Miami’s impressive win over the Lakers made a big-time statement. The Heat are not going anywhere and they’re only going to get better

SCOTT JACOBS

It was so convincing that it almost seemed like a fluke.  But make no mistake about it, Miami’s dismantling of the defending back to back world Champion Lakers on a much bally-hooed Christmas day matchup was no mirage.  It was no, “well it happens” kind of thing.  It was the Heat announcing to the NBA world that ‘hey, if you didn’t take us seriously before, you sure as hell better do it now.’

We knew going into the season that Miami’s Tri-nasty was going to be good.  Today they were great.  Merely toying with the team many consider to be the bar-setters, Miami pushed aside a flailing Lakers squad, holding them to 80 points in a 16 point romp.

Though neither team or neither of the many stars showcased in the tilt would say as much, the Heat came in determined to make a statement.  And make a statement they did.  Showing crisp ball movement and hardly ever settling for a bad shot, the Heat methodically picked apart L.A.  But it was their defense, their relentless energy and clogging of the lane with help defenders that fueled Miami’s 14th win in their last 15 games.

The Heat now seem to have a pretty good idea of their roles, aside from Mike Miller.  While the majority of the scoring comes from their Big Three, it’s been guys like Mario Chalmers, James Jones, and Carlos Arroyo who have made all the difference, playing lockdown defense, taking charges, and making big time 3’s when called upon.

Then factor in Miami’s moving parts down low at center, guys like Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Joel Anthony, and even Erik Dampier and Miami has a versatile team that can play a number of different ways.  At the end of the day that’s what makes a collection of guys,a  team.  Miami’s offense is fueled by their phenomenal half court defense and their other guys now know what’s expected of them. Even the stars like Wade, LeBron, and Bosh seem to have it all figured out.

Miami’s 9-8 start raised a lot of concerns about this trifecta, but those concerns are long gone.  If Erik Spoelstra was ever on the hot-seat he’s way off of it now.

What makes Miami such a unique team and such a scary threat down the road is that they can rest their stars.  LeBron can take a seat and Wade and Bosh are there to take over.  Or Wade can take a seat, and LeBron and Bosh can take over.  Though all three are great talents, they’ve become movable parts that have all learned to play with each other.

You can see it in the way they pass the ball around, how they run their breakneck fast pace, and the patience they exhibit on the offensive end of the floor.

The Heat are really good.  Everyone knows it.  Miami knows it.  If they ever doubted themselves, they’re not any longer.  They see that they have a team that can not only pull off huge runs at any point in a game, but a team that on any given night can steamroll anyone by 15-20 points.

Miami still has a long ways to go, and they’ve still yet to beat Dallas or Boston, but they’ll get other cracks at those teams along with some of the NBA’s other elites.

Will Miami hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of next June? I can’t say.  There’s too many things that could happen between now and then.  But are the Heat quickly becoming the scariest team in the league? I don’t think there’s any doubt.

Photo: Getty

Popularity: 4% [?]