Suguru101
05-25-2015, 10:11 AM
Let's take this argument apart piece by piece, since i see some people still argue it.
Team Identity/Offense/Role players:
2012 Shane Battier allowed Miami to play small ball with Bosh at center, which was the single biggest thing that changed Miami from a top heavy team which did not mesh on offense and frequently just took turns one on one ... to a team that surrounded LeBron and Wade with shooters, and a team that was suffocating and trap heavy on defense.
in 2011, Battier wasn't there, Haslem was coming off foot injury, Miller was coming off injury, Chalmers wasn't decent yet, Norris Cole wasn't in the league, so that left you with the corpse of Mike Bibby, Erik Dampier, a one foot out the door Ilgauskas playing rotation minutes.
In 2012 they were replaced with one of the best role players from the past decade in Shane Battier, a decent Chalmers who scored 25 in the Finals, Miller, healthier, Haslem, Norris Cole, James Jones almost didn't get off the bench because he wasn't needed.
Superstars:
2011 LeBron didn't have a good post game. That alone changes the entire dynamic of the entire Heat offense. If his shot was off, and the paint was packed and he couldn't drive, he was in trouble.
In 2012, he couldn't shoot from outside at all. Like, he was shooting around 18% from outside 14 feet. And he still dominated and averaged 28 ppg, because of the post game, which also forced teams to double team and left shooters to rain 3's.
That alone is a huge deference.
Wade was 90% healthy, and while he was better in 2011 by giving the Heat around 27-7-5 in the Finals, in 2012 he gave Miami 23-6-5... which also came from the fact that he gave up more shots to LeBron.
So the difference between 2011 Wade and 2012 Wade is not more impactful than the difference between 2011 no post game LeBron who averaged 18-7-7 to 2012 LeBron who averaged 29-10-7.
Underperforming LeBron:
A lot of people saying that the 2011 simply would have been better if LeBron played normally, and this is the point they misse; he didn't play up to standards not only because of whatever the hell was happening mentally, but because once Dallas played a really good zone defense, he didn't have a post game to counter the defense when his shot was't going in.
Seriously, what happens if you have 2012 LeBron, who dominated down low, being guarded by Barea and Terry in the post? Can you imagine? Well, 2011 LeBron was faced with that, and he didn't do shit, that's how mediocre his post game was back then.
So the argument "if he just would have" is just false. He didn't, he couldn't, he didn't have the mental aspect and the skill set.
Rant over.
Team Identity/Offense/Role players:
2012 Shane Battier allowed Miami to play small ball with Bosh at center, which was the single biggest thing that changed Miami from a top heavy team which did not mesh on offense and frequently just took turns one on one ... to a team that surrounded LeBron and Wade with shooters, and a team that was suffocating and trap heavy on defense.
in 2011, Battier wasn't there, Haslem was coming off foot injury, Miller was coming off injury, Chalmers wasn't decent yet, Norris Cole wasn't in the league, so that left you with the corpse of Mike Bibby, Erik Dampier, a one foot out the door Ilgauskas playing rotation minutes.
In 2012 they were replaced with one of the best role players from the past decade in Shane Battier, a decent Chalmers who scored 25 in the Finals, Miller, healthier, Haslem, Norris Cole, James Jones almost didn't get off the bench because he wasn't needed.
Superstars:
2011 LeBron didn't have a good post game. That alone changes the entire dynamic of the entire Heat offense. If his shot was off, and the paint was packed and he couldn't drive, he was in trouble.
In 2012, he couldn't shoot from outside at all. Like, he was shooting around 18% from outside 14 feet. And he still dominated and averaged 28 ppg, because of the post game, which also forced teams to double team and left shooters to rain 3's.
That alone is a huge deference.
Wade was 90% healthy, and while he was better in 2011 by giving the Heat around 27-7-5 in the Finals, in 2012 he gave Miami 23-6-5... which also came from the fact that he gave up more shots to LeBron.
So the difference between 2011 Wade and 2012 Wade is not more impactful than the difference between 2011 no post game LeBron who averaged 18-7-7 to 2012 LeBron who averaged 29-10-7.
Underperforming LeBron:
A lot of people saying that the 2011 simply would have been better if LeBron played normally, and this is the point they misse; he didn't play up to standards not only because of whatever the hell was happening mentally, but because once Dallas played a really good zone defense, he didn't have a post game to counter the defense when his shot was't going in.
Seriously, what happens if you have 2012 LeBron, who dominated down low, being guarded by Barea and Terry in the post? Can you imagine? Well, 2011 LeBron was faced with that, and he didn't do shit, that's how mediocre his post game was back then.
So the argument "if he just would have" is just false. He didn't, he couldn't, he didn't have the mental aspect and the skill set.
Rant over.