Fatigue may be the biggest challenge for LeBron James and Miami Heat this season

The two time defending champions Miami Heat have had a rough past two weeks

Having lost five of their last six games, the two-time defending champions Miami Heat seem to be struggling and have found no momentum whatsoever in March, a month last season the team dominated as part of their historic 27 game winning streak. Whether the team does a three-peat or loses in the Finals, the team would still make it into the history books for being the first team since Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics of the 80s to make it to four consecutive Finals.

Before you get carried away about how well the franchise has done since the Big 3 came together following “The Decision” in 2010, the players of the Heat will find that their toughest opponent will be nobody but themselves. Fatigue makes it an uphill task for any NBA player to go through four consecutive long post-seasons, let alone the physical specimen that LeBron is. The second challenge that the players of a team trying to win multiple championships face is more mental than physical- motivation.

How did the Heat deal with these factors?

Led by the battled mind that Pat Riley is, the team remained calm and focused despite being surrounded by talks regarding their title defense all the time and up until March nobody doubted the fact that the only stiff competition in the East for the Heat would be the Indiana Pacers, but the recent string of inconsistency seems to be painting another picture altogether.

Fatigue, not surprisingly, seems to be playing a much bigger role than anticipated for the Heat in their play this month. For a team built with a roster to exploit their opponents on their turnovers and play a style of defense that can sometimes be suffocating, fatigue can turn out to be the biggest opponent the team faces. Why do I say so?

Aging roster

Ray Allen, who could be playing his last season, is part of an again role players cast for the Heat.

Having a larger part of your main rotation fighting father time or injuries is not what any team which is headed towards what could be their fourth consecutive Finals appearances wants.

They are the two-time defending champions for a reason, but as much as Heat fans want to deny it, injuries and fatigue will play a huge role on a team whose crucial role players like Shane Battier and Chris Andersen are on the wrong side of 35 while sharp shooter Ray Allen, who could be playing his last season, checks in at 38.

Dwyane Wade, by no means a role player, has struggled with his knees this season and has been forced to sit out numerous games in the latter half of a back-to-back. Although in the games that he has played he has been efficient and quite sharp, the level of intensity in a Playoff series cannot be mistaken to be the same as a regular season game and come Playoff time Wade’s minutes and production could be a huge question mark.

Over-exploitation of LeBron could backfire

Many felt LeBron James could heave a huge sigh of relief when the Big 3 came together in South Beach during the summer of 2010. However, fast forward four years from then and the reigning 2-time MVP is back to square one, similar to his Cleveland Cavalier days where he was expected to be the top scorer, the best rebounder, run the most plays and at the same time rescue his team in crunch time situations with tough shots.

Almost two weeks removed from his career high 61 point night against the Charlotte Bobcats, James has been seen tired and off his game many a times on the court in the six games since. The questions are repeatedly pointed at the game against the Bobcats as to why the King was on the floor when he had 49 points through three quarters and the Heat led by 22?

Let’s take into consideration everything regarding the health James has shown so far in his 10 seasons, but that night has certainly taken its toll for over a period and a half on not just him, but his whole team.

What if James is fouled out or forced to miss games? Do the Heat have what it takes it in the post-season in scenarios such as the above to deliver? Their performances of late and James’ stats below in the 3-game losing streak following the 61, do not leave encouraging answers.

Vs Bobcats?                                                Next 3 Games

61                            POINTS                                58

22/33                     FG                                       23/59*

8/10                         3P                                        1/9

*Of the 23 of 59 shooting, James was only 3 for 27 outside the paint.

How their play could be affected?

The Miami Heat are a team that rely heavily on LeBron’s MVP level of play and their aggressive style of play on both ends of the floor. However fatigue could snatch these elements from the team and leave them exposed against a team amongst the bottom 10 in the league when it comes to being fundamentally sound on execution of plays.

On the defensive end, they feast on opponents’ turnovers thanks to their collective athleticism while on the offensive end, given the star studded line-up that they have, five out sets are the most common play they run, with the ball on most occasions being in the hands of James.

But when you see a team, including their beast of a star in James fatigued, suddenly the basis on which the team had built its championships seems to have lost its luster.