ESPN posed this very question to their panel of experts and the top two vote-getters were two (31%) and three (40%). So that means that almost three-quarters of the respondents think that the Heat will win 2-3 titles over the next half dozen seasons.
What do you think?
I think the Heat need to win three-plus titles to be deemed a success, though even two over that span will be an accomplishment.
Scottie Pippen, during Hall of Fame festivities Friday morning, took exception to a prediction Van Gundy made to the Miami Herald that the Heat will break the mark the Bulls set in the 1995-96 season.
“Those guys’ biggest goal is to win a championship and not try to win 72 games,” Pippen told reporters. “But if Jeff Van Gundy wants to take a bet, I would bet him that they won’t break it.”
“I think that Boston is still the best team in the East. Miami has to prove themselves.”
Steve Kerr said something funny on Bill Simmons’ B.S. Report the other day about turning into the Mercury Morris of the ’96 Bulls:
I’m gonna put the champagne on ice and Jud Buechler, Bill Wennington and I are going to get together when they lose their 11th game.
He wasn’t serious, but the thought of the three of them celebrating the Heat’s 11th loss with champagne is funny as hell.
The Miami Herald spoke with Jeff Van Gundy, who is…um…very optimistic about the Heat’s chances this season.
“They will break the single-season win record [of 72],” Jeff Van Gundy said. “And I think they have a legit shot at the Lakers’ 33-game [winning] streak [in 1971-72], as well. And only the Lakers have even a remote shot at beating them in a playoff series. They will never lose two games in a row this year.
“They have put together a much better roster than anybody could ever have expected,” Van Gundy added. “There is now no good way to defend them. They are unguardable. They are indefensible. They are just too good and have added so much shooting and are so versatile that they will score at will.
I’m not quite that optimistic. The Heat will have a few kinks to work out, and will have a bull’s eye on their backs for the entire season. I don’t think they’ll break the Bulls’ record 72 wins, but they should definitely finish with 60-plus.
They may very well win a title next year, but I don’t think they’ll be a juggernaut until the 2011-12 season when the kinks are worked out, the newness fades and they can add one or two cheaper veteran players.
Toronto GM Bryan Colangelo has had a rough few months. Recently, he took a shot at Chris Bosh and implied that he quit on the team late in the season.
Hedo Turkoglu is no fan of Colangelo, and he had a few choice words about the situation:
“People have to realize something is wrong with that organization and nobody wants to go there any more,” he said in a phone interview from Turkey, where he is captaining the Turkish national team at the World Championships. “It’s not just the players who see this.”
“It’s funny that people will talk behind your back,” Turkoglu said of Colangelo. “If he was feeling this way, why not have the guts to say it during the season? Why not say it to Chris? Now that Chris has left, it’s not nice to say those things.
“Chris has been a franchise player and he did a lot of good things for the Raptors,” Turkoglu added. “I don’t think Chris is the type of player to quit on his teammates.”
Remember, Turkoglu was the one who agreed to terms with the Blazers last summer and then changed his mind because he wanted to play in the more cosmopolitan city of Toronto. So he’s a little flaky in his own right.
Still, the Raptors are a mess. Given his recent track record, I wonder how long they’ll keep Colangelo around.
After LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh decided once and for all that they were going to team up in Miami, Ric Bucher was one of the ones (along with Jon Barry, let’s not forget him) that questioned what kind of supporting cast the Heat would be able to put around their three stars.
Now that the roster is complete with the signing of sharpshooter Eddie House, Bucher chimes in on Twitter:
Count me unconvinced the Heat are the L’s next champ. But as far as supporting casts built on very limited $, they did incredibly well.
Looking at the Heat’s roster — the key signings were Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem, which Miami got at a discount. Miller should thrive in open catch and shoot situations, while Haslem was convinced by his loyalty to the organization and to the team. Haslem is an undersized center, but right there, the Heat have the league’s strongest starting five, at least on paper.
The Heat knew they needed more shooters, so they re-signed James Jones and signed House, who are both career 39%+ from 3PT. Mario Chalmers is not on their level, but he’s a threat from deep and has played in pressure situations before (at Kansas, where he hit an amazing shot to send the title game against Memphis into overtime). Carlos Arroyo is still there as well, and hopefully he’s locked in a gym somewhere working on this outside touch.
Miami also added several bigs to shore up the front line around Bosh and Haslem. They signed veterans Juwan Howard and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who are obviously at the ends of their respective careers, but they should still be able to give a few productive minutes off the bench. Jamaal Magloire is another big body who could contend with Dwight Howard in a possible matchup with Orlando.
They have some young bigs as well. Joel Anthony is a promising defensive center and the Heat drafted Jarvis Varnado, Da’Sean Butler and Dexter Pittman to round out the front line.
All in all, the roster came together very well, starting with the Miller and Haslem signings. Once those two were locked up, the rest was just gravy. Pat Riley did a wonderful job this summer.
Now they have to play the games.
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