Heat vs. Celtics, who is the Beast in the East

With all due respects to the rest of the Eastern Conference. There are two teams that currently have the look of being #1 and #2. While I have my doubts about whether Boston will advance all the way to the conference finals, I believe Miami will be there as long as 2 of the 3 stars have a healthy season. Yes, I believe Miami makes it at least that far without one of their big 3, but more on that later.

So, I have Miami as the overwhelming favorite to be fighting for a spot into the NBA Finals and I have the Celtics as a distant second, not far ahead of the pack (which may actually finish with a better record, just as they did last year). Boston is old and that is not a joke or a hateful comment, just a matter of fact. Rasheed Wallace has already semi-retired, but the team will likely keep him around if only to use him as trade bait. They know they need to keep improving their roster if they want to have a shot at adding another trophy to their case.

The Celtics window was pretty much slam shut the day LeBron said he was taking his talents to South Beach, but they are not going to go down without a fight. They will put themselves in the best possible position to make another run, because they are champions and have pride in themselves, which is more that can be said about the "15 strong" that got fat and lazy off of their short lived success. Two players remain from that core and it is safe to say that those guys were not the problem, which is why they are here for round two and a certain big traitor is wearing Celtic green.

Let's get down to it. Heat vs. Celtics for the 2011 Eastern Conference crown. The revenge of Wade and LeBron. This matchup here is the very reason why people hate the Miami Heat. They wanted to see Wade and LeBron overcome the Celtics and then the Lakers to prove they are truly great. Well, that ship has sailed and the mold has been broken for the better. Instead of watching a team that has one main perimeter creator that they could focus on, the Lakers and Celtics will have to deal with two of them and that is just not "fair", is it Bill Simmons?

Of course, it is the general manager's job to make trades with former team employees in order to create dynasties, right? Off the soap box for a moment. Pat Riley created this team by eliminating the middle man. Players force their way into teams all the time, that is how KG ended up in Boston on the condition that they add Ray Allen too. OK, now I'm really done. Wade and LeBron said screw the Celtics and screw the Lakers, basketball can be a lot better than it is and we are going to show you how it is really done.

Back to the analysis of the matchup. Most of you probably expect the traditional position by position analysis and I will make sure to address those matchups, but I think in this case, that way of dissecting is much too simplified to work. You can dilute yourself into believing that Boston is the favorite and that LA is still the team to beat if you look at it that way. It may seem like a rational argument, but it is just a distraction for what will actually happen when the teams meet.

The first thing that will happen when the teams meet is that Wade or LeBourne (just trying it out for fun) will be taking turns attacking the Celtic defense and playing off the ball. People say that they both need the ball in their hands to be successful, but that is an oversimplified bastardization of the truth. They both need the ball in their hands, yes, but they do not need it in their hands every possession. They like to play off the ball, and they like to play alongside great players that can create for them. Are you kidding me, people?

So, that is the first thing that is going to happen. The Celtics will see the same exact offense that they have seen for years from LBJ and Wade, but they will be unable to play it the same way because A) the player at the top of the key will have another perimeter superstar keeping them honest and one of the top power forwards in the game manning the post and B) that other perimeter superstar can switch roles on any given possession, keeping both fresh to the point that they can realistically play 48 minutes each if they decide. There are enough timeouts and commercial interruptions that the breathers will be just that.

No longer will the top players in the game (LeBron and Dwyane) have to give up their titles so that other people can think of them as the man. Honestly, after describing how LBJ + Wade are going to help each other by being the equivalent of a two quarterback attack in football, I don't think there is a need to really go any deeper in the discussion. Tell me how to beat LeBron and Dwyane Wade and I will finish the article... we already won.