The Miami Heat got booted out last season but most of it was attributed to the fact that the team simply failed to move on (completely) from the Lebron James era.
Other than that, the Heat were bitten by the injury bug hard. Dwyane Wade got his share of dealing with injuries, while Chris Bosh ended his season prematurely when blood clot was found in his lungs.
With the Dynamic Duo hurting, such radiated to the whole ballclub. So would their fortunes change now with the two back healthy and raring to bounce back?
Apparently, a healthy Bosh and Wade makes all the difference, but the buck doesn't stop there. They have a formidable cast to bank on. Goran Dragić, a late acquisition in February will be back and better prepared as well as Luol Deng, Hassan Whiteside, Udonis Haslem and Josh McRoberts.
New faces include rookie Justise Winslow, Amar'e Stoudemire and Gerald Green. Mario Chalmers, and Chris Andersen are still technically with the team but the two are on the trading block as many have heard.
Given that lineup at head coach Erik Spoelstra's disposal, will the team bounce back after missing the NBA playoffs after a long while?
"It's not too often that you get a team with this much talent together, especially in a starting lineup," Whiteside said via the Sun Sentinel. "Especially with Bosh coming back, he's so big and he spaces the floor so well, I really missed him out there. He really makes things a lot easier for me. D-Wade is D-Wade and Goran is still Goran," he added.
Upbeat and all, no other player is, apparently, more eager to show his true worth than Wade.
It will be recalled that Wade almost bolted the Heat camp as he wanted to get the proper pay after years of sacrifice. He ultimately agreed yet again to stay on with the Heat, although he is expected to seek proper pay once more after the coming season.
As far as the coming season is concerned, he believes that the starting lineup they have is as good as any on paper. So the reality of it all will start once they put that starting unit onto the hardwood.
"We just hope everybody makes it through training camp and preseason and gets to the real thing," Wade said. "It's a great starting lineup on paper. It's going to take some continuity," he added.
