The Miami Heat are at home and preparing to start the 2021-22 NBA season. That’s even with the 2020-21 NBA Playoffs still occurring.
Well, that isn’t a secret by now if you follow the team, as they were ousted unceremoniously by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. Even with that though, the Miami Heat got there.
This isn’t a game of consolation prizes , participation trophies and orange slices, however, there is something to be said of Coach Erik Spoelstra’s ability to consistently give his team a chance to compete at the highest of levels.
Though they didn’t really look good at all in their matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks, they had many people fooled and that is, in large part, due to the tinkers and adjustment that Erik Spoelstra had made. In the very best of ways as a fanbase, he pulled the wool over the eyes.
Unfortunately, the Milwaukee Bucks pulled that wool back up, leading to a demolition at their hands. In the end though, it was probably best for Miami, as this postseason has proved to be an injury-fest and one that you have to believe they wouldn’t have been able to completely avoid.
The Miami Heat are what they are, in large part, due to what Coach Spoelstra gives them.
None of that matters as much right now though. The point here is this.
The Miami Heat are able to fool everyone, they are able to make a run to the NBA Finals last season in the NBA Bubble when they have absolutely no business, and they are able to consistently over-achieve with less actual talent than other teams, in most cases, because of what Coach Spoelstra means.
Furthermore, the security, tenure, and consistency that he has as the coach of that team and the co-head of the basketball part of that organization is a large part of what allows him to be him. In an NBA that is the Wild Wild West when it comes to head coaches and their security, that stands out.
The Indiana Pacers situation has been murky since the middle of the season, with Nate Bjorkgren practically knowing he was in an uphill battle for just a mere chance to keep his job. The Dallas Mavericks have somehow found themselves coachless after longtime coach, Rick Carlisle, stepped down on his own volition, so is the word.
He also made it a point to let it be known that he isn’t done coaching, he’s just done coaching in Dallas. The logical thought is that he sees himself as getting ahead of whatever could be in the future, perhaps a firing for “poor performance” or tension between he and Luka Doncic, maybe?
The Miami Heat give Coach Spoelstra the security in his position to be able to maximize his ability, his potential, and the potential of all of his teams.
Who knows but the exact nature isn’t important, well, not as much as the actual occurrence itself. It shows you that even in a situation like that, where titles have been won, there wasn’t the necessary security to keep Carlisle there.
That’s something that would never happen in Miami and it’s been proven. A well known, yet rumored, story, there was supposedly tension among the team about Spo at the top of the Big 3 Era.
Now, whether it actually happened or not and whether Pat Riley was actually requested to come down to the sidelines by LeBron James or not, Riles stood beside his guy in Erik Spoelstra. That’s the type of security that allows Spoelstra to be himself, to be the coach he is, and to consistently over-achieve, for the most part.
Again, this past season and playoffs weren’t pretty, but the Miami Heat still got the most out of this bunch. That’s just the truth.
At the end of the day, when your leader is a guy that can be counted on to be there tomorrow, as he was the day before, your situation is always better. That’s what Coach Spoelstra is for Miami and illustrates for the rest of the league.