This "Heat" season has turned Erik Spoelstra into a philosopher and Ira Winderman from homer pencil to serious reporter. Here, Ira takes a rare anayltical, in-season, look-back at where it all went wrong, "the Miami Heat spending these final two weeks of the season not only having to accept the reality of a third consecutive trip to the play-in round,*(see bottom) but for the first time likely having to start that trip from the bottom of the play-in round...18 games in the balance, games that otherwise could have had the Heat in the thick of where they thought they would be, chasing homecourt advantage in the first round." Eighteen games, where the team went 0-18, grouped in six clusters:
1) The "Detroit debacles" that included a blown 8-point lead in OT. 0-3
2) The "Sacramento screwups", a blown 15-point lead at home and a 17-point blow out there. For numerologists, 17 is the death number for the "Heat" this season.
3) The "Butler burden" games, the most populous category. "...Butler appeared to turn an ankle 7:19 into the 104-97 Dec. 20 home loss to the Thunder, only to be listed out with an illness that Butler said forced him to miss the next five games, as well"; " "...when the Heat announced a seven-game Butler suspension, it was as if the Heat were in a Butler-induced daze, falling 136-100 Jan. 4 to the Jazz". 0-5, "with that a conservative estimate".
4) The "fourth failures". Twenty-two and sixteen-point blows. 0-2
5) The "streak stingers." Seventeen-point blow in Cleveland; 17-point blow to Male Cows in Bang Bus; 17-point blow to Queens, also in the Bus. 0-4.
6) "Letting go of the rope", the most ominous category. "Eventually all the losing took a toll to the degree that there seemed to be capitulation." Blow-out losses to Memphis and Manny Hatty. 0-2.
*Now for my, inevitable critique. "...third consecutive trip to the play-in round". Channeling Brian Windhorst, "Now why is that?" Missing from Ira's list is the architect of it all, not only this season, but the two prior consecutive appearances in the ignoble play-in, and the now 11-year average 45-37 record, Ladies and gentlemen, Heaters and Haters, I give you Pat Riley. Who gave Erik Spoelstra James Johnson and Tyler Johnson, Dion Weighters and Terry Rozier, Justise Winslow? Pat Riley. Who signed Duncan Robinson to a 16M/year, five-year contract? Pat Riley. Who drove away Shaq, LeBron, D-Wade? Pat Riley. Who fired the first shot in the Butler War? Pat Riley. He broke it, he owns it. Yet, Ira never mentions him. National commentators, including Windhorst, are unanimous that Pat Riley is apportioned some blame for making Butler a "burden". Not Ira. We were a play-in two consecutive seasons before Ira's six crises; we are a play-in now with them. Who has headed this franchise for the entire decade of mediocrity? Pat Riley.
