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MIAMI HEAT: state of the franchise

State of the Franchise

Projected Cap Space (before luxury tax): $6.4 million

Background: Much like the Pacers, Miami's championship hopes were dashed when they learned that their superstar would not be playing for them next season. Only for Miami, that superstar was the best player in the world. Worse, he wasn't just injured for one year. He had left them for good. When LeBron James suddenly decided to return to Cleveland, where he had one title appearance and zero titles in seven years, over his Heat, where he had four title appearances and two titles in four years, he left mastermind president Pat Riley to frantically put together a team that could still be competitive. Of course, never doubt Pat Riley, who coached the showtime Lakers of the 80s that brought five more titles to LA, featuring PG Magic Johnson and C Kareem-Abdul Jabbar, the 90s Knicks starring C Patrick Ewing, and the 2006 Miami Heat title team, led by SG Dwyane Wade and C Shaquille O'Neal, as well as bringing the "Big Three" of Lebron, PF/C Chris Bosh, and Wade to Miami , and the two ensuing titles. Following James' sudden departure, the legend was able to keep Bosh in town on a max deal, despite a strong push from the Houston Rockets for Bosh's services. Defensive ace SF Luol Deng was brought in to replace James, do-it-all PF Josh McRoberts was signed on the full mid-level exception, and Heat-lifer Dwyane Wade took a massive pay cut to make it all possible. The Heat weren't expected to be as successful as they were with LeBron, but they were still supposed to remain very competitive. However, that hasn't necessarily been the case. Miami finds themselves under .500 at midseason, though the team is still likely to make the playoffs in the weak Eastern Conference. It is hard to point to anyone specific for the Heat's misfortunes, other than LeBron of course, and there has rather been a series of unfortunate injuries. Notably, McRoberts is likely out for the year, and Bosh, Deng, and especially Wade have all missed time with injuries, among others. Several role players, including C Hassan Whiteside, have all stepped up, but the Heat's once-frenetic defense has fallen to among the worst in the NBA. However, there is still hope for Miami to become title town once again. Other than Bosh and McRoberts, all contracts are set to expire in 2016, and Riley figures to do a repeat of 2010, where Bosh, James, and Wade were united in Miami. Of course, Riley will have both the cap and the pedigree to lure a couple of superstars to South Beach in what could be the most loaded free agent class of all time.

Current Financial State: The Heat will have very little wiggle room this off-season, as just about every player on the team right now is under contract through next season, with almost all of them expiring then. Miami will have about $7 million to spend this offseason before the luxury tax, but nobody will be signed for a contract lasting longer than one year. This is because Riley has made it very clear that he intends to go all-in for the 2016 free agent class by making sure he has the money available, with under $30 million committed for that season. However, it becomes much easier to make a pitch to a superstar to come play for your team if you are coming off a successful season, so Riley should invest in somebody this year on a short-term contract to improve the team’s record, thereby increasing his chances of landing a stud. Got it? Good. Let’s move on.

Targets: But why wait until free agency this season to find someone who can make it an impact? The Heat have been lacking a quality backup SG to Wade since Ray Allen retired this past year, and this becomes a much more glaring issue when you consider how much time Wade has been missing with various injuries. The hottest SG currently on the trade market is immature-but-talented Lance Stephenson. The trade I have worked out would go as follows: the Hornets give Lance and the cheap expiring deal of PF Jason Maxiell in exchange for PG Norris Cole and PF Josh McRoberts as well as Miami’s second-rounder. This deal is all about two things for each team: injury replacements and failed offseason signings. For Charlotte, PG Kemba Walker is expected to miss about a month and a half with a knee injury, and with the East wide open, Charlotte is currently looking to the trade market for a point guard, with already rumored interest in Cole. The Stephenson signing was a disaster from the get-go, as poor shooting and injuries have been the main reason for Charlotte’s struggles this season. Speaking of bad signings this offseason, McRoberts is sort of an odd case in this deal. He was a free agent this past offseason, playing with Charlotte the previous year, and chose to sign with the Heat over the then-Bobcats. McRoberts, as touched on above, has been a disaster for the Heat, although it is likely that the main cause of his poor performance are injuries. The Hornets’ need for a McRoberts-esque player, a power forward who can shoot, pass, and defend, has been most glaring in this disappointing season. McRoberts to Charlotte would be best for all parties involved. For Miami, this couldn’t have been a more perfect deal from a financial standpoint. Stephenson is on a 3 year/$27 million deal, but with a team option on the third year that Miami will decline in order to save cap space for the 2016 offseason. McRoberts was the only player not named Chris Bosh to have a contract running past that off-season, and now Miami will have even more cap in what could be the most stacked free agency of all time, while addressing a need in the present.

The Fit: This one is almost self-explanatory. Losing Cole and McRoberts certainly hurts, but with PG Mario Chalmers starting over Cole anyways, and rookie PG Shabazz Napier on call, Miami can afford to lose a point guard. McRoberts could be out for the season anyways, and with the recent emergence of C Hassan Whiteside allowing Bosh to play more power forward, Miami can easily take the downgrade from McRoberts to Jason Maxiell at the four. The second round pick is no big deal, as the Heat could have quite a few of them this year anyways. As for what they’re getting back, SG Lance Stephenson represents a low-risk, high-reward sort of player, considering how little Miami has to give up for him due to how desperate Charlotte is to get rid of him, and for a point guard and a power forward as well. Miami has been lacking a quality backup shooting guard to Wade this season, as legendary SG Ray Allen is now retired (sort of). Lance can easily fill this hole, and Wade can even occasionally run the point like he used to do, while Lance can play the two. When Wade is injured, Lance will immediately become a full-time starter at shooting guard. Stephenson’s offensive game is still developing, and although he has been shooting poorly this season, he did average 14 ppg last year on a solid 48% shooting, where he also led the league in triple-doubles. The Heat will not ask much of Lance, who is bursting with potential, but if Wade were to go down, the antic-full SG must be ready to step up.
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