This Time you can believe the Heat

First appeared on January 7th, 2012
in The Lebanon Reporter

Somebody needs to save the talking heads the trouble of arguing for six months (and us the trouble of listening to it) and just give LeBron James the MVP trophy right now. After just two weeks of a condensed NBA season James has been remarkable. And barring a fourth quarter meltdown he will be the hands down MVP (on second thought, we better wait).

Someday my 3 year old will stand in awe of the fact LeBron caught an alley oop before throwing another aley oop during the same alley oop. And when I tell him how I fed his twin brothers each a bottle while giving him a bath at the same time, he will look at me like I am a Yak that has wandered into a tailor shop asking to be sized for a double breasted suit.
Watching the Pacers take on the Heat Wednesday night it became clear to me how good Miami is. And before you ask, no I was not watching in South Beach where it was sunny and 75; rather I was watching from my recliner where it was overcast and unable to decide if it wants to feel like late January or early November.

The Heat stifled the Pacers in the second quarter allowing just 1 field goal while outscoring them 33-12 on their way to a 35 point win. More impressively, everything Miami did was without the other half of their dynamic duo Dwayne Wade who was sitting out with a sore foot.

After last year’s Finals I’ll admit I’d written Heat Head Coach Erik Spoelstra off for dead (which in ‘NBA speak’ simply means soon to be unemployed). Wednesday night it became vividly clear he’s reinvented himself and given his team new purpose. Still it’s hard to get past the fact that Spoelstra looks more like a guy who should be selling phones at the Verizon kiosk in the mall as opposed to one piloting a team chocked full of some of the best talent in professional basketball.

While he may not look like the crusty, humor-less, chain smoking gamblers we’re used to seeing prowl the sidelines in the NBA, it doesn’t mean the guy can’t coach. Somehow Spoelstra has been able to meld a commitment to defense within his group of superstars while also convincing LeBron James and Dwayne Wade that the key to their success lies within the paint, where they can take advantage of their crafty skills and superhuman physical abilities.

All apologies to the ”Lob” Angeles Clippers and Chicago Bulls* (* here denotes a team that is wildly overrated) but, barring any major injuries or colossal miscalculation by the Mayans which might result in the world ending sooner than December 21st, Miami will win the Title this year.

But it all begs the question. If the Heat win a Title, James wins the MVP and Spoelstra is named Coach of the Year, will anyone in South Florida really care? After all who can forget Miami is the land where rivers of Mimosa flow through pearl white beaches festooned with listing palm trees. A place where one can get an authentic Cuban (sandwich) and a good facelift in the same afternoon. A place where a guy can vacation without the nagging worry of unexpected snowstorms or Chinese organ thieves. All things considered, something tells me they’ve got far more things on their minds in June on South Beach than championship basketball.

© 2012 Eric Walker Williams