Beasley Passes First Test

“Lets win us another championship,” were Beasley’s final words at his first press conference at the American Airlines Arena. Let’s hope this guy is as clairvoyant as Shaq! — On and Off the Court with the Miami Heat

Olympic Dreams

Short and sweet article about how if Dwayne Wade didn’t make the United States Olympic Team, the whole basketball universe may have come to a screeching end! — The Heat Chamber

Miami Heat Draft Recap: The Ghost of Harold Miner Has Been Exorcised

Great article by Chris Joseph that will tell you everything you need to know about the Miami Heat’s draft fortunes as well as tell you who has the best rack; and no, it isn’t Stan Van Gundy… — Riptide 2.0

Free Agent Market Could Help Heat

A look at who is available in the free agency market this summer. Not much if you ask me, but I am not GM and certainly no Pat Riley. — MiamiHeatwave.com

Open Letter to Pat Riley

This open letter to Pat Riley may be what we have to thank for him drafting Michael Beasley. Seriously, it was very convincing; and funny. — Riptide 2.0

Here’s how it happens, you get a brilliant guy in the Lottery, you build around him and hope for a championship in 5 years or so. You become a good team, make money, establish a “dynasty.” Said player is traded; is over the hill; retires gloriously (okay only Jordan fits this one). You get shanked in the Lottery as so many teams do, you draft a bust and you’re back in the dumps. The thing is, creating parity in the NBA is impossible, at least with the Lottery Draft. You would think being the worst team in the NBA would warrant you getting rewarded with at least one decent player that could change your fortunes in a couple of years, but that’s not the case. All that you’re guaranteed is disappointment.

So back to the original point, the NBA has major swings, and they usually involve entire conferences cause that’s all people see really. East versus West. Lately the argument has been that the East simply can’t compare or compete with the West, but I disagree.

Even if the Spurs were still hitting on all cylinders, the West lacks parity. In the long run the West will never really able to deliver in the playoffs. They all enjoy brilliant seasons, mostly due to having the absolute worst teams in the league consistently. To secure the worst record in the league all the Heat had to do was deal without Wade for the beginning of the season, lose Shaq, lose Williams, basically only have their intended starting line up on the floor less than 10 games the entire season, trade Shaq, lose Shawn Marion and have Wade rest his injured self the end of the season. All this and we still only beat out Seattle and Memphis by 5 and 7 game respectively, and the Knicks only joined the bottom ranks because…well they’re the Knicks.

The fact is the West’s schedules constantly pick up these butterballs in the Western Conference. The East usually doesn’t win the East-West match-ups, which does put a dent in my defense, but the East, defensively, is almost constantly put to the test, and does well to match up. The Western conference has breaks, the “mediocrity” cough cough parity of the Eastern Conference forces it to play constantly through the year for wins. Statistically, the average margin of victory is higher in the West, mostly because they play horrible defense throughout so it’s really a crap shoot on who wins thus larger margins, and also having the worst teams to beat down by 20 points is a plus.

Fact is, since the 5 years of dominance by the West, the Pistons Easily handled the Lakers 4-1, then San Antonio was pushed to 7 against the same Pistons, and could have easily faced a much stronger Miami team if Shaq didn’t have the deep thigh bruise that slowed him down so much. The Heat then put the defensive clamps on Dirk and the pathetic Mavericks winning 4-2. How the Cavs made the finals I don’t know, but I blame the Heat for the 4-0 sweep, and now of course the 4-2 series victory by the Celtics, and we all know it wasn’t even that close. It’s simple; the West is a good regular season conference. They’re all built to win lots of games, probably more excitingly for the good of the NBA, but not one of them is built for a tough 7 game series against one opponent, with the exception of the Spurs, and they’re getting old.

In fact, I’m so confident of this, that I will guarantee an East victory next year unless I see some major moves out West because frankly, even with Bynum the Lakers would have still gotten a beating, and they were the best the West could show, and even had a brilliant defensive scheme against Rondo to disrupt the Celtics for the first half of two of the games. The parity of the East is what sets it apart. Next year looks to be even more tight for the East. Contenders for a playoff spot include:  Boston, Detroit, Cleavland, Orlando, Washington, Philly, Toronto, Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, and even the Knicks (I expect a rather quick turnaround there, and it is, after all, the wide open East). In the West there are the same eight playoff spots and usually only 8 contenders, and this last year with Pheonix, Dallas, Denver, and Golden State that bottom was really weak.

Now let me just finish with this, I do think most of the better talent is in the West, and thank god the Celtics stole Ray and Kevin to bring a bit more balance on that side of it, but talent just hasn’t seemed to be enough for the West, and in the NBA that’s really disturbing considering it’s usually 1 guy who can make the difference. I think you can only point to the season the Eastern Conference teams are forced to go through with their “mediocrity” as the reason they have recently been keeping up with the West, and if they win again next year, dominance can be brought into the discussion. I promise though, I’ll be back here next year to either crown myself or eat my words; I never shirk from this sort of thing so by all means hold me accountable.

That said, I still think all the hype for this Derrick Rose is…well it’s quite frankly stupid. Here’s a guy who averaged about 15 points and 5 assists per game in the regular season, and then explodes for 21 and 6 on the biggest stage. Yeah, I’m being facetious. He’s a really good point guard, I grant you that, and those are few and far between. It takes more than freakish athleticism to make a great point guard, you actually have to rely on your brain more than your ability to split a double team. He was a blip on the radar before the tourney, and in my mind he should stay that way. There are two or three other guards below Rose in all the mock drafts that have been far more consistent than he has.

It doesn’t matter though because the Bulls will be taking their hometown boy. Just the Chicago factor alone does give this pick more credibility; could you imagine Dwayne Wade in his hometown, but the fact remains that I’m predicting right now, he’ll be no CP3, or even a Derron Williams.

The number two pick is farrrr more complicated. I should add a few more R’s there, maybe a couple of A’s as well. What started as a surefire one-two draft has been turned into a circus by the Miami Heat. I’m not gonna cry though. Like I said, I just have this feeling that Beasley could be shouldering too much and could end up burning out his first season. It happens, and it hasn’t happened in a while in the NBA, with all the guys who had high expectations exceeding them like LeBron and Wade, and all the other drafts being already determined to be busts, it’s high time the NBA had a spectacular draft bust.

Hopefully it won’t happen to the Heat. You should really read this article to get a full picture of what the Heat have got on their plate, but I can give you the short version here. There are two well proven talents currently sitting in the NBA that are ripe for the Heat’s picking over the next few seasons. First the least likely option. A man we all know that Riley has been eying for years is within his grasp, a straight trade of picks and players could finally land Riles Elton Brand. The Clippers have the 7th pick, and if things go according to plan the Heat could still see a decent point guard in Jerryd Bayless.

To me, this scenario really makes no sense for the Heat. The only way I could see this one happening is if the Clippers took on another player like Marc Blount to free up cap space for the Heat. Barring that, there just isn’t enough in this to justify trading away a Michael Beasley or OJ Mayo pick. Plus Elton Brand has had some recent injury worries which lessens the value even more.

The one I hope the Heat pull the trigger on is the scenario I hear coming out of the Griz camps. After their ahem trade with the Lakers the Griz are sorely lacking some big men. Trading up from the 5 to the 2 spot to pick up Beasley, draft bust prediction by me though he may be, makes the most sense for them. The deal would have the Heat getting Mike Miller as well as a point guard of our choice (I’m crossing my fingers for Mike Conley) which would really leave us wide open at the #5 spot in the draft. Plus, need I remind Heat fans where we drafted Wade at, perhaps a bit of magic lightning striking twice could be in store for us. Sitting there we could feasibly hope for the likes of Brook Lopez, Mayo, Kevin Love, Jerryd or several other mixtures of bigs and smalls.

Things get even more exciting when considering what freeing up some cap space could do for us. Carlos Boozer, a Miami resident, has an expiring contract next year with Utah, and who wouldn’t want to go from the hellacious West to the defense happy East?

Here’s a for instance for ya:

Mike Conley, who averaged 9.4 points and 4.2 assists playing 26 minutes a game in his rookie year for the Grizzlies, running the point for the Heat. A note, in his last month of ball, where he got consistent minutes and had some experience, he averaged 14.3 points, 4.3 assists, shot 48% from the field and nearly 45% from 3 point land, and throw in 4 ribs for good measure.

Sitting pretty, and hopefully healthy, Dwayne Wade at shooting guard, helping young Conley in late games by sharing the distribution and ball handling role, and remember, if Conley’s one month of a consistent role on the floor is any indication, he’ll provide wade with a great target to distribute to.

I would love to keep Shawn Marion at the small forward position. Having your smallest big average 10+ rebounds per game is a huge plus. More than that though Marion runs the floor well, is always a decent target, can spread the floor with his shot and is a pretty good defender.

Starting in 2009 you can feasibly see Udonis Haslem, as sad as I am to say this, replaced by Carlos Boozer. You now have a legitimate big three to rival Boston, but this one could be even better. Boozer is arguably just as good defensively as KG, and doesn’t lack for intensity, especially on the boards. He’s also a brilliant post scorer and has great strength. With Marion and Boozer running around gobbling up rebounds, and Wade and Conley shooting one on one jumpers, as you’d have to respect both Boozer and Marion wherever they are on the floor, in 2 years time the Heat could be in contention for a title once again.

Finally, the center position. Since I don’t think the Heat can find any way to contend for a championship this year under any scenario, I think it’d be a good time to draft a true center. Nothing spectacular, just a big body to help clear things out in the middle for Boozer and Wade, and can defend reasonably well. With Wade, Boozer, and Marion all able to open up for 20+ a night (if you took their averages at face value you could be looking at 60+ points a night out of the Miami’s version of the big three, and Conley looks to be getting along as a shooter as well), we wouldn’t really be looking to have much scoring out of the center position. Perfect scenario would see Brook Lopez falling into our laps at the #5 pick (not likely), but I also liked the looks of Roy Hibbert. I’d love to see more rebounding potential out of him, and he’s a bit soft looking, but boy can that man block. Whoever we get, I’d love to see ‘Zo stay with the Heat in some capacity (wouldn’t it be brilliant if he became our center’s coach), to help teach the young man about NBA intensity from a guy who anybody would listen to.

Now, sit back and chew on that for a bit. Just think about it for a moment, in two years time this could be the Miami Heat starting lineup. The Heat’s biggest problem, if this falls through, would be finding good backup point guards and centers. We lack so much depth there it’s ridiculous, which is ironic as we have four of each spot filled up. Unless Earl Barron develops more, and quickly, we can’t expect much out of Joel Anthony and Blount (whom we should be looking to get rid of as soon as is humanly possible), and even if he did come back, ‘Zo could only feasibly provide 20 minutes a night tops, probably more like 15 energy packed minutes though.

First though, the trigger must be pulled on the Grizzlies deal (and Boozer must want a more permanent home in Miami, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves). The good news is, I really think the Heat will do this. Beasley just isn’t a LeBron James, and the Heat can and will do better. So expect Miami to be picking at #5 sitting with a new point guard and Mike Miller.

I can’t say enough about Posey and what he brings to any team he’s on so I’ll leave that for later and go on to the Lakers. This is what the West gives us? Honestly, I don’t think anybody else from the West would have fared much better against the Celtics either. I suppose you can call it determination, but this series was never even close, and it was all defense. Only the Spurs play defense anywhere near as good, and I think a point was proven this year: the run and gun West better learn itself some defense because when it hits an Eastern Conference team with tenacious defense, it’s done. Think about it, what really happened to the Mavericks a few seasons back? It wasn’t just Miracle Wade doing his thing, Miami’s defense clamped down, and the Mavs just did not know what to do at all. That defense was nothing compared to what the Celtics showed this series. Kobe Bryant himself looked like a chicken with his head cut off. Whether it was the constant barrage of different defenders, or that all those defenders were playing him perfectly, or a mixture of all that and more, Kobe Bryant never really looked comfortable.

At no point in this series did it look like the Lakers could sustain any of the flashes they were showing, and more than that, those flashes looked more like Celtic mistakes, and lackluster energy at times, especially early on in some of the games. Point in fact, this was really a boring series, thank god for the Pierce hop back, and the magical comeback, because otherwise, ABC would only have history to bank on for something to get us excited about it. It was that bad.

Back to the West though, that daunted West which was supposed to be one of the most exciting post seasons in years. The only excitement I saw out of the West were the Lakers and the Hornets. I really thought the Hornets would beat the Spurs. A Lakers-Hornets Western Conference final would have been far more interesting. I was picking the Lakers from the get go, and after their first round sweep I told my brother for sure, Lakers-Celtics finals, you watch. I was expecting so much more out of the Lakers, but now, I think the Hornets would have presented a much better challenge. Ask all the defensive questions you want though, and speculate as well, just like everyone did when they picked the Lakers. How do you defend Kobe? Won’t Gasol be too much for Perkins or Garnet? Surely the versatile Lamar Odom will spread the bigs? Don’t the Lakers have the much better and deeper bench?

That one right there sickened me from the get go. I was screaming at the tv whenever some “expert” was picking the Lakers bench over the Celtics. Like I said, and we all know now, Posey alone is worth more than the entire Lakers bench. All I heard about were Jordan Farmar, and Sasha Vujacic. Yeah, please. Young shooters who are good for nothing more than a cheap thrill against the laid back defenses of the Western Conference. How about guys like Leon Powe? Not much defensively but a hard worker, great on the offensive boards and had himself a beaut of a game with 21 points and 11 trips to the line. Not enough, add in huge shooting performances from Eddie House and Sam Cassel. Still not enough, give yourself a veteran defender who knows it all and can shoot mid range jumpers in PJ Brown. Finally, don’t forget the show Glen “The Baby” Davis put on in the first couple of rounds. I hope, sincerely, that all of those experts look back on their words and publicly apologize for even suggesting the Lakers bench could come close to the Celtics bench (no such luck as I already hear excuses of age being mentioned).

Anyway, congratulations Boston Celtics, and what a fantastic NBA season it’s been…for anyone but the Heat. It’s looking up though, Wade on the mend, a number 2 pick, the possibility of Shawn Marion returning to a lineup that will, hopefully stay healthy. There’s a lot to look forward too for the Heat and all of us fans. It’s time for me to wander the streets of Boston, but tomorrow expect my full report on who I think the Heat should pick, and why I think it’s ridiculous anyone would suggest the Miami Heat would consider a trade for Wade from the Bulls. Till then, goodnight all, and get ready for next season.

The Bulls problem has been, and always will be, their offense. It’s anemia is only just now being displayed but the numbers have been there for quite some time. Look at how this team is built. The Baby Bulls, to a T, are all jump shooters. Deng is a brilliant player, and he’ll be a great one someday, but he cannot create. Ben Gordon and Kirk Henrich both are quick ball handlers and can get open shots sometimes, but are terrible on the inside and their passing skills are sub par at best. Your point guard should not average a paltry 5.5 assists a game.

Their inside game and post presence is even worse. Deng seems to have regressed this year and is pulling up far too quickly, settling for jumpers and turnarounds. He could easily back down or dribble his way to the interior of the defense, but seems to have chose this year to stay on the fringes. We all know that relying on Wallace for interior offense is a moot venture. So what do the Bulls have to go inside and allow their jump shooting guards some room to take shots? You’re really going to rely on Smith, Noah, and Thomas to get your post presence established?

This is the reason the Bulls would never ever, with this lineup, compete for a title. They swept the Heat last season (and gave them trouble the year before) because Miami is an admittedly slow team on defense, though great at defending the basket. Teams like the Bulls and the Suns expose this weakness by making the myriad of jump shots they take. The Bulls, though, don’t have an Amare Stoudemire, so they rely exclusively on their jump shooting, and they have no Nash, so they rely on self creating shots and passing around the horn. Past the Heat though, any mediocre defense would supplant the Bulls and their feisty defense, scoring just enough to push them aside.

Usually in the regular season the Bulls are able to post a decent record because of pure luck. The numbers were on their side shooting from the outside that much that they’re bound to make a few, win some games and lose others. They’re able to win more because of their defense. Come play off time, their flaws are exposed. Playing 7 games in about a 1 and a half to 2 week period against one opponent, a playoff team will sweep them aside fairly quickly, the numbers finally catching up with them.

The only solution would have been the block buster trade that they were rumored to be in the works with, and the one they should have pulled the trigger on. You schlump off Luol Deng and a few others to pick up Kobe and they’re an instant play off contender. He’s one of the best one on one defenders in the league and would fit in nicely with Scott’s style of play. His style of offense would also instantly raise the Baby Bulls to stardom. Scoring 25+ a night and the ability to create and make everyone around him better? Just set up everyone on the outside, have him drive and dish or shoot and there’s your offense. This team plays far better defense than the Lakers and has just as many offensive role players.

They didn’t pull the trigger though. I suspect the numbers will balance out eventually and the Baby Bulls will be able to limp their way into an Eastern Conference playoff spot, but, unless they face the Heat, don’t expect their stay to be long.

The Sentence we were Waiting for

Know why ”15 Strong” was an inspirational concept rather than some cheesy catch phrase for the 2006 champion Heat?
Because the idea came from Pat Riley.

Know why Shaquille O’Neal has remained in good shape for his first three years with the Heat despite his constant reminders that he plays better when bigger?
Because the request came from Pat Riley.

This is what Israel Gutierrez of the Miami Herald had to say about the Heat’s tireless leader. This is what the man brings to the Miami Heat. Pat Riley is, what I like to call, team glue. With him on your roster, you can become a contender. Why? Because he believes. And when he believes, you believe

And on Monday, August 13th, he uttered the words that we Heat fans were sitting on the edge of our seats, waiting for; “I have decided that I’m going to coach another three years; the term of my contract.” Riley said that this wasn’t some sort of game he was playing by delaying his decision. His son was moving out, his daughter was off to college, and he just wanted time to reflect on his decision. Thankfully, in an off season of disappointment, this is a major bright spot.

And Speaking of Believing…

Pat Riley has the utmost confidence in the team he has assembled; even if pundits like me aren’t quite fully convinced. I have been writing that I am quite worried about this upcoming season; I am worried that Wade will not perform, because of injury. I am worried that if anything, we got a little older and more mediocre this off season. Above all, I am worried that we haven’t added the athleticism that we need to compete in this league.

Sure, I am generally a pessimist, yet this is still pretty bad. But with all of my worrying, now that Riley is solidly at the helm, I have had my confidence restored. Riley has faith in this team and now so do I. The acquisitions and makeup of the team hereto far haven’t been spectacular, but they are defensible. J-Will may have a solid, injury free season. Wade may be better than ever. Shaq still dominates in the paint, whether people are flopping around him or not. And these new back court players may very well provide the stability that the team needed at that position. I now believe all of these things.

And besides, who said that the off season is over?…

Question: Do the Heat need to get older players?
Pat Riley: Hell yeah!

In addition to adding Penny Hardaway recently, the Heat picked up Smush Parker from the Lakers and they (duh) drafted Daequan Cook. So besides having stacked the ages of their new guards from young to old, did the Heat get any better at that position? They definitely needed point guard help, but will these players cut the mustard?



Well, it definitely can, but I can’t be so sure that it will. These guys have talent running from the past to the present to the future, but none of their talents are exceptional. Then again, perhaps that is just what the Heat need; some solid guard play. And in my dreams, it the team to their next championship as Wade and Shaq carry the load while the rest of the team is just good enough. But that may have to remain only my dream.

The Guards Impact

Daequan Cook

Cook’s impact will be… nothing. He will have no impact on the team this year, as Pat Riley will, in his usual fashion, bench the rookie save for some blow out situations. Unfortunately, my gut is telling me that the Heat may be on the wrong end of most of those types of situations…

Smush Parker

Parker here will probably see the most minutes out of all of these players. With J-Wil being almost constantly injured in one way or another, the Heat will need a guard to lead the team; although in all likelihood, that guard will probably be Wade.

Anfernee Hardaway

The man is a little old; and to be honest, I have gotten used to seeing wrinkly, winded players on the Heat bench. But for some reason, I have this weird sense of hope the Penny will have a kind of breakthrough season; enough to make him the comeback player of the year.

In Conclusion…

Being a die hard Heat fan, I can’t give up hope; especially not before the season even starts. But it is kind of sad that out of all the additions made over this off season, I am most excited about the one that seems to have the longest shot to pan out. However, like I said earlier, I would be satisfied with a mediocre to decent back-court, because with Wade, that may be all we need.

Why Should You Care?

Well, other than the fact that this is your first whiff of any sort of real action, these games also mean something. The US, having lost earlier this year, needs to place in the top two in this tournament in order to even qualify for the Olympics. So, GO TEAM USA! Seriously, we have been abysmal and we need this.

What’s this about New Features?

Well, to spice things up around here, I am going to add a few new features:

• Video Highlights: Every once in a while, I am going to feature a video clip of the Heat (I will be watching out for Sportech on YouTube!)
• Featured NBA Posts: I will keep my eyes peeled for the best posts related to the NBA on the net. If you think yours is up to muster, drop me a line!
• Improved Stat Tracking: OK, so you won’t notice this much, but it will help me deliver more of what you want!

So I am reading Simmons’ latest article about this whole Donaghy scandal and it is alright. I mean, I could have done without the cinematic opening, but otherwise I was reading a pretty good article. But then, I get to this part:

After Dwyane Wade and Miami received some Vince McMahon-level assistance in Games 3 and 4 of the 2006 Finals, I wrote an angry column about the “officiating crisis” (my words) that prompted Mavs owner Mark Cuban (tired of being fined) to post the link on his blog along with the sentence, “I never have to say a word again.” After Dallas squandered that series, Cuban was so traumatized by the officiating that he nearly sold the Mavericks before family and friends talked him out of it.

Holy crap. I almost lost it.

Let’s start this off by first pointing out that he is essentially giving credit to Marc Cuban for being the biggest baby in the NBA. He is making Cuban sound like a valiant hero, when the “man” nearly bailed on a team when they needed him the most. You don’t think that had any effect on the Mav’s exit this past post season? On top of that, Simmons seems to be boasting the fact the he was this man’s own hero; nice. Congrats.

Now, I realize that I cannot be impartial here, and that previous paragraph was anything but; yet there is still more to be dissected in this quote I have selected. In the first sentence, Simmons makes a reference to “Vince McMahon-level assistance in Games 3 and 4.” I suppose the McMahon reference is suggesting that Stern had the games fixed so that Miami would win; for the betterment of the game. Except, according to Simmons, this Miami team is boring. Well, if that were the case, where was Stern the previous year when we had to watch Detroit and San Antonio in the “Snooze Fest Defensive Championship?” Or how about this year when the Spurs swept the Cavs in what was another boring Finals? The argument makes no sense. Oh, and if I remember correctly, Game 4 was a blowout for Miami; what part of that was fixed? That also doesn’t make sense, Bill.

Anyhow, to further enrage myself, I proceeded to read his article that he linked to in the quote I wrote above. Basically, he suggests that the Mavs are the team of the future; or at least the style that they play. Well, I know hind sight is 20/20, but HA! I laugh right in your face, Simmons! Not only did the Mavs lose again, in the first round no less, but a team built in the Miami Heat fashion won the whole thing! “One guy creates every shot in crunch time, everyone else stands around and watches him, and every once in awhile those guys get to shoot an open jumper or finish a nice dish.” That is precisely how the Spurs won it all; but Simmons had the audacity to say that this formula wouldn’t work in the NBA anymore; by the way, he was talking about the Heat in that quote; Ha again.

So, Simmons doesn’t really talk about his super prototype anymore in this most recent article. I would argue that teams that play like the Mavs do cannot win championships (Suns, Warriors, the Kings of a few years ago). My proof? They haven’t won… Speaks volumes, doesn’t it? By the way, in what world are the Mavs exciting to watch? Shaq has more personality than the whole team; and their superstar is kinda slow and makes jump shots; jump shots. I am on the edge of my seat waiting for Dirk to hit another jumper.

Anyhow, enough of this rant for now. I know Simmons will never read this, but somehow I feel better after getting it off of my chest.