2010-11 NBA Predictions: Miami Heat Vs. Los Angeles Lakers, Who’s Got The Edge?

The new Miami Heat may not have achieved anything on the court yet, but they have succeeded in becoming the most-hyped team in NBA history. Naturally, the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers have become the most common benchmark as a comparison to the reconstructed Miami Heat.

While many have already assumed a Lakers-Heat matchup in the NBA Finals, neither the Miami nor Los Angeles is guaranteed a spot.

Miami's fiercest competition will derive from the Boston Celtics who brought back "the Boston Three Party (ft. Rajon Rondo)," the Orlando Magic who will feature an offensively-improved Dwight Howard after working with Hakeem Olajuwon this summer and the Chicago Bulls who brought Carlos Boozer over from Utah to combine forces with Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah.

Los Angeles still has to repeat in a tough Western Conference. The Dallas Mavericks are improved, the San Antonio Spurs remain a powerhouse of fundamentals with Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich and a promising Oklahoma City Thunder team with enough talent to rival the top teams in the NBA.

Despite all of this competition, the Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Lakers remain overwhelming favorites in predictions for the NBA Finals. So let's be a little impatient and compare this "inevitable" NBA Finals matchup, or at least the Christmas Day matchup.

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