Tmac was just simply aiming on the championship ring but will be just a minor contributor or not. He is done! And he knows it!!! :grin:
Lebron can play the point forward. Wade can play PG too. I think they are OK even without a starter calibre PG on the team.
Even Bron, Wade and Bosh together cannot break T-Mac's first-round curse. They'd be wise to stay away!
IMO the Heat will far and away have the best record in the league. I don't think bigs is a big problem. For playoff time at PF/C you have Bosh/Haslem/Z gobbling up the minutes. Then probably Anthony/Pittman, old friend Juwan, if you need something else. Hardly exploitable group and lots of fouls for Howard or Bynum. IMO the Heat's major need now is someone to gobble up PG minutes, and maybe an extra swingman. One of Dooling & Watson + one of Mason, Barnes, Stack or George would set them up, but if they have to settle for former Heat guys Williams or Arroyo and James Jones--guys you know will play there for the min, that is a well balanced roster. AND LETS LOOK AT THE COMP Orlando. Yes the Heat will struggle with Howard, who doesn't. But with Bosh at PF, there are 3 Heat players with even worse mismatches. Lewis guarding Bosh, Carter guarding (Wade/Lebron), and someone else (Redick, ha, ha) guarding the other--UGLY x 3. Think of the trouble Boston caused Orlando, now much magnified. Boston. Excellent overall team, but older. Further, Wade and garbage won a game and kept another competitive. Lebron and mediocre has pushed them to 13 tough games in 2 playoff series. Now you are teaming those two, plus Bosh, and some solid role players like Miller, Haslem & Z, total over match. Now if Rondo learns to shoot like Nash or Billips, the equation could be balanced more, but not seeing it. Now sure the Lakers could still present some problems, but Kobe having to defend Wade or Lebron every minute he is out there (not only he can't stop them, but it will take a lot out of him), and just the overall athleticism advantage of the Heat is way big. Let's not forget the Lakers' are not athletic in their backcourt and swingmen with the exception of Kobe--it wasn't like they stormed through OKC, Phx or Boston and didn't have their problems. If the Lakers stay competitive it will have to be because Bynum and Gasol dominate their match-ups. I haven't looked at Bosh vs Gasol history, and Bynum is good but he has hardly been dominant or healthy for a season--so we will see.
If i were the heat, 2 guys i would really want would be kwame and keyon dooling. Kwame is a very,very good defender. Since they will have to trump orlando at some point, kwame matches up pretty well and he's still only 27. Dooling provides good pg play off the bench. He is a good shooter with range and still has the quickness to get to and finish at the rim. The big 3 will provide alot of creases and he can take advantage of them.
The problem is that they only have minimum salaries to pay these guys. Kwame should get a better offer than that considering the money thrown at big men this summer. Kwame hasn't made that much in his career in order to take a major paycut to chase a ring. The guys they attract with the minimum are all older players who've made money and want to add a ring. Shaq would have worked but he's burned his bridges with that team and wouldn't play for the minimum.
Dooling I agree. Him & Watson would be my PG targets If I were them. They can always settle for JW or Arroyo if they have to. I don't think Brown is necc (nor Shaq, Ratliff, Dampier if cut, etc). Bosh/Z/Haslem can take all but a hand full of PF/C minutes. Then you have Anthony & their two rookies provide shot blocking, plenty of fouls and defense, and Jawon when you want the vet/offense. I think their bigs are covered fine. More depth with shooters and another ball handler PG is all they really need IMO. Dooling is the closest in one package.
AS, two young kids, intense job, needed to end my ClutchHead addiction. I'll pop around here and there--if I don't get too sucked in.
I can relate to the intense job part, not that I'm complaining. Don't be a stranger. We need more experienced, level-headed posters chiming in.
what else do they need? all these idiot talking heads were saying they werent sure how good the Heat were gonna be unless they see what kind of supporting players they get, and they went on and on about how everyone else is gonna be on the vet's minimum........come on, it's silly to believe they can get role players to sign up, they're all over the place we're a week and a half or so after the decision, we got joel anthony, haslem, miller, chalmers is still there, big Z is on the way...........that's 8 players right there............how much more is there to do?
They need a big man that can defend and rebound. Their three biggest challengers are the Magic, Celtics, and Lakers right now and all three have big men that can bang down low. Even though Bulls have a great rebounding defending combo in Boozer and Noah. Big Z is a nice addition but he is near the end of his career and has never really been the rebounding/defending type. Udonis is undersized and if they try and keep him and Bosh on the court for too long they will get destroyed inside. They will be a real force when they can get somebody to do all the dirty work but until then I see them having problems come playoff time.
Bosh, Haslem, Z, Anthony, Howard, Pittman & Magloire, the the possibility of dropping Magloire and picking up Dampier, Ratliff or Kurt Thomas if necc, is not bad for what the Heat need. It isn't like Noah or Bynum or Perkins are big offensive threats. Howard is--but that is a lot of bodies to throw at him + Lewis guarding Bosh and (take your pair) Carter/Reddick/Q Rich guarding Wade & Lebron are all laughably bad match-ups for Orlando. The Heat roster is pretty well rounded out, except for smalls. They are missing a stable vet PG and another vet shooter (guard/SF). That is all they need to have all the pieces.
Is Da'Sean Butler gonna play this year? Where was he projected to get drafted before his injury? http://content.usatoday.com/communi...get-the-steal-of-the-draft-in-desean-butler/1
daldridgetnt Riles does it again: Heat have agreed to terms with forward James Jones, who they just bought out 2 weeks ago. Story up soon on NBA.com.
Solid deal for them if he stays healthy. Good 3-point shooter with icewater in his veins. James Jones hits shots when games are on the line.
LOL Riley and the Heat are getting away with so much shady BS but its whatever Stern has acknowledged he's not gonna do anything
