The Miami Heat are rolling right now.
After dropping a few games in the middle of the Pacers series last week, LeBron James has stepped his game up, and now the Heat are looking like the unstoppable juggernaut we all feared they'd be.
BUT, there is reason to worry. Because the same thing that a lot of NBA gurus think ruined LeBron and the Heat last year is back again this year — LeBron James is playing a TON of minutes.
Check out the minute per game comparison as the playoffs go on between this year and last year:
Yeah, LeBron is playing less minutes this year. But he's still playing 40+ minutes in the playoffs, and his court time is trending upward.
After LBJ inexplicably fell apart in the Finals, the general consensus was that at least part of the reason he struggled was that he was burned out. He even said it himself.
Now, the same thing is happening.
You could even argue the minutes are even more grueling this time around because he's playing power forward in place of Chris Bosh, and not his customary small forward.
LeBron has been impossibly good this postseason. But if you buy the theory that even King James can wear down after playing 40 minutes a game for two months, there is reason for worry.
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