For Dwyane Wade, there will be a slimmer star, one entrusted with more ball-handling responsibilities and a greater offensive load.
For Chris Bosh, there will be more offensive assertiveness after spending weeks in the shadows of the Pacific Ocean polishing the low-post skills he displayed in Toronto but weren’t consistently needed here.
For Mario Chalmers, there will be a renewed offensive bent.
And for Udonis Haslem, there will be less need to pass up the open mid-range shot.
“Hopefully,” Haslem said, “I can be a little bit more of who I was in the past instead of just trying to stay out of the way all the time.”
Naturally, all would have preferred LeBron James stay.
But what awaits without him “got me excited for the next chapter, to rise up to the challenge,” Bosh told 790/104.3 The Ticket this summer. “It gives us an opportunity to play with a chip on our shoulder. It’s revitalized my attitude toward basketball. We have a very good team.”
So what will we see more of from Bosh?
“C.B. is going to get back down in the post” some, Haslem said.
In workouts at UCLA this summer with respected trainer Ed Downs and former Arizona and ex-NBA guard Miles Simon, Bosh has been working on operating with the ball in his hands more often and also polishing post moves that were often sacrificed to accommodate the Heat’s system.
“On the offensive end, he’s planning on more touches and being more of a focal point of the offense,” Simon said by phone. “The feeling I get from him is he can go back to his days as a Toronto Raptor putting up 20 and 10. He’s looking forward to meeting that challenge.
“He seems very focused. He has really expanded his game with the threes [the past two years] and he will be around the basket more this season. This summer, he has worked a lot on back-to-the-basket moves and a lot on footwork. You will see his game evolve. You will see him command double teams. He will come to camp in really good shape.”
Bosh said: “It’s cool to be in that situation again” of assuming a bigger role offensively. “I’m a much better player than I was the last time in that position.”
Wade, 32, said he will not get a complete feel for his new role until training camp and cautions: “I can’t go back five years.”
But Haslem said: “We’re going to need more from him not just offensively, but defensively as well, getting back to being that first-, second-team All Defensive player he was, leading our defense.
“He’s definitely going to have to be more aggressive. In the fourth quarter, there are going to be times for him to take over the game like he did in the past. Last four years, it was a little bit of everybody, but the offense was dictated going through LeBron. We’re going to have to go through Dwyane down the stretch now. He’s going to be the playmaker and decision maker on who takes the shots.”
Meanwhile, Chalmers will “go back to his natural position as a point guard and facilitate the team,” his father, Ronnie Chalmers, said.
“As sad we all are to see LeBron go, Mario’s excited to go back to his natural position. He loves being a playmaker. And there will be more opportunities to score.”
A Heat official said even beyond Erik Spoelstra’s staff changes, “you will see some tweaks in how we play.” The team’s gambling defense, which left open too many three-point shooters, needs addressing.
“We can’t just show up and expect to win it in the fourth quarter any more,” the Heat official said.
Haslem said he, Chalmers, Wade, Norris Cole and Josh McRoberts had a productive recent bonding session, over several days, in Bloomington, Ind., doing on-court work with Hoosiers coach Tom Crean, Wade's friend and former coach at Marquette.
“I’m sure there are a lot of people counting us out, a lot of people not expecting much from us,” Haslem said. “We still think we can be highly competitive. We still think we have a chance to compete for the Eastern Conference title.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/sports-b ... ripts.html
Have you guys heard anything about the tweaks to the offense ?
Chalmers could theoretically improve if they switch up the offense, but is Spo ready to abandon his patented "pace and space" offense ? Is he creative enough to retool the defense AND offense in one off season ?