The Miami Heat or the Field?

With the NBA season right around the corner all of the General Managers were asked who would win the NBA title for this upcoming season and about 79% of the GMs responded with the Miami Heat. I feel like that's a bit of an overreach. As talented as the Miami Heat (LeBron James really) are several other teams have stepped up their rosters this off season. With the Houston Rockets having signed Dwight Howard, the Brooklyn Nets getting Paul Pierce Jason Terry and Kevin Garnett, the Chicago Bulls getting Derrick Rose back, and the Golden State Warriors having signed Andre Iguodala there are several teams ready to challenge the Heat for the title this upcoming year. And let's not forget that the Indiana Pacers who took the Heat to a tough game 7 in last year's Eastern Conference Finals are still hanging around and have gotten better since Danny Granger is coming back only to add more fire power against the Heat.

I'm not about to say that the Miami Heat are overrated, but in fact they are easily the best team in their division, but I think the field is much tougher especially in the East than the GMs have taken into consideration. The Nets are better, the Bulls are better, the Pacers are better, hell even with some luck the Knicks can even make a run at dethroning the champions. And that's without even mentioning the Clippers, the Warriors (who I think is going to win the West), the Spurs, the Rockets, the Thunder, and even the Grizzlies with the size they have in the paint (something Miami has problems with) have the same chance that the Knicks have to beating the Heat. The one team no one even thinks about is the Denver Nuggets, they have a young core of very talented players, but they're missing that superstar piece to them, but they are talented enough to run any team out of the gym.

I'm not counting out the Heat, but the chances of them three-peating is not as high as I think these GMs think. They are going to be heavy favorites, but I wouldn't count out the field just yet. I actually like the Warriors to make the strongest run at the Heat this year if they both make Finals. They have a very balanced team with long distance shooting, a couple low post presences, and now the mid-range game has been solidified with Iguodala. Things are going to get interesting in a hurry.