LeBron James scored 24 points and Dwyane Wade had 22, leading the Heat to a 105-93 victory over the Chicago Bulls Sunday. The win moved Miami to 36-4, breaking the prior record of 35-6 set by the 2004-05 Heat.
Chalmers and Birdman Andersen both scored 15 in the win, while Carlos Boozer finished with 16 points and 20 rebounds, and Luol Deng had 19 in the losing effort. Miami stands at an all-time franchise best 64-16, with games at Cleveland Monday and versus Orlando to finish the season at home Wednesday.
Some would call Sunday's win a "revenge game" for the Heat, with Chicago having stopped Miami's 27-game win streak not long ago, but that seems a little ridiculous. Win or lose on Sunday, Miami was heading into the playoffs as confident as it has ever been, against everyone, including the banged-up Nate Robinson-fall-away-three-reliant Bulls. The Heat has been kicking asses all week with the end of its bench, while LeBron and Wade play grab-ass in the stadium tunnels. You think they had this game circled on their calendar? Negative.
A more likely motivation was the fact that the win against Chicago kept them in sixth place in the East, one game behind the fifth-place Hawks. If (hahahaLOLhahaha) the Heat is able to get past the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, the team would play the winner of the fourth- and fifth-seed matchup. In other words, the win Sunday kept Chicago off Miami's side of the bracket. Before Sunday's game, coach Erik Spoelstra made it apparent the Heat is very aware of where teams are in the standings, saying, "We understand the ramifications of a win or a loss." So yeah, next time the Miami Heat plays the Chicago Bulls, you will have started your holiday shopping, and Derrick Rose should be playing. See you next year, Bulls.
Miami now heads to Cleveland, where Coach Spo has already said Wade will sit, and LeBron James has said he is "leaning toward not playing." In reality, this game should feature Joel Anthony running the point with Juwan Howard taking an NBA-record 39 threes, because who cares? Last time these teams played, the Heat used enough energy overcoming a 27-point deficit to keep their winning streak alive, something that turned out to be cute but in the end completely meaningless. You got your show, Cleveland; you get nothing, and you'll like it this time.
Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, it's coming.
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