NBA Off-Season

Mike Miller is the big pickup. He is a legit combo small forward/big guard and he will seize this opportunity of a lifetime to make the most of a superior shooting touch that has established him as one of the league’s better 3-point specialists. But that’s not all he does. He’s a serious all-around basketball player who has just been elevated into one of the league’s most dangerous sixth-man types.

Bob Ryan, with a condensed break down of Miami’s roster. Keep in mind that Bob Ryan has forgotten more about the NBA than most of us will ever know. Plus, he ends his quick column by making the point we must all remember: The title? The Lakers are still the champs, last I heard.

While the HEAT may have won the off-season title, the NBA only gives out one trophy. In June. The Lakers have re-tooled, extremely well I might add, & will be properly motivated. The are the two-time champs, as well as the favorites. As long as both these teams stay healthy & avoid the drama that will shadow them both, we will be in for an epic post-season in 2011.

Too bad it’s 8+ months away…

(winston wolfe)

NBA Trade Minutia of the Day: Mike Miller Edition

Brainworks posted some interesting thoughts about Mike Miller the other day that has motivated me to research player comps, both current & historical, for the Heat’s new 6th man. While still working on that(I’ll have something posted on the topic soon), I stumbled upon some info about how Miller’s draft day fate was tied into one of the biggest trades in league history…C-Webb for Penny.

Back in 1993, when some of you kids were running around in diapers, Golden State traded Penny Hardaway and 1st round picks in ‘96, ‘98, & ‘00, to the Magic for Chris Webber. Those picks were later used on Todd Fuller(11th pick in ‘96 by GSW), Vince Carter(5th pick in ‘98 by ORL), and Mike Miller(5th pick in ‘00 by ORL). The picks sent to the Magic were actually then dealt a few times between June of ‘93 and 2000.

Miller has certainly been a part of some interesting trades. He was a piece in the Kevin Love for OJ Mayo deal, traded by the Magic with the pick later used on Kendrick Perkins, and as part of the Ricky Rubio to T-Wolves fiasco in ‘09. Say what you will about his on the court skills, but Miller sure knows how to get traded.

Can we all sign off on calling these guys Run-DLC & be done with it?

On second thought, let’s insert Mike Miller in there. He’s going to be just as key as Bosh in the post-season anyway. We could make it a foursome and call them Run-DJMC.

ugghh, how many days until the season starts again?

(winston wolfe)

Mike Miller is as wet as an ocean. Welcome to South Beach, Mike.

@Suga_Shane

LeBron James: Loved, hated, misunderstood

While not quite on the same level of the Windhorst piece, Dan LeBatard of the Miami Herald does add some interesting talking points to the discussion in the column linked here. He grabbed my attention with this initial thought:

He chose to take less money. He chose to sacrifice being the singular star of his team in order to share the stage — and in a city that belonged to another star, no less. He chose to admit to all that he needed to lean on a friend for help. He chose to go from the easy and forever love of little Cleveland to unholy criticism that would wildfire-spread from the burning jerseys in his hometown to a smoldering that would engulf our entire sports nation. He chose to go from hero to villain. Chose it. Think about that. He chose to go from love to hate. And he chose to subjugate his enormous ego in the name of team. In other words, he put winning above all else — above money, adoration, even home.

And that’s a bad thing? Doesn’t America usually love that kind of rah-rah sacrifice in sports? Don’t those ideals usually get transformed into Hoosiers instead of Hatred? Given his standing, the reigning two-time MVP in his prime at 25, it is only a decision that is without precedent in the history of American sports. If people wouldn’t laugh you out of the room because he is making $110 million for bouncing a basketball, you could make the argument that what James did, if indeed he was aware of the backlash it would cause, was damn near noble and brave. Pioneers rarely get to be popular while in the middle of the pioneering. Real leadership always risks unpopularity.

While I am certainly not ready to give LeBron a medal for his “courage under fire” as LeBatard seems to be, I do think many in the league who are speaking out against his actions should be prepared for the consequences. This is definitely a column worth reading for perspective. Maybe even more so is the one William C. Rhoden of the NYT did the other day on LBJ being attacked by his former employer. This point I thought to be outstanding, as most of Rhoden’s writing is, was this:

Yet it was Gilbert who created the King James monster; it was Gilbert who nurtured and reinforced James’s prima donna-isms, all of the preening and dancing. Now he acts like a lover scorned and lashes out with gibberish about karma and curses.

Gilbert must think he really owned LeBron James.

Surely, he understands business. You win some, you lose some. With LeBron James, Gilbert won a lot more than he lost. Now, Gilbert has lost a gem in James. And he has lost respect. He has released enough players and let go of enough employees to understand that loyalty, especially in sports, is largely a matter of convenience and timing.

So before you close the book on Lebron and his escapades, read these two pieces. They offer perspective. The same goes for the post brainworks did for us. It offered a true NBA fan’s point of view, to go along with the media’s, which as we all may be colored by a hidden agenda. On our blog he asked, “What Hath LeBron Wrought?”. We may not know that answer until June of 2011 or maybe even 2012. My fear is that we may be asking, “How will the NBA ever stop the fury of Lebron James”? There is no debating that LeBron has been given everything in his life either too soon or too easily. In my opinion, that may have been what’s kept the fire, the same fire all the great ones have within themselves, from igniting in LeBron’s heart & mind.

If that’s the case, then the fury of LeBron James may be something each and every detractor may regret ever demanding to see.

(winston wolfe)

Miami Herald: “Cavs FA center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is ‘looking into option’ of joining buddy LeBron in Miami, likely at vet min.”

Another solid vet looking to join the ~~NWO~~ Heat.

He averaged 7 points, 5 rebounds, and a block a game last year, while playing about 20 mins a game.

The Heat are now linked in varying degrees of interest—a couple probably have agreements already while other will use Heat as leverage to sign for more $$ elsewhere— to the follwoing players to round out their roster:

Guards: Derek Fisher, Jason Williams, Keyon Dooling, Carlos Arroyo, & Mike James
Forwards: Mike Miller, Udonis Haslem, Matt Barnes
Centers: Ilgauskas, Juwan Howard

(w.w.)

Sources: LeBron meets Fisher at airport

LeBron James met Fisher at the airport and gave his own pitch as to why the five-time NBA champion should join forces with James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in South Beach, according to sources with knowledge of the situation.

It was a short meeting, as James was at the airport and on his way to New York to attend Denver star Carmelo Anthony’s wedding Saturday evening.

But James clearly went out of his way to wait for Fisher to arrive and meet with him for a few minutes.

(w.w)

Breaking: Pat Riley to meet with Derek Fisher on Saturday. Could he really leave?

Highly unlikely that he leaves the Lakers, not matter how unhappy he is that L.A. seemingly is trying to low ball him on a new deal, but it would be about as big an acquisition of a role player that Miami could make.

Fisher is a very loyal guy & as good a friend Kobe has on the team. Not to mention that Fish went back to L.A. to secure the proper care for his daughter in her battle with eye disease. For him to leave and go to Miami would have to mean L.A. has decided to try and get younger on the fly and would almost lead you to believe they are working hard on other deals to change the make-up of the team going into Phil Jackson’s last season.

There’s no way Kobe allows the Lakers to lose Derek Fisher, is there?

(winston wolfe)

New Era in the NBA

(winston wolfe)

The Don looks on in approval…

(winston wolfe)

The Unholy Trio

LeBron, Wade and Bosh.

That sounds pretty good, right? A lot of people are saying the Miami Heat will win the next five titles (give or take).

Well, why don’t we play a little game…

I’m going to be an imaginary GM for a second. Let me put together a team.

First, I’m taking LeBron. He’s a beast. Gotta have LeBron. Could have averaged a triple-double per game in the right system. And I’m gonna add Dwyane Wade. That guy can get 250 free throws in the Playoffs. I need a guy like that on my team.

I’m not so much of a Chris Bosh guy. He’s never done much, but acts like he has. I don’t like that kind of player. He was the #1 on a horrible team, and most people STILL don’t know about him. I’m dumping him.

In his stead, I’m signing Tim Duncan. A younger Duncan too. Lets knock 5 years off his odometer. So, how about that team? LeBron, Wade and a younger Tim Duncan? That’s a pretty great threesome. Way better than the ‘10-‘11 Heat.

But hey, this is my fantasy, so I’m gonna keep going. I need forwards, so why not grab Amar’e and Boozer? They were both free agents, so it makes sense. Oooh! I love Carmelo. He’s just cocky enough, and just gutsy enough for me. I gotta have Melo.

LeBron can run the point, right? Let’s line ‘em up:

PG - Bron

SG - Wade

SF - Melo

PF - Amar’e

C - Duncan

And, I’ve got Boozer on the bench. Now that’s a title winner! I’ll just fill out my roster with minimum guys. Convince some vets to come chase a ring.

You know what? Screw that. I’ve come this far, why not fill out my squad with athletic guys like Shawn Marion and Richard Jefferson, and role players like Lamar Odom and Emeka Okafor? I’m even gonna add younger versions of Allen Iverson and Stephon Marbury.

I think I can even get Larry Brown to coach them. He’s won titles at every level.

Now that’s a goddamn team. All those superstars? How can they lose? That team’s gonna win the next 50 championships, right?

Well, that was the lineup for the 2004 United States Olympic Basketball team.

And that team lost, when it counted - playing for the Gold Medal game - against a scrappy group of Argentinians, led by Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola, Fabricio Oberto, Andres Nocioni, Carlos Delfino, Pepe Sanchez, Walter Herrman and a bunch of dudes you’ve never heard of in your life. Argentina played like a team, believed in themselves, and beat us at our own game.

Hell, that team lost to Puerto Rico. By 20 points. Lithuania beat us too.

If you think Miami just won a championship by signing LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, I’m here to say, you’re wrong.

Title teams, throughout time, have had the Derek Fishers, the Robert Horrys, the Dave Cowenses, the Sam Joneses, the Dennis Johnsons, the Ron Harpers, the James Poseys, the Brian Shaws, the Cliff Levingstons, the John Paxsons, the John Salleys, the Bruce Bowens, the Manu Ginobilis.

Maybe the Heat can get some players to accept peanuts to chase the title. But don’t forget, as my buddy Squibb texted me, they’ll need people to accept peanuts for the next 5 years.

Championship teams need heart. Grit. Leaders. And roles. I just don’t see it yet.

And Erik Spoelstra? That guy’s been a head coach for 2 years. I’m not sure I believe he’ll know how to balance those egos and minutes. I’m certain those players don’t know how to do it.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics are two proud teams. The Lakers are a bit flaky. The Celtics are a bit old. At this point, each needs a little inspiration to get after it. They both have it now.

But this is about the Heat, and the pressure on Miami is higher than any team I can remember before it. The catch is, this squad’s done nothing. Never played a game together. Needless to say, next season, we’ll find out what winning basketball is all about.

(photos by NBA.com/SI Vault)

(written by brainworks)

The Lakers made six three-pointers against Miami, but Quentin Richardson made seven triples on his own. That was the difference, as the Heat edged the Lakers by three in OT. Richardson also had three steals and a block. Somewhere, Darius Miles tapped his forehead with both fists and wept proud tears.

(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)

Stan Van Gundy admires J.J. Redick’s defensive effort, while assistant coach Patrick Ewing admires Dorell Wright’s ass.

(Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images)

Quentin Richardson checks the scoreboard nervously, just to make sure he hasn’t somehow been traded again.

(Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images)

Player of the Night honors go to D-Wade of the Miami Wades. He went off for 41pts(14 in the 4th qtr.)/5 Rebs./5 Asst./3 Steals and a block for good measure.

My feeling is that Miami is going to be a major player this Summer, maybe even the Summer after that, by aggressively surrounding Wade—an assassin on both ends of the court—with three key pieces:

An All Star quality front-court player. More on this below
The requisite sniper off the bench who can can play off the ball along the perimeter and knock down threes, negating Wade’s constant double team dilemma
That defensive stopper off the bench to provide support for 15-18 mins. a night on one of the opponents top offensive threats

Now I’ve mentioned once before that Lebron has to look at the situation in South Beach with an admiring eye. All King James rumors start with the Knicks, with the Nets a close second & seemingly just as attractive for a variety of reasons, lets talk dollars & basketball sense. While the Big Apple is certainly alluring & the Cavs can offer him an extra year at around $30 million more over the life of his next payday, keep in mind that FLA has no state income tax. That makes up for $10 million(at a minimum) of that $30 mill diffference, which is nice. Yet does that coin really matter to a revenue machine like James? Maybe, maybe not. Plus he’d be very hard pressed to find a better player to help him dominate the league over the next 5 years than D-Wade. Now, if I’m not persuasive enough, how about Marc Stein at ESPN

Heard it from someone plugged into the Team USA scene this week. From a prominent player agent. From an Eastern Conference team official, too.

Move Miami up your list.

That’s the advice I’m getting more and more. No doctorate required to understand the thinking, either: Miami’s combination of Dwyane Wade, Pat Riley, sufficient cap space to sign one max player and the bonus attraction of South Beach adds up to an offer LeBron might not be able to refuse.

Did we mention D-Wade?

The long-held assumption around the league called for Riley — forever married to the idea that you win nothing without a dominant big man — to try to sign Bosh away from Toronto to partner with D-Wade, helped along by the fact that Bosh and Wade are both represented by Chicago-based agent Henry Thomas. Yet one source close to the situation told ESPN.com on Thursday night that the theory is outdated. The source is further convinced that Bosh isn’t even looking at Miami and that Riley is definitely dreaming of a Wade-and-LeBron combo.

Michael Beasley might be the only other NBA-worthy starter besides Wade on the Heat’s roster come July — and Beasley obviously still has plenty to prove — but surely James will be tempted. Think about it.

Let’s not overstate the chance to work with Riley or the South Beach factor but instead focus solely on the opportunity to hook up with his fellow 2003 draftee and form what might be the most dynamic perimeter tag team of all-time. At worst? LeBron and Wade could sure put a modern/scary/spectacular spin on the Jordan-and-Scottie Pippen concept.

I’m starting to get the vibe that the Cavs know it, too.

Wow. Convincing right? So with my theory in place how does a 2010-2011 line up consisting of Mario Chalmers, Wade, Lebron, Beasley, & someone from the free agent pu-pu platter of centers like Jermaine O’Neal-Joel Przybilla-Channing Frye-Brad Miller-Zydrunas Ilgaukus-Brendan Haywood look? Pretty appealing right? Throw in some combination of players like Raja Bell, Roger Mason, Steve Blake, Travis Outlaw, Kyle Korver, or free agents X, Y, Z, and the days of 65% capacity at Heat games maybe a thing of the past.