This year’s Miami Heat roster has proven to be one of the more talented NBA rosters in actual contention for the 2022 NBA title. Despite continued success against sturdy competition, NBA media often fails to recognize Miami as a legitimate contender.
Coming off of their NBA Finals trip during the famed “bubble” season, followed by the first-round sweep that was last year’s playoffs, we will look at what the Heat must overcome to bring the hardware back to Biscayne Boulevard at the end of this season.
The development of several Eastern Conference super teams has distracted many fanbases from the gritty nature that Miami embraces on a nightly basis. Assuming the season ended today, the Heat would, most likely, face the Brooklyn Nets.
Although Brooklyn is loaded with talent, the Nets have struggled at home, posting only 13 wins out of 31 games at Barclays Center. Miami’s defensive weapons like Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler, and Victor Oladipo could help to suppress the scoring prowess of Brooklyn superstars like Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
The Miami Heat have proven themselves time and time again this year, but they’ve had some letdowns too. Can they really go on to win it all?
Assuming the highest seed advances in this playoff simulation, Erik Spoelstra’s squad would square off against the Chicago Bulls. Miami’s largest concern would be stopping Most Valuable Player candidate, DeMar DeRozan, who has been terrorizing the league at 32 years old.
Chicago has struggled against the Heat this year, having been swept by the likes of Tyler Herro and company on the 2021-2022 season. Chicago has proven their offensive capabilities this season, but simultaneously have shown a tendency to forgo leads in close game situations, while they also can’t seem to beat the good teams in the league.
An Eastern Conference championship against Milwaukee would be quite the challenge for Miami. The two powerhouses have split the season, with Milwaukee having two players score over 20 points in three of their four matchups.
Stopping Jrue Holiday from dissecting the Heat’s lackluster backcourt bench defense is the top priority. Stopping Giannis Antetokounmpo and the reigning champions would send Miami to the NBA Finals in a very possible and likely scenario.
Again, assuming the highest seed wins, the Heat would play Phoenix in a technical defensive-based matchup. Adebayo against Ayton and Butler against Booker would be the matchups that determine who wins, given the two-way skillsets of both Miami players.
With all that being said, it’s entirely possible for the Miami Heat to win a championship if they can stay healthy, determined, and disciplined in the facets of Heat Culture that help bring success to the team. This is probably how that path might look though when it happens.
Yes, with the operative word here being “when”.