Will the Miami Heat Ever Get Any Heat for Their Road Woes?

I love the Bulls so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I am about to blog about my dislike for the Miami Heat but I would like it to be known beforehand that I do have a lot of respect for Miami, it is hard not to respect them and admire the astounding amount of talent they have. It is undeniable that they are a good team and are capable of winning an NBA Championship but that’s not what this blog is about.

            Instead I want to blog about my serious disgust at the fact that NBA analysts and sports analysts in general are giving the Miami Heat “passes” on road losses because of the shortened season and the “exhaustion” they suffer by playing a lot of games in fewer days. Yes, I have no doubt that this condensed schedule is tiresome and that it is resulting in fatigue and even injuries that take longer to heal but Miami is not the only team that has to endure such a schedule. Chicago is on the same boat and have only lost 11 games, have already clinched a playoff berth (in fact, they are the only team to do so as of today) and with every win and every Heat loss are one step closer to clinching home court advantage for the post-season.  Yet, in the Chicago, Miami battle, Chicago is still the underdog that can’t beat Miami. I’m sorry I must have dreamt that the Bulls beat the Heat in Chicago without Derrick Rose and John Lucas, their 3^rd string point guard made Wade, Bosh and James look like fools by wiping the floor with them. After that loss which was their 4^th road loss in a row, the Heat got a free pass because they had a long night before in Orlando and so they must have been tired and just couldn’t physically beat them because of it.

            Now that they lost to Oklahoma and Indiana on the road, they get another pass because of the traveling they have to endure and Lebron hurt his finger so he wasn’t 100% healthy so that’s why they deserve to slide yet again for failing to win on the road. Why can’t they just be exposed for what they really are?

            Is it because of the “Big 3”? Is it due to the fact that they have extremely high expectations? Is it because we just don’t want to admit that they have weaknesses? Whatever the case may be, I’m exhausted listening to the excuses that experts are giving for Miami’s lack of road performance and I am going to call it like it is.

            The Miami Heat’s weaknesses have been EXPOSED! They can’t rebound in the paint and they seem intimidated by the energy generated by the fans of whatever team they’re visiting. Miami seems uncomfortable playing away from home and seem even more uncomfortable when teams play them hard and not intimidated by the fact that they are presumably “the most talented team in the NBA”, Lebron even did his baby powder explosion in Chicago for some reason. News flash Lebron, WE DON’T CARE! 

            It would be foolish of me to say that Miami isn’t a good team because they are a great team and have plenty of talent but I do believe that Miami plays off their ego more than their talent and they are far too cocky to be NBA Champions. They can’t win on the road because they don’t have the same support on the road that they do at home and I bet it bothers them because they think they are the best and everybody should love them. But what they have failed to realize is that they have a lot riding on this season, if they don’t win a Championship or worse fail to make it to the Championship Finals, the bandwagon fans are leaving and the criticisms will start rolling in. For Miami, there is no room for error and that starts with not losing on the road because they will have to play on the road during the post season.

            Their road woes have just begun, if they can’t clinch home court and if they make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, they will have to play in Chicago and trust me when I say there is a reason it is nicknamed “The Madhouse on Madison”. Chicago Bulls fans are rabid at post-season time, it is going to be deafeningly loud and it only gets louder with every win. The Bulls themselves are hungry to prove that they can beat Miami. They know they can and they’ve made the necessary adjustments to make sure that it gets done. This post-season match-up is what the Bulls have been waiting for. They are better defensively than Miami is, they rebound off the boards better than Miami does and if the Bulls are 100% healthy by the time the Heat come, they will be better around the perimeter. Miami might have more to prove this post-season but Chicago wants to prove that they are more than what non-Bulls fans think they are.

            Maybe when they lose their chance to go back to the Championship Finals, they won’t get any more free passes.