here’s an old saying that goes something like, “... in springtime, a young man’s fancy turns to love...”, or words close to it. Now, leaving aside my lack of poetic abilities to recall precise quotes, the idea is, come this time of the year our fantasies become more hopeful, hence the phrase “hope springs eternal.”
But in this era of on-line matchmaking and speed dating (where, in some cases, you literally sit across from someone for 5 minutes before deciding if you want to go out with them and then repeat the process 15 times), I doubt many young men are quoting Tennyson, or crafting loves songs to sing to their intended ones. Instead, the modern era has seen an increase in the pursuit of instant gratification and the immediacy to satisfy our desires – which leads me, of course, to the Miami Heat.
Sports – especially team sports in the early 21st Century - has devolved into a win now or else situation. Don’t think so? Ask the bevy of NFL coaches fired in the last year, some after only one year on the job. Miami’s Dolphins have had exactly one playoff appearance – never mind wins – in the last decade, and the natives are, to say the least, restless. The Panthers and Marlins both wallow in either mediocrity –or worse - irrelevance, while they play in palatial surroundings in front of sparse crowds. The college teams have their passionate fan bases (as we have chronicled in prior columns) but those loyalties are divided in South Florida. But the Heat are a different story.
The team’s architect – Hall of Famer Pat Riley – understood early on the need to be good – and relevant - now. So, in the Summer of 2010 he put together a plan and executed it, signing Lebron James, Chris Bosh – and resigning Dwayne Wade (always forgotten, but in many ways the most important signing that year). The result? A finals appearance in the first year, a championship in the second, a 66-16 record for year three, while in the process carving out a 27-game winning streak and cementing their status as odds-on favorites to repeat as champions.
You see, the Heat are not only good, they matter. Pat Riley’s creation fulfills the two most important criteria a business model requires – to be successful and to be entertaining.
So, this spring (if what we have down here passes for spring) remember while watching Lebron, Dwayne, Chris, Mario and Coach Spo’, appreciate how good they are – and how lucky we are to have them.
Let’s go Heat!
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