It just got much harder for the Heat to repeat as NBA Champions. Shaquille O'Neal will be out for 4-6 weeks following knee surgery to replace torn cartilage in his knee.
Shaq will miss 18-25 games, depending on his return. Miami was 10-13 without him last year. He's getting older, and it's going to take longer to recover from this injury and surgery. The question is no longer "Can the Heat repeat?" It's now "Can Miami make it to the playoffs?" Shaq might recover in time to be a force in the playoffs, but say goodbye to any home-court advantage (not that they needed it last year against the Pistons or Mavericks).
If Shaq doesn't regain at least his form from last year, a declining Alonzo Mourning is not going to be able to pick up the slack. Dwayne Wade is probably beat from all of the basketball over the summer. He hasn't had a chance to rest.
3 years ago, Miami had a scrappy, young, undersized team with Wade, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, Eddie Jones, and others. They surprised everyone and made it to the 2nd rouond of the playoffs. This is no longer a scrappy, young team (Hello 'toine and G-love). It's just undersized.
It's going to be a long season, but for the Heat it might be shorter than expected.
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