Andrew Wiggins believes that the Miami Heat are better than some of the Eastern Conference teams ranked ahead of them in the standings. For more reasons than one, this is a sentiment that Heat fans are tired of hearing.
Because at this point in the season, a team is what their record says they are. Right now, the Heat are just not that good a team. And, instead of embracing their fate and probably soft-tanking down the stretch en route to a better draft pick, the Heat continue to carry this irrational confidence.
Most specifically, Wiggins had a pretty peculiar answer when asked if he believed the Heat were better than their record and standing.
“One hundred percent; we know,” Wiggins said. “But that’s the way the NBA is. The season goes, you let games you should have won get away from you and they come back to bite you in the [butt] at the end of the season.” This is what Wiggins struggles to reconcile: “You look at the numbers, we’re top five offense and defense. History shows when you are in the top five of offense and defense, you are usually a team that has a chance to win it [all]. We have everything we need.”
Heat fans are tired with the catering to false hope
While it's hard to blame Wiggins for carrying this belief, this is not something that Heat fans want to hear at this point in the season. Especially considering that they're on the cusp of a fourth-straight appearance in the Play-In Tournament.
The honest truth is that if the Heat were better than their record, they'd be ranked higher in the standings.
Wiggins speaks to having a top 5 offense and defense, and that's just not that true. While they have had a top 5 defense for stretches this season, they are currently ranked 11th in defensive rating heading into the final week of the regular season.
Offensively, the Heat have truly struggled this year. To Wiggins defense, they're still second in the league in points per game, but are just 12th in the league in offensive rating.
Because of the Heat's high-paced offense, they're an explosive points-per-game team, but the efficiency just hasn't been there this season. And that's been one of the Heat's biggest downfalls this year.
The Heat are headed toward another sacrificial ending to the season
Despite the confidence heading into the final week of the regular season, it's difficult to be encouraged with the way the Heat have been playing of late.
In fact, the Heat are likely inching closer to another disappointing end to their season. One that will likely end at the hands of a much better team in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, or perhaps more embarrassingly in the Play-In Tournament.
Either way, the Heat have set themselves up to be a sacrificial lamb in the postseason. And no matter how confident Wiggins may be, it's difficult to envision anything changing that for the Heat.