Miami Heat direction...

[MuggsyBogues]

I for one wish we somehow hooked a healthy Bogut into our lineup


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Bogut is fantastic, and yeah, I would take a healthy Bogut over DeAndre. Easily, no question. Bogut is a much tougher and smarter player than DeAndre. But his health is a ticking time bomb, it would've been too risky.

[MuggsyBogues]

If we are going defense / toughness route, semi-obtainable centers that I would like (in this order):
Marc Gasol
Omer Asik
Larry Sanders

Marc Gasol would obviously be fantastic. He's a perfect fit next to Bosh on the defensive end, a big tough rim protector who can defend true centers well. And he's fantastic on the offensive end as well, able to step out and hit a shot and pass. If you have a PF who can score, Marc Gasol is a great fit for you.

That said, I think he's the most unlikely. He's lived in Memphis forever. He came there as a teenager, he lived there when Pau played for the Grizzlies. He finished high school there. And the Grizzlies love him, I think they are going to pay him and keep him.

Omer Asik is another one whose defense fits the team perfectly, IMO. But his offense worries me, he can't catch the ball. Defensively, I'd rather have him than DeAndre or Tyson Chandler (at this point of his career). But offensively they are better, they can catch and finish well. Omer has Hibbertitis. Or to be fair to Hibbert, Hibbert sucks offensively periodically, it's a mental thing with him, he can turn into a stiff or he can be fantastic sometimes. Omer just has terrible hands.

I think the Pelicans will overpay him, tbh. I would love Asik at a fair price, like 10 mil a year. But the Pelicans traded a lottery pick for him, so they will do anything to keep him past this year.

Larry Sanders is who I think might be the most obtainable. He had a lot of issues last year. The Bucks have John Henson, another lanky shot blocker, and they have Zaza Pachulia. I wouldn't be surprised if they moved him for some expirings and some assets, like a pick. If it costs a pick, I think he would be more than worth the risk.

I would prefer a physically stronger player next to Bosh, but Sanders usually makes up for it with energy and length. He's a tough guy. And he's still young.

[MuggsyBogues]

Speaking of point guards, can I say Mike Conley?

Defense, scoring, playmaking. He's perfect. A free agent in 2016. I think they'll probably pay him a lot and keep him, but you never know. It's worth a try.

[SA37]

The NBA game is no longer made for building a team around a traditional big like 'Zo or Ewing.

Miami doesn't really have a direction at this point. It's kind of in no man's land like it was when 'Zo retired: a team patched up with aging, but serviceable veterans (Anderson, Haslem, Granger) that's good enough to win 50 games and be a top-4 seed in the East, but not good enough to win a title. It has loads of money invested in all-stars who have already peaked -- Deng and Bosh -- (Brian Grant and Eddie Jones anyone?) and a star with unreliable knees in Wade (Tim Hardaway anyone?).

With the focus being on 2016, Miami is just trying to preserve that "winning" mentality to show free agents we're just a piece or two away from competing for a title and to keep from becoming a franchise entrenched in a rebuild like so many others before them.

However, the problem is, Miami will be an old team by then (Deng will be 31, Wade 34, and Bosh 32) and, as of now, there isn't a single young prospect on Miami's team that inspires belief that he can be more than a role player in 2 years' time.

The goal for Miami over the next two years has to be to acquire 2-3 younger players who are more than just the complete projects Miami has taken on over the last few years (see: Beasley, Oden, Joel Anthony, Dexter Pittman, Shaun Livingston, Eddy Curry....).