Say whatever you want about how the members of the Heat have learned how to play together and how it was just going to take time for them to develop chemistry, but the real reason the Heat have begun to win is because they have been playing much better defense and rebounding.
The Heat are 15-1 in their last 16 games and have held their opponents to under 100 points in each contest. They've given up an average of 87.43 points per game during that stretch and won the rebounding battle 13 times. Before their current streak the Heat were 9-8 and had allowed 100 points 5 times. They'd given up an average of 94.47 points per game and won the rebounding battle only 7 times in 17 games.
The Heat aren't winning because the offense finally started clicking. They have scored 101 points per game in the last 16 contests and averaged 100.35 in the first 17.
Miami's biggest problem hasn't changed, they still lack interior presence. But by committing to the staples of good basketball, playing defense and rebounding, the Heat now look like a legitimate title contender.
