*FAN SUBMISSION by Sean Modrow of Lake Worth. Follow him on Twitter @smodrow23.*
Courtesy: ESPN
Believe it or not, the Miami Heat are actually more well equipped for a championship this year, than they were last season. They have taken a “Spurs-like” approach to towards the regular season, playing with a focus strictly on the playoffs. They are not, however, coasting through the season, contrary to popular belief. The organization’s maintenance program for Dwyane Wade is ingenious, as it will ensure that he plays his best basketball when it matters the most.
Miami has also improved in other ways, especially their bench. They have bolstered their depth by adding the versatile swing-man Michael Beasley, and 7-footer Greg Oden. Erik Spoelstra now has a slew of options to use for his rotation. The Miami Heat bench includes: Chris Andersen, Greg Oden, Norris Cole, Ray Allen, Michael Beasley, Shane Battier, and Udonis Haslem. They now have what in my mind is the deepest bench in all of the NBA, despite the loss of sharpshooter Mike Miller.
With the recent evolution of Chris Bosh’s game, the Heat now have the option to play “Big” without having to compromise their floor spacing. Chris Bosh has become a reliable three-point option, which stretches out the opposition’s big men. For example, Pacer’s Center Roy Hibbert will not have the luxury of being able to park himself down low on defense to constantly protect the rim, because he must respect the outside shot of the Miami big man. This forces Indiana’s perimeter defenders to have to match up one-on-one with Miami’s plethora of perimeter offensive players, without the assurance of having a rim protector behind them in the event of getting beat by their man. Meaning that the Pacers defenders must play less aggressively than they normally game plan.
The only elite perimeter defender the Pacers have is rising star Paul George, who will be asked to check the unanimous best player in the world. Many people would argue against this because of the impressive defensive statistics of the Pacers. But the Heat compromise the Pacer’s entire defensive system by displacing the backbone of their defense, Roy Hibbert.
Now this leads me to break down ,position-by-position, the match-up advantages between the presumed Eastern Conference Finalists.
Point Guards: The match-up between the point guards is an intriguing one. Mario Chalmers has always been a clutch player, with his outside shooting and pesky defense. The Pacers point guard, George Hill is more of a scoring guard, rather than a facilitator. I would give a slight advantage to Chalmers in this case because of his completeness as a player, even though George Hill may be the more dynamic offensive player.
Shooting Guards: As for the shooting guards, the match-up will be much more competitive than it was in last year’s Conference Finals. This is due to the emergence of Pacers shooting guard, Lance Stephenson. He has matured greatly since first entering the league in 2010. He is the primary facilitator of the Pacer’s offense, which prior to his emergence lacked a dynamic play-maker. Stephenson gives the Pacers the ability to break down the defense off of the dribble.
As for the Heat, they have superstar Dwyane Wade at shooting guard, who has led the team to three NBA championships. I know there are health concerns, but trust me Erik Spoelstra and his staff will see to it that Wade is at his best when it matters most. Despite the dip in his scoring average, he is having his most efficient season of his illustrious career, as he has shot 54.6% from the field thus far. All things in consideration, I would give the advantage to the Heat in this positional match-up.
Courtesy: CBS Local Miami
Small Forwards: Now for the most exciting match-up: the small forwards. We witnessed a glimpse of this last in last year’s conference finals, as Paul George emerged as the series wore on. This year, this match-up should be even more enthralling because George has had an entire year to reflect and grow as a player. His battle with LeBron James last year pushed George to even greater heights, and elevated his status to superstar on a national stage. He is one of the game’s elite perimeter defenders because of his length and athleticism and does the best job of any player at guarding James.
However, one distinct disadvantage for George is found in the weight category. LBJ holds a solid 20 pound advantage. In the earlier days of his career, James most likely would not have taken advantage of this glaring mismatch because of how much of a perimeter oriented player he was. After implementing an array of post moves in his game by working under the tutelage of the great Hakeem Olajuwon,he has transformed into a bully in the low post. This where James will impose his will and brutalize George on the low block. That is why I give the nod the Heat over Indiana for the advantage in this match-up.
Power Forwards: As for the power forwards, the match-up is somewhat of a mystery because Erik Spoelstra is constantly shifting between starters. If the Heat decide to go with Shane Battier, this would be a match-up between two players who greatly contrast each other. David West of the Pacers, is a traditional physically imposing power forward. While Battier fills more of a new age “Stretch 4” role for the Heat. The other likely option for the Heat is veteran power forward Udonis Haslem, who would be better defensively but would also compromise the floor spacing of the Heat offense. Either way, due to the glaring strength advantage, David West will try to isolate either Battier or Haslem in the post and wear them down. I give the nod to the Pacers in this category.
Courtesy: CBS Local Miami
Centers: The Center match-up is a rather intriguing one. The Pacers have the 7-foot-2 280 pound Hibbert, While the Heat have the thinner and more athletic Bosh. If this match-up was simply a matter of size, Indiana obviously holds the edge. But the match-up is not that simple, due to the evolution of Bosh’s game as I alluded to earlier. He now forces centers to have to guard him all the way out to the 3 point line. This is where Bosh can take advantage of his athleticism against the much less mobile Hibbert.
When the Pacers are on offense, Hibbert will try to exploit his size advantage by posting Bosh up on the low block. Due to the mismatches offensively, I would say that the center match-up is a toss up.
In conclusion, it is understood that these two Eastern Conference juggernauts will clash once again in this year’s conference finals. But it will be a totally different series this time around. Both teams have improved greatly. I feel that it will come down to whose superstar will be able to impose his will. Paul George is not quite ready to answer that call, while LeBron has proven time and time again that he has the capacity and ability to do so. Therefore, I feel that it will be a repeat of last year’s series. My prediction is that the Heat will once again win the series in 7 games and advance to their 4th consecutive Finals appearance.
