Miami Heat Anxious to Prove Haters Wrong Against Philadelphia 76ers

The haters are out in full force, as we expected them to be after the debacle last night. One, in particular, really got me going, though.

I’ve stated numerous times, in numerous pieces I’ve written, that Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports is an absolute moron. He provided yet another sterling piece of evidence to support that conclusion with his mindless, hate-filled rant about LeBron James posted just after midnight (PST) titled, LeBron Carries Win-Now Burden With Heat.

In his sickening piece of yellow-journalism at its finest, he makes frequent reference to LeBron’s supposedly childish and immature behavior while with the Cleveland Cavaliers (I’m guessing he got a bulleted memo straight from Dan Gilbert detailing them all and just went with it).

After last night’s loss, every Miami fan knew the criticism would begin, and to some degree it’s well-deserved. The Heat played horribly last night in allowing the Celtics to run roughshod over them through most of three quarters in Boston.

It wasn’t until a late-game rally led mostly by LeBron James that the Heat even looked like an NBA franchise at all. Instead, they looked more like some crappy college squad chucking up brick after brick in hopes some of them would fall in.

Something that really made me wince watching the game was seeing Dwyane Wade clank not one, but two shots off the top of the backboard. That is simply painful to see, but was indicative of how rusty and not yet ready he was.

That rust was a big part of the loss the Heat suffered. While the Heat did lose to the Celtics, looking “atrocious”, as coach Erik Spoelstra put it after the game, in the first half (scoring just nine points in the first quarter, and 30 overall before the break), and trailing Boston by 19 at one point in the second quarter, they still managed to make it a one-possession game with about a minute to go.

If it wasn’t for an incredibly clutch shot by Ray Allen with just over 49 seconds left, we may have been discussing one of the most incredible comebacks in the history of the NBA.

Yet, we’re not.

What we’re left with is the reality, as I stated last night, that the Celtics came ready to play and the Heat left their “A” game at home. We’re left with the reality that jerks like Wojnarowski have their opportunity to vent their bile-filled drivel for at least one day.

Hopefully that day will be a very short one, as the Heat have the opportunity tonight to silence all of their pathetic critics.

Those critics are pathetic, too. Not because of their criticism of the play of Miami in last night’s game, but because they’ve used the loss by the Heat as an opportunity to spew their hatred and envy (masked as disdain and pomposity) of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and everything connected with South Beach.

Most, if not all of them would be spending endless hours writing eloquent praise-driven pieces about all of the “Three Kings” if not for one thing. Rather than taking their talents to the city these fools love, they all chose Miami instead.

For that reason alone, fools like Adrian Wojnarowski feel a deep-seated need to trash players like LeBron.

Does he have evidence to back up the vicious claims he makes in his piece? Not a shred of it. Instead, he simply makes his wisecrack remarks about LeBron, calling him names like the “Drama King” in order to try and get a rise out of his readers.

Wojnarowski is the epitome of what’s wrong with sports journalism today, and if I had my way, the only thing he’d be writing would be his signature on his pink slip acknowledging he’d received it.

However, all the criticism in the world won’t do anything but motivate Miami.

You think the Heat aren’t sitting in Philadelphia right now just burning to get a chance at redemption tonight? You can rest assured they’re on the practice floor as I’m writing this, working on their game in hopes of destroying the 76ers tonight in the city of brotherly love.

I’m sure Wojnarowski’s piece, along with a few other choice articles and comments, will be posted on visitor’s locker room walls tonight prior to the game. I’m sure LeBron will take a glance at them, and then pretend they mean nothing. He’ll maintain his outward cool, as he almost always does, but I’m sure beneath that calm exterior, a fire will be burning.

That fire will consume him, and I wouldn’t want to be the player having to play opposite him tonight (which just so happens to be former Miami Heat player Jason Kapono). He’s almost certain to want to figuratively shove that piece of garbage Adrian wrote down his throat by leading Miami to completely annihilate Philadelphia this evening.

I’m sure he’s working right now with Dwyane Wade, cajoling him to work harder on his shot, and running practice sets with him, Bosh, and the rest of the Heat players in order to get themselves into complete sync.

Where the Heat came out cold and discombobulated last night amid all of the fanfare in Boston, I look for them to come out so focused tonight you’d scarce be able to distract them with blaring horns in their ears.

I believe Wade will shake the rust off his game like a dog shakes water off his coat of fur after he’s run around in the rain too long. I believe he’ll shake that rust off and light up the 76ers in more ways than they’ve ever seen.

Andre Iguodala is going to have a real tough time containing Flash in the game tonight if you ask me, as Wade will be out to prove he’s still got it.

Apparently writers like Wojnarowski never read my piece, Miami-Boston: Doubting Dwyane Wade Can Be Detrimental to Your Health. Regardless, they should’ve remembered the game the article was about, and should know Wade tends to deliver epic performances the game after he has a horrible night on the court.

While there’s no guarantee that will happen tonight, I fully believe it will.

I also expect Bosh to come to the game with a burning desire to prove his preseason performances were more of what the Heat faithful can expect from him than the egg he laid last night in Beantown.

So, while the 76ers have a very formidable young team led by new head coach Doug Collins, who’s returned to the city he helped lead to the NBA Finals in 1977, and feature some impressive veterans like Iguodala and Elton Brand, I don’t think they’ll be able to handle a Miami squad bent on proving they’re not a flop.

Nothing has really changed about the Heat. They’re still a team that features two of the greatest players of this generation, one of the best power forwards in the game, and a bench that most teams would envy. Just because they had a sloppy first game and played a bit rusty doesn’t mean they’re not still as talented as they are.

Truthfully, I think the 76ers would have had more of a chance of beating Miami (because this is the second game of a back-to-back) if the Heat had found a way to keep Allen from making that three-point dagger and won the game.

There’s a reason Miami’s been considered a lock to win a title since LeBron announced his “Decision”, and the Heat are going to show everyone exactly why tonight.

Watch out, Philadelphia, you’re about to be the victim of the unfortunate fact Miami and its superstars are pissed as hell.

Game On!