NBA: Is Miami Heat’s defence as strong as its offense?
The Miami Heat; some hate it because of its newly built cast while the others love it and say it is arguably the best of the decade and will terrorize the whole of NBA. The last time the Heat won a championship title was in back in 2006 and since then they have had terrible on and off season, due to which the critics constantly picked on the team.
Although they are now detested because of a whole new scenario, Pat Riley the head coach of the Heat was able to convince Dwyane Wade to prolong his contract with the team and Dwyane was able to convince LeBron James and Chris Bosh forming virtually the strongest trio in the league.
The shock that Pat Riley gave the NBA nation was just not over; he was able to convince another Cleveland Cavaliers veteran center Zydrunas Ilgauskas followed by Eddi House, Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem. Miami fans say a dynasty has been formed already and the team will devour any franchise that contends with them.
So why is it believed that the Miami Heat will easily beat out any team? Be it the legendary teams like L.A Lakers or Boston Celtics.
After drafting the top 3 most wanted men in the free-agency this season Miami Heat’s main concern was who will take charge of the center position, the Heat was struggling to find a player who could fit in well with the team. Then something happened that nobody could have imagined and the franchise acquired Zydrunas Ilgauskas. The acquisition of Ilgauskas reassured the team they had nothing to worry about anymore. The 7feet 3inch tall player has been in the NBA long enough to know how to be called a true veteran. He came to the NBA in 96’ drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers and since then has been the backbone for the team. However the frustrated 35 year old player decided to join the Miami Heat along with his former teammate LeBron James, hoping he will have a shot at the title in the upcoming year.
Experts say Zydrunas along with power forward Chris Bosh will not only make buckets smoothly but the two will form an excellent defence duo; Zydrunas reining the court with his sheer size and Bosh with his agility. Miami Heat’s backup Joel Anthony is another center the fans believe will provide an excellent support to the team while Zydrunas is on the bench to catch some breath.
LeBron James who is arguably considered as the best small forward the NBA has to offer, is not only famous for his relentless drives but defensive skills as well. He has proved to the NBA nation he can dunk over 7’6” players like Yao Ming and can block anyone he wants, some say if he was a few inches taller he would be the next Mark Eaton.
Udonis Haslem is another strong back up for Chris Bosh. Udonis also plays at the power forward position and experts believe the NBA championship holder will be given decent minutes in the upcoming season. Udonis has only kept an average of 6.0 points per game in the last season but that was also because he played not more than 30 minutes. The French native is known for his defensive skills and kept a high average of rebounds per game at 7.4 last season.
Another thing the critics seem to argue about is, they seem to believe that the Heat players are not physically strong enough to control big players like Dwight Howard, Shaquille O’Neal or swift players like Rajon Rondo and Kobe Bryant. However they seem to be forgetting that Dwyane is not only a good shooter but he is almost an all rounder, talking about dominating players like Dwight and Shaquille, Ilgauskas weighs 260 pounds and stands at 7’3”. The Heat also has Bosh who is fast player and could go up against Kobe if necessary.
The Miami heat is unquestionably one of the best teams at defence and offense right now. Sports analysts contemplate that the franchise has a strong chance of eliminating the Boston Celtics in their upcoming match due coming October.
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