Will the Heat get to the Finals?
 

I think this is a realistic poll...not setting the bar too high.

Yes or no?

(I can`t seem to find how to post a poll...there`s a box for it, but that`s it).

Yes they will, and not only that, they'll meet the Lakers in the finals. Hows that for a cure to what an ailing NBA needs? Write It down. Stamp it. Swap blood with it and put it in a safety deposit box for safe keeping. Bet the farm and mortgage the house on it.

No.

no doubt they will

Not without Rory Sparrow they won't.

According to Pistons fans (who are still looking for acknowledgement that they won), the NBA scripts it's games.

The NBA is scripted like wrestling.

Sounds like someone is still upset over a very ugly loss.

To answer the original question, no. Indiana is weaker without Harrington and the Heat have no better supporting cast than the Lakers did. I just dont see them beating the Pistons, especially with the additions of Delfino and McDyess.

Unless Shaq draws quite a few quality players to the team, I don't see the Heat getting past the Pistons. I think the Pistons have an excellent chance for the repeat.

The very contemplation of having to score against Shaq will cause both of
Antonio McDyess' kneecaps to explode. :D

Merely bending one knee causes both kneecaps to explode, and it sends a signal to Grant Hill's knee to explode as well, thousands of miles away.

It can also be triggered by a soft sneeze or light breeze.

In fact, us even thinking about McDyess's knees here on the Internet will cause them to explode. ;)

CR

I think they have a shot. Sorry to Piston fans, but I think they are highly overrated and will probably do a nose dive this coming year.

And had the Lakers won, would Shaq now be in Miami selling huge amounts of tickets? The Lakers losing was in the best interests of the NBA, in case you couldn't tell.

Dola.

I'm not saying the NBA fixed it, because the Lakers did enough to lose on their own. But that "script," if there was one, has paid dividends already in how the Lakers situation played itself out.

LOL

Riiiiiiiiiiiight....

The Miami Heat will make the Eastern Finals depending on who they play they can go to the NBA Finals. Wade and Shaq will run thru the east.... go Miami Heat :)

I think they have a great chance to go to the Finals. The Pistons will be the only team that has a chance to beat them, IMO, but I think a reinvigerated Shaq can dominate against the Pistons. With Shaq going to the Heat, I think the Heat will be able to land a few good FAs to bolster their roster and with Dwayne Wade, the Eastern Conference better watch out.

Shaq only can score 30 points guys....

Let it go man. Let it go.... You guys will be fine in a couple of years since Odom looks like a potential superstar.

What the hell are you talking about? How are you going to score points? Whose playing PF? Wade and Jones will add about 34 ppg. That gives about 64 PPG if you are lucky. How else are you going to score?

Detroit is every bit is as good going into next season as they were this. Indiana is a better team with Stephen Jackson than with Harrington. Indiana was hurt last season by needing to play Miller 30+ minutes a night. Reggie slides into the complimentary role on the perimeter he should have been in 2 years ago. There other problem was they missed Brad Miller a whole lot more than they thought they would. David Harrison is a big step towards filling that hole.

Indiana is better. Detroit is just as good. Miami has Shaq, Wade, Eddie Jones and ummm, wait a second, I can think of someone else, maybe not. But they are still the 3rd best team in the East. That doesn't get them to the finals though. Shaq gets them out of round 1 again next year, but they run into either Indiana or Detroit in round 2 and they simply can't beat either team in a 7 game series.

??? I said something to provoke your anger? Why are you so worried about the Heat anyway? Like you said you are a Lakers fan and Shaq is no longer a Laker. If you don't think the Heat will make the finals you should have just said so and that would have been the end of that. But you chose to take swipes at the Miami Heat and Shaq every chance that you got. Let it go... You should be pumped for the future the same way I am for the Miami Heat. Besides all those details like PF will workout toward the end of the summer. By the way are you DomerBG4 of USC's rivals.com board?

Neither the Heat nor the Lakers will even make the playoffs next season.


























If there is a God.

I think there is a God, however, I unfortunately think both teams will make the playoffs.

I think the Heat make the playoffs, by virtue of the fact that the East is so weak.

The Lakers, however, have to be better than:

Houston
Minnesota
San Antonio
Phoenix
Dallas
Sacramento
Utah
Denver

I don't know if they will be. Dallas could have problems missing Nash, but otherwise, every team on that list looks like a playoff contender to me. We'll see how good Kobe really is.

Noop, you told me to let it go. I havent taken a swipe at the Heat, I asked who would do their scoring for them? How is that a swipe? Eddie Jones was traded because he didn't like Shaq to begin and was blamed for the Lakers playoff woes.

As for the Lakers bing better? They'll be better then Pheonix, Denver, and Utah for sure....

Fair enough. I disagree about Denver....

I think, maybe, they're better than Utah. Phoenix will have a nice offense led by Nash, Marion, and Stoudemire... that makes them better than LA, in my opinion.

I would like to add Memphis to your list of teams.

Kobe/Odom is a much more dangerous combination....

This Pistons are highly overrated? How can this be? They won the freakin' NBA Championship. How can the Champion be "highly overrated"?

Unless I'm reading it wrong...

In the immortal words of Inigo Montoya: "This word you keep using, I don't think it means what you think it means."

This Pistons have proved that Shaq can dominate all he wants, but his team can still lose. Did you see some of the numbers Shaq put up on the Pistons? Didn't matter one bit, did it?

Dangerous in that they could end up killing each other? I just don't see that tendem working well together at all.

Grant Long?

I got nothing (obviously just like the Rory Sparrow referrence).

I'm hoping that Lamar learned from his Clipper days that he can't do it himself and it looked like he did learn based on last year's report. Kobe and Odom are a big mismatch, provided one doesn't go to jail and her doesn't get busted for MaryJ

Gotta agree. Kobe and Odom both need the ball too much to make themselves dangerous. Odom is not a great off the ball player. Also, being back in Los Angeles means Odom is going to be back around his old friends who he used to get high with. All around a bad scenario for Odom.

Uhhh... I didn't realize Memphis was in the western conference...

Uhhhh.....well, they are. Duh! ;)

Sorry... they've had a long tradition of sucking to overcome.

Not sure if they're better than LA right now, but anything's possible...