The Miami Heat missed the playoffs last year for the first time since the 2007-08 NBA season, but Dwyane Wade believes a turnaround is in store for his squad.
Armed with a healthier Chris Bosh and draft pick Justice Winslow, Wade believes his team will be contending at the top of the Eastern Conference. He says former teammate LeBron James knows they are coming for the reigning Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers.
“LeBron knows we’re coming for him. They’re at the top of the Eastern Conference — everybody’s going for them,” Wade said in an interview with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.
Despite their injuries — LeBron is out for the preseason, Kevin Love is returning from a shoulder injury, and Kyrie Irving has a knee injury — Wade believes the Cavs will be tough.
“They’re dealing with a lot of injuries. In this league it’s about who’s the healthiest; it’s not about who’s the best all the time. But they’re still Eastern Conference champs — everybody better respect them. As long as No. 23 over there wearing that jersey and you got the guys around them, you gotta respect them no matter who’s on the basketball court,” Wade said of the Cavs.
The East may still be much weaker than the Western Conference, but we’re not about to put the Heat in the mix to win it, regardless of what Wade believes. They’re still behind Atlanta, Washington, Toronto, Chicago and Milwaukee and will have to prove it on the court that they are among the conference’s premier teams.
