The Miami Heat 27-game win streak has officially been derailed. The 1971-1972 Los Angeles Lakers record of 33-straight is safe. The Wednesday night match-up with the Chicago Bulls was another hard fought game that favored more of a football game between the Miami Dolphins vs. the Chicago Bears at times. With LeBron James being literally tackled by a Bulls defender as James attempted a layup or close lined by Taj Gibson during another layup attempt, this was one physical outing. Nevertheless, the streak is over. But what a run it was.
The Heat hadn’t lost a game since February 1, against the Indiana Pacers but on February 3, against the Toronto Raptors, the historic Heat journey began. During the 52-days of this run, the Heat had some impressive achievements. They compiled 13-road wins, overcame 7-double digit deficits (one of those, a staggering 27-point hole they had dug against a short handed Cleveland Cavaliers team just last week), averaged nearly 51% shooting from the field (50.8), had an 11.9 point margin of victory, and earned the 2nd longest NBA win streak in history. LeBron James averaged 27-points during the streak while shooting an amazing 57.5% with 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Dwayne Wade had great numbers as well, averaging 22.8 a game and shooting 53.6%.
Needless to say, the streak hadn’t gone without notice. Some of the greats of the game, both past and present, expressed their perspectives of this amazing run by the Miami Heat. Hall of Famer, Jerry West, who is one of the proud participants of the current 33-game win streak from the ’71-’72 Lakers, said on Wednesday nights Heat loss,
I really thought they were going to do it. It’s a remarkable streak. I wasn’t rooting against them at all. At halftime, I thought they were going to win the game. But all you need sometimes is a few things to go wrong. It was a great accomplishment. It creates incredible fan interest.
West also added that he feels the Heat players wouldn’t be distracted by the loss due to their ultimate goal and focus for year end accomplishments–the NBA Title.
Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers added thoughts from a fans perspective in saying,
I think just as a student of the game, as a fan of the game, you appreciate those kind of streaks and you realize how difficult it is to put together that big of a streak. Obviously the Lakers winning 33 in a row was phenomenal, but the Heat’s one was just as impressive.
No matter if you’re a fan of the Miami Heat or not, you have to appreciate the significance of this extraordinary run. To win 27-straight games against NBA players is not like winning that many in the college level or below. These are professional basketball players. Yes, some teams are weaker than others, but I guarantee you could never comprise your best 5 to 10 players off the street and expect to perform at a higher level than the worst NBA team. The 1971-1972 Los Angeles Lakers know how difficult it was, just as the 1972 Miami Dolphins who have the record of a Perfect Season going undefeated and winning the Super Bowl in that season finishing 17-0. Unheard of back then, and still, no one has matched them to date.
So we, as fans, are and will always be, in awe of greatness. No matter the team, the sport, or the individual. Amazing will always be Amazing. Thank you Miami Heat players for bringing us fans such an amazing stretch of basketball. Now, it’s time for the playoffs and time to defend as NBA CHAMPS!
Let’s Go Heat!
