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Bruh what are you talking about? https://twitter.com/bansky/status/1362280039874707456
People act like LeBron himself doesn’t say the Heat’s culture is what taught him how to win, every single time he’s asked
Ok since people can just say ridiculous shit, here are some facts
Since Pat Riley took over in 1995, the Miami Heat have missed the playoffs 6 times (2002, 2003, 2008, 2015, 2017, and 2019)
Making the playoffs 20 times in 26 attempts sounds like a winning organization, but let’s proceed
Now let’s talk Shaq because people love to bring him up.
What gets lost in Shaq’s trade to Miami is the fact the Lakers let him choose what team he wanted to be traded to.
He chose the Miami Heat because he wanted to play for Pat Riley ... because Pat knows how to win
What gets lost in Shaq’s trade to Miami is the fact the Lakers let him choose what team he wanted to be traded to.
He chose the Miami Heat because he wanted to play for Pat Riley ... because Pat knows how to win
People remember Dwyane Wade’s historical 2006 Finals performance. They conveniently forget he HAD to take over like that because Shaq was playing horribly
And here’s what people forget about Dwyane Wade. He was projected to go 20th in the 2003 Draft. The Miami Heat drafted him at 5. Why?
Their winning culture recognized a guy who’d fit it
Their winning culture recognized a guy who’d fit it
Here’s what people also forget about Dwyane Wade. He was raw and one-dimensional as a rookie. He was molded into a hall of famer by the Heat’s video coordinator/player development coach. Who was that guy?
Erik Spoelstra
Erik Spoelstra
And so let’s get to LeBron
Here’s what people conveniently forget about LeBron.
The knock on him was that he had all the talent in the world, but didn’t know how to win. Anybody wanna tell me when that changed?
The knock on him was that he had all the talent in the world, but didn’t know how to win. Anybody wanna tell me when that changed?
I’ll tell you how it changed.
In the 2011 Finals, Rick Carlisle decided to run a zone against Miami and keep them out of the paint. Dwyane Wade shined. LeBron did not
In the 2011 Finals, Rick Carlisle decided to run a zone against Miami and keep them out of the paint. Dwyane Wade shined. LeBron did not
Erik Spoelstra taught him how to operate in the post and take advantage of mismatches, while still using his ridiculous court vision.
He also had Chris Bosh expand his range to the 3pt line, so LeBron would have more space to do that
He also had Chris Bosh expand his range to the 3pt line, so LeBron would have more space to do that
Now let’s talk post-LeBron
Yeah losing a top-2 player of all time, you’re obviously not gonna be as good. But here’s what you should keep in mind
Yeah losing a top-2 player of all time, you’re obviously not gonna be as good. But here’s what you should keep in mind
LeBron James was in the 7th grade the last time the Cleveland Cavaliers made the playoffs without him.
The Miami Heat have made the playoffs 3 times since he left 6 years ago.
The Miami Heat have made the playoffs 3 times since he left 6 years ago.
And that includes a Finals appearance the very next season after the greatest player in franchise history retired.
So yeah. The Heat have a “winning culture”
So yeah. The Heat have a “winning culture”
