Stakes Couldn't Be Higher in Miami

Author: Michael Licata

Date: 10/11/2010

It’s time to prove it. In South Beach, there's a lot of distraction. You have to be the best to the talk of the town. The Miami Heat had the greatest offseason in NBA history. The regular season is a month away. It means that Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and LeBron James must now prove they’re a top NBA team. The architect of the entire process, Pat Riley, wants another championship ring. He’s expecting it this season, making it eight total championship rings.

The commentators are frothing at the mouth. They expect the experiment fail, mostly because there’s only one basketball. The three players are the most selfless teammates in recent history. They seem ready to act selfless in the quest for the NBA championship. It’s a huge turnaround from a team that went 15-67 in the 2008-09 season. It was a tough season for the Heat. Adding Michael Beasley in the following draft didn’t help return the franchise to the upper echelon of NBA teams. He also knew how important the rebuilding plan would take a few years.

It’s hard to ask fans to be patient. It’s even harder in a town like Miami, where there’s a million different distractions hoping for those hard earned dollars. Riley did a great job preparing the franchise. He convinced Wade that he could surround him with great talent, like the kind during the 2006 Championship. The Heat don’t have to worry about selling out seats now, the season ticket allotment was sold out several weeks before the start of training camp.

The reinforcements have arrived for Wade and the Heat. Riley did a great job organizing and bringing in the surrounding cast for Bosh, Wade and James. The preseason is underway. The team’s looking great. The NBA regular season and the expectations can’t be higher than in Miami. Each player is used being the impact player before this season. Now, they’re ready to rely on each other to win basketball games.

 

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