Miami Heat: Time To Put Pride Aside And Join The NBA’s Tanking Campaign
The Miami Heat have done a honorable job of fighting through injuries this season, but it’s officially time to step back and join the NBA’s tanking campaign
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Pride gets you absolutely nothing in this world, much less in the NBA.
After licking its latest wounds, in the way of a right hand laceration that required 10 stitches to Hassan Whiteside’s right (shooting) hand, it’s finally time for the Miami Heat to face this season’s music. Nothing has gone the Heat’s way this year and, amid trying to overcome injury after injury, it’s finally time for the Miami Heat to check their pride at the door and join the NBA’s tanking campaign.
Listen to Kobe Bryant, Pat.
For context, the only way that the Heat keep their first-round draft pick this season is only if it finishes in the top-10. In a potentially deep draft class, is making the playoffs and getting swept by the Atlanta Hawks or Cleveland Cavaliers better than potentially stealing a franchise player in June?
I highly doubt that. I’m not sure if any logical Heat fan would admit that, either.
Sure, facing off against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs may sound nice — heck, you couldn’t script a better storyline for LeBron’s first year in Cleveland — but there’s not way Miami comes away winning that playoff series. And taking the Cavs to six games (best-case scenario) means absolutely nothing.
“But the Heat are 2-0 this season against the Cavs when Dwyane Wade plays.”
That means nothing, too. The regular season, in itself, carries little weight when the playoffs begin. Just ask the Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers if winning the season series against LeBron James means anything.
The only way making the playoffs made any sense for the Miami Heat — since Chris Bosh went down with his season-ending injury — was in a scenario in which they landed the sixth seed. That ship, it appears, has sailed away from the reach of the Heat. Blowing a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks a few days ago cemented that.
Miami needed that win. If they had gotten it, they would be sitting half a game behind the Milwaukee Bucks right now. Instead, with a testy schedule ahead, are 2.5 games back.
Miami’s Upcoming Schedule
The Heat’s schedule does them no favors, especially by playing seven playoff hopeful teams in their last 11 games. Time is not on the Heat’s side, and neither is anything else this year.
Apart from the great addition of Goran Dragic, and the sudden emergence this year from Whiteside, the Heat have been a colossal failure. Taking injuries aside, Miami has fallen short of expectations — which can’t be saved by making the playoffs.
But the Heat have an opportunity to cut its losses and accept who they are — a bad team that NEEDS to figure out a way to keep their pick this season.
For more context, the Heat currently have the 17th worst record in the NBA right now. Realistically, if the Heat fall out of the playoffs, they would have the 19th worst record in the league. You could probably also pencil in Utah, who only has two fewer losses than the Heat, to finish with a better record, too (they’ve been red-hot as of late).
It’s not out of the realm of possibility to believe that the Heat could finish with at least the 20th, if not worst, record in the NBA. Them keeping their first-round draft pick would then fall into the fate of the ping pongs.
Cleveland was granted three first-round overall picks (in four years) by the basketball gods when LeBron James left back in 2010, they could at least give allow Miami to keep its top-10 pick this season.
But it all starts with the Heat. They need to do their part — embrace who they are and raise the white flag.
The Miami Heat have lost a lot this season, the least they can do is take something back. In the way of a top-10 draft pick.