Bosh Grows Up In Game 4: Heat Defeat Celtics 97-90

I was going to call him the Big Pillow. Sure, I am a die-hard Heat fan, but I try to be objective when analyzing my team. It has long been questioned what Chris Bosh’s contribution would be towards this team. We all know he can score and has great range and mobility for a big man but he will never play with his back to the basket and will never be known for tough, physical defense. He may resemble Kevin Garnett in build, but his game is not like his.

Throughout this series, Bosh has gone hot and cold. Most notably, in game three when Bosh was basically non-existent while Kevin Garnett, Bosh’s charge, exploded for 28 points. The association of the word “soft” with Bosh started to flare up.

Rightfully so. Bosh hasn’t played particularly tough defense night in and night out, but instead needs help from the Heat’s best front court defender, Joel Anthony. Even tonight, Bosh was looking lost out there: lost in the flow of the offense and not contributing much at all. Then, all of a sudden, he started hitting shots. Outside shots, fade aways. Eventually, he got a little more confident and started his trademark roar when getting some good looks.

Yet, none of his baskets were as important as his last one – a tip that came off a miss from a Lebron James fadeaway that gave the Heat a huge lift to seal the victory in OT. The Heat were only up by three at that point, and Bosh’s tip gave him 19 points and 11 rebounds on the night. Bosh had previously admitted that the emotions and intensity of game three may have been too much for him. Tonight, he dispelled that as did the Heat, who finally closed out a game on Boston’s floor in victorious fashion. Back to Miami, with a 3-1 lead, the Heat will now look to end the series. Meanwhile, the Hawks and Bulls are knotted up 2-2.

2010 Free Agency: Building for This Moment

The Miami Heat have quietly been building for this 12:01 July 1st deadline for years. Yes, years. Ever since they won the 2006 title, you could say.

Sure, the Heat fielded a competitive team to try and repeat for 2006-2007 season, but the Bulls had other plans that season, sending the Heat out of the playoffs in the first round. It was clear Miami’s championship runs had finished with that squad. It was, after all, the acquisition of Shaquille O’neal that lead to Miami’s title runs during the mid 2000′s.

Coming off the heals of a successful 2003 campaign that watched a young team built around Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, and a young rookie Dwyane Wade, the Heat pulled the trigger and gambled it all for Shaq. The architect? Pat Riley. In fact, every significant run the Heat franchise has made has been done with Riley’s sleight of hand.

He is why Miami is in the best position to control this off-season with over $45M in salary cap free to spend. The potential of this offseason is also why Riley curiously said that coaching was not something he would rule out – much to Erik Spoelstra’s surprise. Riley also is the reason why Miami is a legit destination for Lebron James; some even go so far as to put Chris Bosh in Miami despite the impossibility of a sign-and-trade.

This is not something that happens without foresight. Pat Riley has had to shrewdly keep in mind this offseason when acquiring players. Take James Jones’ contract. He had an option for over $4.5M – but it was a team option. Riley had to final say on whether or not to extend James’ contract and since they needed the extra cap space, the answer was “no, thanks”.

Daequan Cook is a solid, promising shooter off the bench. His contract, however, got in the way. Riley shipped him off undervalued, to be sure, along with the 18th pick to get out of the first round for the 32nd pick. Clearly no one would make that deal – unless you are Pat Riley and you have a plan.

Now, the plan is a tough one, but one that Riley has been looking forward to for years. He has to re-sign Wade, and to do that he has to convince him Miami is the place to be. Which means, Riley has to make a splash right away – either a sign and trade for Chris Bosh or a straight up signing of either Carlos Boozer or Amare Stoudemire. Toronto has scoffed at the idea of getting Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers, and Joel Anthony in return for Bosh, but they are open to getting a trade exception (about $16M!) and their first round pick back (which was dealt as part of the Jermaine O’neal deal) so don’t rule them out.

Then, after all of that, King James awaits. Perhaps he stays in Cleveland and nothing happens. But most likely, he is waiting to see how things will shake out. If the Heat can keep Wade, land a marquee power forward, then Riley has everything in place to pull off yet another major acquisition: his biggest yet. Alonzo? Shaq? Drafting Wade? Signing Lebron James just may trump all of those considering all the competition out there – but it wouldn’t have been done without a solid plan and vision in place running on years of creation.

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Rumor Mill: Bosh to Heat a Done Deal?

So this is what the Heat get for that Juwan Howard fiasco – a karmic payback in the sign and trade of Chris Bosh. Latest reports swirling around the internet is that the Heat are shipping Mario Chalmers, Michael Beasley, and Joel Anthony (a Canadian) to the Raptors for Chris Bosh.

Call me crazy, but I’m not buying it.

Remember back in the offseason of ’96 when Juwan Howard became the first player to sign a $100M contract? It was on TV and everything. There was Juwan Howard, holding a Heat jersey and all smiles. Then, the NBA rejected the contract, stated that the Heat miscalculated how much money they had to spend against the cap and poof! Howard was back in Washington where he claimed he “always wanted to be”. The Heat were going to pursue litigation but then dropped the charges (boy, there is a story there, huh?).

One of the things about these rumors is that they cannot be validated. Why? Tampering. No player or official can comment on free agency or trades because, well, the NBA has mandated that nothing is allowed until after the July 1st moratorium deadline. So, 12 hours from now – wait and see what hits the blogosphere.

But if any team wants to get the inside track on Lebron, getting Chris Bosh would garner his attention. The Heat need to keep Dwyane Wade and getting Chris Bosh would be a nice way to start the offseason. With Bosh in house, the Heat could lock down Wade and then turn their attention to getting Lebron James. I still think Lebron is going to be one of the last ones to sign – he is going to wait this out and see how things shake out. Getting Bosh may give a franchise the significant leg up it needs to land the King.

We’ll try and sort things out on our twitter feed: Miamiheatwave@twitter

Fallout From Failed Odom Signing Could Prove Crucial For Heat Future

Now, there is a saying that there is no such thing as a must win game. Well, for the Heat, this might be a crucial offseason looking like a must win situation. The pressure may now have shifted to Pat Riley as well, who is faced with paying luxury taxes on a team that got into the playoffs last year and is faced with proving itself a good fit for Dwyane Wade’s future as he looks forward to next offseason’s big boon.

Let’s look at the Heat’s situation – they just failed in their attempt at signing Odom to the mid-level exception. It was a gamble, sure, but it didn’t work out. Heat fans might feel reminded of the Mo Williams sweepstakes just over a few seasons ago. The Heat also let Jamario Moon walk without getting any compensation. Perhaps it was overlooked by the Heat’s attempt to land Odom, but that would be too simplistic. If the Heat re-signed Moon they would be faced with paying double – since they are currently over the league’s $69.9 million dollar luxury tax line.

Could Tinsley be in Miami next season?The Heat have several options on the table. They are reportedly looking at Jamaal Tinsley, who would be an affordable addition to the Heat’s roster as he would provide a veteran point guard at roughly $1 million – which raises the total cost to $2M when considering the luxury tax penalty. He would compete with Mario Chalmers for the starting spot and provide more depth. Milwaukee Bucks restricted free agent Ramon Sessions remains available, but reports are that the Knicks are leaning towards extending him an offer which means the Heat’s chances to nabbing Tinsley increase.

There are other free agents that could help as well. A major need for the Heat is rebounding and Memphis has let Hakim Warrick dangle out in the free agent jetstream. The Cavs have apparently extended an offer so it isn’t certain at this time that Miami is even in the conversation. A major hurdle for Miami is the luxury tax, so if Miami is to add another player it is most likely going to be a bargain basement deal so they take a minimal hit.

There is also the Carlos Boozer situation, which has cooled substantially. Don’t expect the Heat to make a deal but then again, this is precisely when Pat Riley usually shocks people with getting a deal. The Heat have tons of contracts that are expiring after this season – the Heat would just have to be willing to take back money in return. If the Heat want to sign a player, they have to free up money. If they want to trade for another player, they have these expiring contracts which would look good to teams like the Utah Jazz – who has the highest payroll in the NBA and paying a lot in luxury tax, around $20M. Who are the expiring contracts for the Heat?

  • Jermaine O’neal $22.9M
  • Mark Blount $7.9M
  • Udonis Haslem $7.1M
  • Dorell Wright $2.75M
  • Jamaal Magliore $1.2M (re-signed for this upcoming season)
  • Chris Quinn $1.05M (re-signed for this upcoming season)
  • Yakhouba Diawara $945K
  • Joel Anthony $825K (re-signed for this upcoming season)

In order for the Heat to deal these contracts, the situation would have to be deemed an improvement for Pat Riley. That means not taking on any salary that would limit the Heat’s financial flexibility for the upcoming offseason. The Heat’s goal is to re-sign Wade to a long term deal as well as add a potential marquee free agent like a Chris Bosh or, even dare, Lebron James.

Yet right now, the Heat has to shift its focus to this offseason and the upcoming season otherwise, they may have a hard time convincing anyone to come to South Beach to play basketball.

Tell us what you think – discuss the Heat’s next move on our forum.

Heat Free Agents: Updates

The Miami Heat have only a handful of free agents to worry about this offseason in two tiers – restricted and unrestricted.

For the restricted portion, there are Joel Anthony and Jamario Moon. For the unrestricted, there are Jamaal Magloire and Luther Head.

With the Heat drafting Patrick Beverley and re-signing Chris Quinn, it might be safe to say that Luther Head’s tenure with the Heat is over. As for Jamaal Magloire, he is drawing interest from other teams but it is not known at this time if the Heat will bring him back.

Both Joel Anthony and Jamario Moon, however, have qualifying offers on the table. This means the Heat can match any deal and will get the first chance to keep these players on the roster. Moon seems to be of particular importance since Riley had quietly been eyeying him for a while and insisted on getting Moon in the deal for Jermaine O’neal. Joel Anthony offers a tangible NBA skill in his uncanny ability to block shots and keep them in play for his team. If Magloire leaves, Anthony becomes even more of a necessity.

The Heat are most likely not going to be pursuing big named free agents this offseason as they attempt to keep Wade in Miami beyond 2010 and at the same time, the Heat want to keep their options open heading into the 2010 free agent market as many of the marquee names become available.

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