Now, there are things about his behavior that I don't like. No need to become rivals with everyone who used to be your brother before. That is a sign of weakness and insecurity. He did it with Kobe and in less obvious way with Dwyane. And for what? He has nothing to prove. 

The sad part is that he Shaq factor seems to now be a liability instead of an asset. It's still very early in the season and he can still prove me and everyone else wrong, but Shaq did not have the positive impact the Cavaliers were expecting. In fact, it seems very similar to what happened in Phoenix last season. 

Shaq forces teams to change their style. Regardless of who else is on the team, and how involved he will be in both defense and offense, his presence on the floor makes team formations and strategy different. Pat Riley was able to build a team around him, and add Dwyane Wade to the mix. That is what made the team successful and win the Champsionship. Both Phoenix and Cleveland already had a team, and a style, and bringing Shaq into the mix somehow distorts that harmony. 

Cleveland knew they needed help, and so did Phoenix at the time. They fell short of winning the title after having impressive regular seasons. They needed a leader with a few rings on his fingers to help them make that last jump. Did it work for Phoenix? No. Will it work for Cleveland? I doubt it. 

The evidence is there early on. Cleveland had a disappointing start compared to last year. Phoenix had an amazing start compared to last year. Neither one had significant off-season moves other than acquiring and getting rid of Shaq. He is the factor that is making a difference for both teams, and if the trend continues then Shaq could probably be on his last season in the league. 

Why would he stay? If I'm not mistaken he will still have a year left on his current contract, but next season is all about LeBron. What happens if Shaq's on-the-court relationship with LeBron ends the same way as it did with Bryant, Wade and Nash? It will be a tough decision for him. And in the best case scenario, if he wins it all with Cleveland, that should also be a good reason to retire with all the glory. 

I have to say that retiring with glory is not the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Shaq. His ego is as big as his body. Switching teams every year looking for more rings is not going to make his legacy more significant, but it will make us remember him in a not so positive note. At least I still look at him as one of my favorite players of all time, and a guy who has a great personality and that everyone accepts and loves as he is because of that. It would be great to keep that feeling towards him forever. 

The Heat won their fifth game, tying a franchise-record 5-1 start. That was not it. They won against the last of the unbeaten teams in the league, the Denver Nuggets (the Boston Celtics also lost tonight). And if that was not enough, we didn't need 40+ points from Dwyane Wade to win. In fact, he was not even a factor in the game until things were pretty much decided. 

Dwyane Wade scored 22 points, but had only 9 until almost mid-way through the third quarter. But that didn't matter because the Heat had a lead of almost 30 points. They played excellent defense against one of the best offensive teams in the league, and even though Carmelo Anthony finished with 30, most of the other players struggled. 

I can't believe the feeling Coach Spo is experiencing right now. He always believed in this team and worked hard during the off-season to get better as a coach and as a team, and so far he is proving it. It's very early in the season and we started off with a favorable schedule, but beating good teams is never easy and hopefully this will push the Heat to get better and better as the season goes on. 

Check out this video of Dwyane Wade taking on the entire Chicago defense in one spectacular play. MVP.

Dwyane Wade had 25 points for the Heat, but most importantly became the first Heat player to reach 10,000 career points. Yes, 10k and he is just warming up.  Udonis Haslem had another impressive performance off the bench coming up with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Michael Beasley also had 10 points and 11 rebounds, Carlos Arroyo had 12 and Mario Chalmers 11. 

The wildcard? That would be QRich, Quentin Richardson himself, who had a quiet night but hit two key 3-pointers late in the game. So once again it was a collective effort for Miami, who didn't need to rely on Dwyane Wade's miracles because everyone else contributed to the win.

Up next, Phoenix visits the Heat house on Tuesday. The Suns are also undefeated, but play Minnesota tonight at home. This will be the first game between the Heat and Suns since both Shaq and Marion left the teams after the blockbuster trade of 2008. 

So for us Heat fans, the best possible start. Let's keep getting better and winning games. Go Heat!

AND WHAT A START!

Miami has won it's first two games of the season. This has not happened since 2004-2005 when Shaq came over and Dwyane Wade became Dwyane Wade. Not to get overly excited, but sure it's better to start like this than losing. If that was not enough reason to be happy, the Heat have won the first of 14 games at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indiana. Want more? This was Dwyane Wade's first win at Conseco Fieldhouse. All good news. 

Tomorrow against Chicago I expect an amazing game. Remember last season? Something along those lines I hope. And I hope we also win. 3-0 would be cool. And the best part is that now we all see that success is possible with the team we have. We need to stay focus and healthy. Not easy, but possible. 

The season has started on with some surprises and some even matches. Cleveland started 0-2, but quickly won 2 in a row. No doubt that they will get a lot better during the season in route to the Playoffs. Orlando is solid and Boston has been impressive, although people still doubt if they can all stay healthy. The Lakers lost in the opening week. Fun fact? There is only 7 unbeaten teams in the first week. One of those is the Miami Heat, and three of those are in our Southeast Division. Wow. 

Let's keep the energy up and keep on rolling. I'm happy and impressed with Jermaine O'Neal, Michael Beasley, and the rest of the team. Dwyane Wade can only keep getting better, so let's do this. Go Heat!

It was nice to see how everyone contributed a little, and this type of balanced effort can win games even if Dwyane Wade doesn't score 30 for the night (or 50). Jermaine O'Neal was back and played well, Quentin Richardson provided some solid minutes off the bench, and so did Joel Anthony, James Jones and the newly acquired Carlos Arroyo, who played his second game with the Heat uniform. 

Up next: Memphis. Let's see if the Heat can build on from this win and get another one. If we finish the pre-season winning a few games its more likely we can start the regular season winning some more. 

Should I worry? Not sure yet. The games are not televised, so I could not actually watch the game tonight. San Antonio won 95-93 in the first Heat home game at American Airlines Arena (I am in Los Angeles and not Miami now so I couldn't attend also). Dwyane Wade also sat out, and so did Jermaine O'Neal. The Spurs played without Ginobilli and Duncan, so the match was still even when it comes to Superstars. Daequan Cook had 20 points, Mario Chalmers 17 and Michael Beasley 16. Cook's 3-pointer at the buzzer bounced off the rim. 

It's good to see that the team can compete even without Dwyane Wade. We cannot expect him to do everything, and if the Heat want to get better results that last season we need someone else to score and draw attention. I believe Michael Beasley can finally be that weapon for the Heat, and after all the drama of the summer he can prove to everyone that he is not only ready but better than ever. 

So I don't think it's time to panic yet, but with other teams showing that they are solid early on, we need to make sure that the team is ready for the start of the season in just a few weeks. Next game is Wednesday at Oklahoma City. 

So we had two pre-season games. I bought my NBA League Pass early to see them, but unfortunately they were not broadcasted, so its hard to tell what really happened other than the fact that we lost both games. No big deal, except for the fact that nobody other than Dwyane Wade or Michael Beasley could score any points. 

I will try to be positive and hopeful for a fun and successful season. As long as we have Dwyane Wade on the team, anything is possible. As for you Heat fans, please check back regularly as the blog is full on. You can follow our Twitter and find out about the updates and other interesting Heat links. 

Please let all the Heat fans you know about the blog, and I look forward to getting messages, emails, comments, tweets, or whatever feedback you want to send. 

Go Heat!

But September is here now. Dwyane Wade is back from his vacations, and so are most of the Heat players. Everyone is reenergized and ready to start a long and difficult season. It will be a huge challenge for our team for many reasons. First of all, we need to get better than last season. Secondly, we need to convince Dwyane Wade that this is his home. 

Last season it was more simple. Yes, we had 'something to prove', but nobody expected us to prove anything. Winning 30 games would have been enough for a team that won 15 the previous year. We beat everyones expectations and Dwyane Wade came back with a vengeance showing everyone that he is one of the best, if not THE BEST, basketball player in the world. 

But now people will be more aware of him and the team. Most teams in the East have improved, and our division alone will be very tough. Orlando is better, Atlanta is better, and most importantly Washington is better. Several other teams like Toronto and Detroit will be better, so we cannot expect to play the same way as last year and have the #5 seed again. 

So what is the first step? This month. This is when it starts, and when everyone has to get their Heat on. We need to support our team, show them how much we believe in them, and get ready for a great season. I am still disappointed on the lack of action for new signings and trades, but there is still time for that, and there is enough talent in our current roster to be a lot better than last season. 

So let's get them!