Tag: Miami Heat (Page 35 of 49)

      Udonis Haslem’s impact on free agency

      April 9, 2010 /

      Strange title, I know. But Israel Gutierrez of the Miami Herald thinks that the Heat need to hold onto Udonis Haslem.

      Haslem has played so well during the Heat’s stretch of 15 victories in 18 games that he arguably is proving himself indispensable to this organization.

      We have seen Haslem do this during the past seven seasons, providing the timely scoring punch, pulling out just the right defensive play, changing the demeanor of the team and teaming with Dwyane Wade to occasionally carry the Heat.

      But never has Haslem been such a steady, stabilizing force as he has been during the past six weeks. He’s not just a luxury. He’s a necessity.

      There just aren’t many like him in the league. You have loved him since he has been here, but you will miss him even more if he leaves. He’s Horace Grant. He’s Charles Oakley. He’s essential.

      How can the Heat keep him if they’re hoping to re-sign Wade and sign another max free agent? Gutierrez suggests going the sign-and-trade route to acquire the other max free agent, going over the cap and re-signing Haslem that way, since the Heat owns his Bird rights. That means parting ways with Michael Beasley:

      Beasley, already unhappy as a lost No. 2 scorer, would now have to readjust as a third scorer, and probably at a different position if the free agent score is either Amare Stoudemire or Chris Bosh.

      As much as it might be unfair to bluntly say this when you’re comparing a 21-year-old to a 29-year-old, but Haslem is more important than Beasley, not only now, but also for what the Heat hopes to accomplish over the next few years.

      Another route would be to sign Wade and Bosh/Stoudemire outright and then sign Haslem using the team’s mid-level exception, if he’d be willing to stay for around $6.0-$6.5 million per season.

      And on another note, are Chris Bosh and Amare Stoudemire really power forwards? The Heat may let Haslem go because he “plays the same position” as both of those superstars, but with his strong defense, rebounding and his knack for hitting the open jumper, he would fit in alongside them assuming that their matchup at center isn’t too bad. I think you sign a big defensive-minded seven-footer to help out on Dwight Howard and Shaq (and maybe Bogut) and you run with Bosh or Stoudemire at the 5 the rest of the time.

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      Bosh (kind of) discusses summer plans

      March 29, 2010 /

      Chris Bosh answered questions from the South Florida Sun Sentinel about the chances that he lands in Miami this this summer.

      He knows Wade “a little bit, not a lot,” he said. So scratch the friendship angle.

      “It’s nice here, but there are a lot of nice places,” he said. So scratch the South Florida angle.

      “Winning,” Bosh said when asked what his decision will hinge on. “I’m fortunate enough to have enough money. After seven years in the league, I want to play on a contender.”

      The Miami Herald has more about how well Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh know each other.

      “I know Dwyane a little bit, not a lot,” Bosh said. “We haven’t spent that much time outside of USA Basketball. People always are going to look for some kind of connection. That’s understandable. People are going to try to make things up. There is always going to be speculation. So I’ll let everybody write their stories and keep going about my business.”

      Bosh also said that he expected it to take a while for the big names to make up their minds.

      `I think it’s going to drag out for a while,” Bosh said before Sunday’s game against the Heat. “There are so many possibilities and scenarios, with guys staying with their own teams and trying to get other guys [to sign].

      “You have to look at combinations and possibilities of what could happen. So I don’t expect it to be over too quickly.”

      First off, this sure sounds like a guy who’s leaving town, doesn’t it?

      There’s still a feeling that Toronto could swing a sign-and-trade for Bosh, so that he can sign for an extra season and more money, but that would require enough in the way of assets to get Toronto to bite. Why would Bosh bother to agree to such a scenario when it would only fleece his new team of their draft picks and/or young players? That would hurt his new team’s championship chances, correct?

      The only scenario I can see at the moment is the Lakers. If Bosh wants to play in L.A. with Kobe, the Lakers could send Andrew Bynum to Toronto in return. However, Bynum’s long history of injury is only getting longer.

      I still stand by my prediction that Bosh is going to walk and the Raptors will get nothing in return.


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      Daily News writer has the key to LeBron’s brain

      February 21, 2010 /

      No one really knows what LeBron will do this summer, not even LeBron. But Mitch Lawrence of the NY Daily News says you can cross three teams off the list.

      First, the Clippers…

      James isn’t playing second fiddle to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, even if Clippers GM Mike Dunleavy traded off Marcus Camby, Al Thornton, Sebastian Telfair and got rid of Ricky Davis to create a maximum salary slot for the express purpose of landing James.

      Kobe is turning 32 this season and isn’t going to play forever. He has already played 1,158 games and his knees are eventually going to give out, so LeBron wouldn’t be playing “second fiddle” for long, if at all. LeBron might see the taking of L.A. and the resurrecting of a long-maligned franchise as a worthy challenge. Will LeBron sign with the Clippers? Probably not, but not because of Kobe. The Clippers’ best player, Baron Davis, is already 30 and injury-prone, and owner Donald Sterling doesn’t have a very good reputation.

      Next up, the Nets…

      Continue reading »

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      Did Miami just blow its chance to re-sign Wade?

      February 18, 2010 /

      With their two biggest competitors for Dwyane Wade’s services — the Knicks and the Bulls — both successfully pulling off deadline deals to clear additional cap space, the Miami Heat scrambled to add Amare Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer to the mix to keep Wade happy (and in town). We don’t know what they offered, but whatever it was, it apparently wasn’t enough, because the Heat will try to make the playoffs with the same lineup that has the team at 28-27 and in the #7 spot in the East. To make matters worse, Wade heard a “pop” in his calf on Wednesday night and could miss some time, further hindering Miami’s postseason hopes.

      Like the Heat, the Knicks now have enough cap space to sign two “max” free agents, and if LeBron is unavailable, they could go to Wade and ask him who he wants to play with — Chris Bosh? Amare Stoudemire? Carlos Boozer? — and sign both. Wade could get the same deal (and a little more money) from the Heat, but will he hold Miami’s inability to bring help this season against them? Meanwhile, the Bulls (Wade’s hometown team) unloaded John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas, clearing the way for a max offer this summer. Wade would look nice in a lineup with Derrick Rose, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah.

      I give the Heat credit — they sure tried to acquire a big name. But they failed, and the fact that they were scrambling up until the deadline indicates that they think that losing Wade this summer is a real possibility. And they’re right.

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      Miami making a late bid for Carlos Boozer?

      February 18, 2010 /

      ESPN’s Ric Bucher tweeted this 15 minutes ago:

      This is ESPN Rumor Central fodder for now but too tantalizing not to mention: 11th-hour talks are on that would send Boozer to Miami.

      Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski followed up with this:

      Utah and Miami have recruited Wiz to be 3rd team in Boozer talks. Wash would get cap relief out of it. Beasley not involved, source says.

      Michael Beasley wouldn’t seem like a good fit with Jerry Sloan, so it makes sense that Wojnarowski is saying that he’s not involved. But who would the Jazz get in this deal? Udonis Haslem? Jermaine O’Neal? Josh Howard? Al Thornton? Mike Miller?

      I’ve always thought that Miller was destined to play in Utah, but would he be worth giving up Boozer and the team’s shot at a playoff run this year? Maybe the Jazz would go for Miller and one of the Heat’s first round picks.

      Wojnarowski says that Washington will get salary cap relief out of it, but they only have one bad contract (Gilbert Arenas) on the books for next season, so he must be talking about relief this season. How about this trade which would send Miller and Dorrell Wright (and one of Miami’s first round picks) to Utah, Udonis Haslem to Washington (trimming $2.8 million from this year’s payroll) and Boozer to Miami?


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