Heat's Big Three Opens at Boston's Old Three

Miami plays Boston opening night and the Lakers on Christmas Day

To be the man you have to beat the man.

So the NBA decided to arrange an early meet and greet for the heir to the NBA throne, the revamped Miami Heat, as they will open the NBA season against the defending Eastern Conference champs, the Boston Celtics.

The Oct. 26 match up is just one of the marquee NBA games that will feature the Miami Heat, the league's new villain.

After The Big Three 2.0 of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh face off against Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, the team will have to face in-state rival, the Orlando Magic, in the home opener at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Yesterday's report said they'd open in Orlando, but Superman will be trekking south instead.

If the Heat are for real, fans will know early. An 0-2 start is not out of the realm of possibility, but if Run D.L.C. obliterates the East's top two teams, watch out NBA and hello more haters.

The Heat get to test their might against the best in the West on Christmas Day when they face the NBA champs, the Los Angeles Lakers in L. A.

Before the L.A showdown, the National Guard, Marine Corp and the Navy Seals might be called in for the Heat's visit to Cleveland on Dec. 2, LeBron's first game against his former team.

All of the games will be national broadcasts, either on TNT or ESPN.

The NBA will release the entire schedule Aug. 10. It's clear the NBA wants the Heat to be its meal ticket and the more the hate the merrier.

If you thought criticism was thick over the summer, just wait to see what happens if the Heat falter in their first game, when they're still trying to figure out how to play together, still developing chemistry and a comfort level, still finding ways to play to their strengths. 

Losses, of course, will happen repeatedly over the course of a long season. But there will be no game so hyped, no attention so great, as the first time the Grand Experiment takes the floor as part of an opening-night doubleheader.

Make no mistake, this isn't a doubter's message -- it's one of perspective: the Heat are going to be very, very, very good. Maybe even 68 games good, according to John Hollinger. If they lose the opener, you can be sure they'll be beating that team later down the line.

So while the media will have a field day picking apart a loss and leaving the bones, Heat fans should sit tight: this is a team built for an extended period of domination, and they're going to get there. If it doesn't happen on the very first night against an entrenched Championships-caliber opponent, just follow the King's lead: ignore the haters, eat cake, and pretend it never happened, because the best is yet to come.

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