual best player on best team voting scenario, then Wade should edge LeBron for the Podoloff trophy. While the latter may be the popular choice, he is not the best choice at the moment.

Or, as I mentioned in a previous article, just give it to both of them if you simply can't decide. One way or another, in this writer's humble opinion, justice simply demands Dwyane Wade's first MVP far more than it does LeBron's third.