With the Celtics breathing heavier than a teenager watching late night television, the Heat were faced with what seemed to be a difficult task – win just one game in this series. Realistically, was there any doubt the Heat were going to squeeze out at least one win in this series? They looked good in Game 1, but choked. Game 2 they never showed up despite getting a gift from the NBA with holding KG out of the game. Game 3, well, let’s just not talk about that game.
In the end, what have we learned? We now know what the threshold for a Heat win is – 46 points from Dwyane Wade. The Flashy One shot 16-24 from the floor, and 9-14 from the charity stripe. He was the offense and was aggressive in this game. What took so long?
Look, we all know this team is pretty much one dimensional – this is Wade’s team. But this is the kind of thing that got Lebron James in the Finals, too. And it was DWade that brought a trophy to Miami back in 2006 – so we can expect that one man in a series can make a difference if the man with the ball has the ability to. Wade showed this in the 4th quarter of the 4th game in this series this afternoon in Miami.
Yet, this really isn’t the point. The ultimate question isn’t whether or not the Heat can win this series, but rather whether or not the Heat can make Wade feel content in the potential of the future. This is Wade’s team and Riley, no matter what slick deals he pulls off, will continue to make this his team. There has to be an upgrade of talent around him – and questions linger about whether or not Beasley, Chalmers, and Cook are now a part of that future. Think of this Boston series as a litmus test – what kinds of things the Heat need to do to get back to the elite of the East. With Wade leading them there, of course.
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