The Miami Heat have been bigger favorites before.
After a 9-8 start to that 2010-11 season, the Heat found as many skeptics as supporters, skeptics that dogged them until they—as modest underdogs—defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder to win the 2012 championship.
Now you'll be hard-pressed to find anyone who doesn't deem them locks to advance to the 2013 NBA Finals while assuming that, once there, they will probably prevail.
At the Las Vegas sportsbook Bovada, the Heat's championships odds are down to 2-3, meaning that a bettor would need to lay down $300 to win $200.
That's what happens when a team wins 37 of its final 39 games of the season, and does so with its stars often getting rest.
Still, this is roughly the same roster, with the notable exception of Chris Andersen's addition, that started the season with an 11-11 record on the road.
So what could slow them enough to prevent what so many seem to deem inevitable?
What could stop them from a second straight title?
All quotes for this piece were collected through the course of the author's coverage of the Miami Heat for the Palm Beach Post. All statistics were accurate as of the end of the 2012-13 regular season.