The Heat is on

Photo by Flickr user scott mumphrey used under a Creative Commons license.

I don't really understand how experts are still picking the Heat to compete in the East. Granted the conference is still the Leastern Conference, I don't see the Heat making any sort of splash. Last night on SportsCenter, they billed the Detroit-Miami game as a possibly Eastern Conference Championship match-up. How is that even possible?

I see the Heat as sneaking into the playoffs (mainly because no one else will), but can you say that this team is quantfiably better than New Jersey, Cleveland, Toronto, Indiana and Washington? That's not even taking into account the real top-tier Eastern Conference teams like Boston, Chicago, and Orlando (I include Orlando as the obligatory Southeast representative).

Despite the "experts" singing their praises, there is almost no denying that the Heat are overall a bad team. Dwyane Wade is a bonafide superstar, but he's realy the only one on the team and seems to be made out of glass. Shaq is way past his prime, though he is still being heralded as the most dominant player in the NBA (as evidenced by his 9 points and 7 rebounds against Detroit). As for a supporting cast, they rely on Jason Williams, Udonis Haslem, Ricky Davis, Alonzo Mourning, and basically no one else. Do we not care that with Dwyane Wade out, the Heat not only play, but start Dorell Wright, who in four years has a career 16 minutes and 5 points per game.

If people are calling the Celtics shallow, then the Heat are a wading pool. Not even that, they are they equivalent of spilling water on a table. Their second guy off the bench is Smush Parker (awful). Next, we have Mark Blount, who wasn't even good enough for the TWolves. And finally we have everyone's favorite old man, Penny Hardaway.

So in all the Heat are neither top-heavy (like the Celtics) or deep (like the Raptors). And yet they are good enough to be called possible Eastern Conference Finalists? Please.