Coach Spoelstra in the Hot Seat?

LeBron bumping into Coach Spoelstra during a timeout has been the talk throughout the league

     Trouble seems to be brewing in Miami because of the recent performances by the Heat. Heading into December, they are just 9-8, losing four of their last five games. They are just one game over .500 right now and there just seems to be a lot of panic and confusion in South Beach. Everyone's quick to blame the head coach, though.
     According to ESPN, the players have grown weary and are starting to question Coach Spoelstra. There are some reasons as to why the players feel this way about Coach Spoelstra. The first is the players not being able to be themselves. Spoelstra has asked LeBron to be more serious on the court. We all know LeBron is fun and playful on the court and now that he's asked to be more serious, he feels like he's not being himself. Secondly, the offense looks too pedestrian and too simple. In the words of an anonymous source, it's "a bunch of pick and rolls and getting open for a shot." And lastly, the constant talk about Spoelstra's job status. The players feel like Spoelstra is coaching to keep his job instead of coaching to win. Evidently, this affects the way the team plays. Whatever the reasons may be, changes are bound to happen.
     In the loss against the Mavericks this past Saturday, the talk about the game was the infamous "bump". As Coach Spoelstra called time-out, LeBron walked past by him, bumping him in the shoulder along the way. Lots of people are speculating that that was intentional and that it was LeBron's frustration showing.
     Asked about the Heat's situation, guard Dwyane Wade said in a press conference, "Right now, in my opinion, no one is doing a good job. We're 9-and-8. We're all in this together. The players are not doing a good job. The coach is not doing a good job."

LeBron will face his former team on Thursday

   Everyone in Cleveland has to be enjoying this ongoing turmoil down in South Beach. And with all the off-court issues, this week's game against Cleveland doesn't seem like a big deal anymore. No, don't let that fool you. It is still a very big deal. I'm sure everyone, not just Cleveland and Miami fans, has Thursday December 2, 2010 (8 pm eastern on TNT) circled on their calendar. The crowd is expected to be very hostile, so hostile that the NBA has taken precautionary measures and will have extra security for LeBron's arrival in Cleveland. TNT's Kenny Smith says this will probably be the most-watched regular season game in NBA history.