MIAMI -- Taking inventory remains a painstakingly tedious process for the Miami Heat.
The calendar flipped to 2016, but this clearly is a team that continues to carry a bit of an identity crisis into the New Year. Here’s what is obvious about the Heat through 32 games: They’ve provided equal amounts of evidence and ammunition to the faithful who defend them and the critics who doubt them.
Add Friday’s 106-82 annihilation of the Dallas Mavericks to the pile of games that also features wins over Toronto, Oklahoma City, Atlanta, Memphis and Orlando as proof of what the Heat can accomplish when engaged, committed to ball movement and locked in defensively for key stretches.