MIAMI – Once again, the defending champion Miami Heat – the favorites to win the title again this season, winners of 18 consecutive games, owners of best record in the NBA, darlings of media and fans alike – find themselves walking a high wire without a safety net.
Almost everybody expects the Heat, led by superstars LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, to repeat as champions. They look unbeatable in a best-of-seven series. Heck, they look unbeatable every night, something they’ve been trying to downplay to a certain degree.
“Our goal isn’t to win games consecutively,” James said. “It’s to win a championship.”
But what happens if they don’t win the title?
What happens to the legacy of the Big Three if they fall to 1-2 in NBA Finals?
What happens to the “LeBron vs. Jordan” debate if LeBron only has one title after 10 seasons? For that matter, what happens to the “LeBron vs. Kobe” debate?
And how much does the Chris Bosh trade talk get cranked up if the Heat don’t defend their title? What will people say about coach Erik Spoelstra?
Here’s what would happen: The offseason of 2013 would be the tumultuous offseason of 2011 all over again.
LeBron becomes overrated. Wade is breaking down. Bosh isn’t tough enough. Spoelstra isn’t up to the job.
No matter how it appears, things haven’t changed since the Big Three assembled in the summer of 2010. It’s all-or-nothing for the Heat.
After they lost to Dallas in the 2011 Finals, the offseason was, well, hell.
It will be the same this summer if this team doesn’t win the title.
Most people will probably never have a neutral feeling about this Heat team. They’re either 
great, or they’re bums.
For the time being, however, they’re absolutely great. They’re the defending champs, they’re playing fantastic, and they can extend their winning streak to 19 games with a victory against Atlanta tonight.
“Right now, honestly, it doesn’t really feel like we are on this kind of win streak,” Wade said. “We’re just coming in and just taking care of business. We’re just playing basketball. It’s great and hopefully we can continue, but if we lose a ballgame, we’ll just get back to the next one and hopefully win the one after that.”
The Heat is playing so well that it is hard to remember the last time we saw such an overwhelming, can’t-miss championship favorite at this time of year.