Miami Heat star knows that in a league buzzing with talent, he and his team needs to play better to retain the NBA title next season.
LeBron James had a fantastic 2011-2012 season to say the least, winning his third regular season MVP, first NBA Finals MVP and his first NBA championship with the Miami Heat. The NBA title was one honour that seemed to be eluding him all his career, as James came close to winning it on more than one occasion in the past. However, this past season, James was not settling for anything less, and led his team past the talented Oklahoma City Thunder in five games of the NBA Finals.
Now, the Miami Heat are back together as they open training camp at the American Airlines Arena, and have only one thing on their mind, retaining their NBA championship next season.
“We can be better than we were this past season. Are we better right now than we were just a couple months ago? Of course not. But we have the potential to be better. We have the potential to be a lot better. That is scary,” said James during the Heat’s media day on Friday.
Miami added Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis to the roster during the offseason, adding depth to the team and helping them increase their offensive weapons for next season. With a great three point shooter in Allen, Miami can space the floor and spread the defence, making a killer combination with the penetration abilities of James and Dwyane Wade.
However, Miami know that this season, they will be the team to beat even more so than last season, and also realize the fact that many teams have gone through some serious roster improvements over the course of the summer. This season is promising to be a tight and closely fought one.
Miami however knows what they need to win - an effort from every player on the roster, and for James to continue doing what he does best.
Last season, James averaged 27.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game, and went one step further in the playoffs by averaging 30.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists. With numbers like that, Miami knows that they need their leader to continue performing if they want another title.
"Do it again. Just continue to be himself. He's a hard worker, naturally. He doesn't have to repeat what he did last year. This year's a new year. It's going to present different challenges and we're going to have to overcome them,” said Chris Bosh when asked what he expected James to do this upcoming season.
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