The Heat Should Repeat

LeBron James silenced doubters leading Miami to a title

This weekend, the real basketball season begins.

After a long, 82 game season that stretched from November to April, 16 teams will compete for the ultimate prize, the Larry O’Brien trophy. All it takes is 16 wins and one team looks like the clear favorite to celebrate with champagne showers and parades. That team is last year’s champions, the Miami Heat.

Miami, who heads into the playoffs well rested with a first round matchup against the only team with a losing record in the playoffs, the Milwaukee Bucks, has many distinct advantages which will help support their efforts to repeat. Without further ado, here are the top four reasons why the Miami Heat will repeat in 2013.

4. Erik Spoelstra

In the 2012 NBA playoffs, the Miami Heat found their identity.

Erik Spoelstra inserted Shane Battier into Miami’s starting lineup and the benefits were evident immediately. While Battier defended opponents with a significant size advantage, such as Indiana’s David West, his defensive instincts allowed him to defend capably. However, Battier’s insertion into the starting lineup allowed Miami to replace a dwindling Udonis Haslem with an additional threat from three-point-range.

Spoelstra’s cunning and ability to think outside the box have continued into this season. While Miami’s offense has been a force to be reckoned with , thanks to Spoelstra’s offensive approach that focuses on spacing the floor with shooters to complement his stars, their defense has come around after a below average start to the season. Miami’s offense is tops in the Eastern Conference, averaging 102.9 points per game while the defense finished the season allowing 95 points per game, good for seventh best in the NBA.

3.  Complementary Pieces

It takes five guys clicking on all cylinders to win in the playoffs.

Despite Miami’s cap situation as a luxury tax payer, the Heat have successfully been able to add complementary pieces to their championship-caliber roster.

While the signing of Shane Battier in the summer of 2011 helped Miami win its second NBA championship, the Heat continued to add to their roster in 2012 by signing the greatest three-point shooter of all time in Ray Allen. While Allen has had difficulty adjusting to his new role, evidenced by Allen’s career-low averages in minutes (25.8) and points (10.9) per game, he is still a dangerous offensive player who has hit many big shots this year, including a game-winner against Denver at the start of the season.

Following the game-winner against Denver, Erik Spoelstra commented on Allen’s late game heroics, "Do we expect him to do that every single night? That's not necessarily what he has to do. It's what he's done his whole career, but he's found a way to fit in."

If Ray Allen hits one key shot in the playoffs, he will more than justify his worth to the Heat. Along with midseason pickup Chris Andersen, the Heat have continued to add veteran players who should play significant roles in the playoffs.

2. An Easy Road Ahead

For years, the Western Conference has been the dominant one, and this year is no different. While there are a number of dangerous teams in the West, such as Oklahoma City, San Antonio, and Denver, Miami has a relatively easy path to return to the NBA finals.

Miami’s first round opponent, the Milwaukee Bucks, have many intriguing pieces on their roster, but they should mostly serve as a warm-up for the second round. Miami’s biggest challengers in the East, New York and Indiana, do not have first round matchups that they can take lightly. New York will face the Boston Celtics, a team with a successful track record in the playoffs, extreme dislike for New York, and extra motivation following the Boston Marathon bombings, while Indiana will face the Atlanta Hawks, a team that they split the season series with.

In addition to an easy first-round matchup, Miami has been blessed with good health. The Eastern Conference playoffs will no longer feature the exciting point guard play of Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo, while the year-long absence of Andrew Bynum has kept the conference’s most dangerous center out of the postseason. 

1. The King

2012 was the year of LeBron James. After winning his third MVP award, James led the Heat to victory in the NBA finals and Team USA to victory in the Olympics.

But 2013 has shown that LeBron James is still improving. Coming into the season, James was a tank who could bully his way to the rim with an engine that made him deadly in transition. While this is still true of LeBron James, who leads the NBA with 1.459 points per transition possession, the tank has been upgraded with improved attachments, making a deadly weapon even more dangerous.

The big knock on James coming into this season was his pedestrian jump-shot. This season, however, James has turned one of his weaknesses into a strength. By attaching long range accuracy upgrades to the tank, James has averaged a career high 56.5 percent field goal shooting and 40.6 percent shooting from downtown.

While James’ major improvement can be attributed to his work ethic, it would be remiss to not acknowledge Ray Allen’s influence in James’ development from downtown. At the end of each practice, James would participate in a shooting contest with some of the team’s best shooters. After one such contest early in the season, a reporter asked Ray Allen if he won. Allen replied, “Nope. LeBron did, believe it or not.”

While LeBron James’ improved shooting has made him a more deadly weapon, it is not the only way in which he has improved. This season, James has cut down his turnovers and fouls, averaging 3 and 1.4 per game respectively, rebounded the basketball to a tune of 8 boards per games, and played his most efficient basketball during a record streak of six games with at least 30 points and 60 percent shooting. As long as James stays healthy, the Miami Heat have to like their chances to repeat.