Three Thorns to the Throne

Let's admit it. The basketball squad from South Beach has become a super team. The Three Amigos, DeBrosh, Miami Thrice or whatever else people will be calling this union of superstars, has made the Heat instantly simmering title contenders. But to give legitimacy to the new superpower status, they must dethrone the Los Angeles Lakers.

To take over LA's reign, they still have to win the Eastern Conference crown and there are three other teams who happen to have the same idea. Miami may be the overwhelming favorites but they will have to scratch and claw their way to the Holy Grail of Hoops.

First on the agenda will be the Orlando Magic. Buried in the "LeBronization" of the area, the other Florida team has been quietly doing its thing. Virtually intact, the Magic will parade the same lineup plus new addition Quentin Richardson.

Dwight Howard still rules the Magic Kingdom and if he develops a strong post game, nobody in Miami's current crew can guard him. He could pass from down low and Orlando's shooters would gladly sink those three's.

Vince Carter is way past his days of Half-Man/Half-Amazing but there will be some flashes of "Vinsanity." With Richardson, Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson to complete the starting unit, the combination will still be potent enough for Miami to make the Three Amigos woozy.

LeBron James and his then Cavaliers knocked Chicago out of the playoffs in 5 games last season. With the addition of Carlos Boozer, the Baby Bulls had some serious upgrades. They didn't have a low-post scorer and Boozer will give them what they had been missing. With Derrick Rose, Boozer will thrive in pick-and-roll situations which we could be seeing very often. Rose on the other hand, must polish his outside shooting to complement his dribble-drives.

Chicago has solid role players in Loul Deng and Joachim Noah, players who do the little things that translates to W's. They score occasionally but what they do best is play defense, do the dirty job and hustle, hustle, hustle.

Hello Coach Tom Thibodeau. The Bulls welcomed into their organization the former Celtic assistant who devised a plan to counter Lebron. He is the best guy who knows how to put a stop to the self-styled King.

If by some twists of fate Miami gets past Orlando and Chicago, Boston will gladly duel them to the finish. With some minor tweaks in their system, the Celtics are ready to do battle.

The older Big Three must be consistently healthy and sound as they are the only team who knows LeBron best. Remember Thibodeau? They put the stops on him for most part of the second round of the playoffs resulting in one of James' career-worst games. Count Doc Rivers to put some more clamp-downs.

Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo and now Jermaine O'Neal must play and defend at high levels for a potential Eastern Conference finals showdown with the Heat. All premises considered, Boston is still Miami's clear and present danger.

Above all, the burning question is this. Can the new big three co-exist peacefully?

Miami has been Dwayne Wade's team since seven years ago, has been his when Shaquille O'Neal arrived and still is up to the moment. Like the solar system, there is only one sun. Remove Wade from Miami, the franchise will lose their Heat. Promise. Mor pa.

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