Miami Heat: 4-0 Record Without Dwyane Wade, Is Team Better Without Him?

The Miami Heat are 4-0 against mostly above .500 teams without him in the lineup.

With him, the team is 5-4.

Now, there are reasons to explain why this odd reality may be taking place.

The most recent, of course, is that Mike Miller played his first game yesterday and shot a perfect 6-of-6 from three-point range as the Heat overcame a 17-point deficit to beat a Spurs team that has yet to win on the road.

Before that, both he and LeBron were out with injuries, as Chris Bosh led an overmatched Heat team past the Atlanta Hawks in triple-overtime. 

Then there was the win against the Nets, which doesn't even deserve an explanation, because it's the Nets.

Finally, Miami beat the Pacers in a game where Danny Granger and David West combined for 15 points.

Oh, by the way, it's also important to note that Wade seemed to still be healing from his first injury (a foot contusion) in the first few games back in the lineup (which was the same time Miami suffered their three-game losing streak).

Here's the thing, though, that makes this all a worthwhile topic to speculate. 

First of all, we know that James and Wade both like to dominate the ball.

We know that they both aren't exceptional jump shooters, and have essentially been forced to play a fast-break offense so that teams can't exploit their limited range with zone defense.

Chris Bosh has shown glimpses in the games Wade has been out that he is much more effective as a volume scorer (i.e. has a more active role on the team). 

LeBron has averaged more than 30 in the three games, while he has looked comfortable being able to capitalize on his hot streaks and having free reign over offense, sort of like in his Cleveland days.

All in all, there is a case to be made that LeBron and Dwyane Wade may get in each other's way more than any of us are willing to admit.

Before anyone sounds the alarm, it's obvious neither one will get traded anytime in the near future.

Nevertheless, don't be surprised if we all end up looking back to this period in time, assuming Miami can continue winning in Wade's absence, and start to wonder if the team may need to break up LeBron and Wade if the Heat fall short of winning a championship again.

Which begs the bigger question: Who do they trade, LeBron or Wade?

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1029217-heat-4-0-record-without-wade-suggests-miami-may-be-better-without-him

David Clarkson Patrick Davis Tyler Eckford Mark Fraser Andy Greene zach Parise