Bill Simmons' irrational fears of the Miami Heat may finally be beginning to make sense. With how the Heat have looked of late, this is a team that could theoretically emerge as a dangerous Eastern Conference playoff team down the stretch.
There's still much that would have to fall right for the Heat over the final few weeks of the season, but if the last 12 games are any indication, there's a reason why this team should incite fear among the favorites near atop the East standings.
During that stretch, the Heat is not playing like a Play-In Tournament team. In fact, they're not even playing like a 5th or 6th seed. Miami has the third-ranked offense, sixth-ranked defense, and second-best net rating in the league over the last 12 games.
The Heat are a dangerous team ready to play spoiler
The Heat will have to prove that this is more of what we can expect from them moving forward, rather than the inconsistency that they've put on paper through the first three-fourths of this season, but this is a talented roster that may be dangerously looming.
And for any fan of the top 4 teams in the East, including Simmons, it's understandable why that could be considered a scary sight. Especially when you think about how the Heat went on an unprecedented run as a Play-In Tournament team just three years ago, it's almost impossible to dismiss Miami as an afterthought right now.
It's not that the Heat should be considered a serious threat to come out of the East, but it's a danger of the unknown that looms large. It's the idea that we may still haven't seen the best of the Heat, and that should pose a real threat to any of the favorites.
Especially in the first-round of the postseason, none of the top 4 seeds will want to face off against a team that perhaps hasn't hit its ceiling. Even though the Heat's ceiling may not be as high as some of the favorites, a talented team (which includes experienced veterans) with nothing to lose could create a perfect storm for an upset.
Sure, Simmons has some PTSD that he still hasn't gotten completely over, likely stemming from the Big Three in Miami. But, in a way, there's also some credence to the idea of a team getting hot late in the season and evolving into a dangerous playoff threat.
With the way they've been playing of late, it wouldn't be that shocking if the Heat slowly continued to develop into that team this season.