Heat Win Game 6; Prove Everyone May Have Overreacted

Halfway through Game 4, the Heat were down eight and in danger of being down 3-1 in their series against the Indiana Pacers. Talks were going on about LeBron James being too tired. The absence of Chris Bosh proved to make a huge difference. And people were actually talking about trading Dwyane Wade.

Here, we sit at the end of the series with Miami winning three in a row and moving on to the Eastern Conference Finals, on the back of Wade, no less.

Wade scored 41 points, including 26 in the first half, and simply made defenders look silly all night. It didn't matter that the Heat only received offensive contributions from four players. It didn't matter that Chris Bosh had yet to make his return. The Heat handled the Pacers with ease.

What many people have to realize is how good the Heat actually are. Yes, it's simple to scrutinize, overanalyze, and point out their flaws. They have no big men after Bosh and Haslem (who is undersized). Mario Chalmers is their starting point guard. They struggle making game winning shots. And they really have no depth.

But when the Heat get going, there is no one that can stop them. Not Oklahoma City. Not San Antonio. No one.

Now, that doesn't mean that they are a better team than the Spurs or the Thunder. It just means that if Miami can manage to play the way they did in the past three games, they will be incredibly difficult to beat.

Obviously Wade and James have to be fantastic. They're two of the best five players in the league. It's their jobs. They also have to get going in transition. Three pointers must be made by Shane Battier, Mike Miller, and Chalmers. And they must play defense like they have all year.

If they can do this, they can win a title. Even without Chris Bosh. That's how good they actually are. When they're rolling on all cylinders like they were against the Knicks and in some of the games against the Pacers, resistance is simply futile.

The Heat still have a lot to prove. Both individually and as a team. But they certainly have the ability to do it. Wade showed us that last night.