2025 Offseason Season Thread Vol. 3

[azcatz11]

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Apparently this Dain Dainja dude is 6’9 260 with a 7’7 wing span and a good handle

I thought Ballo is on the SL roster also?

[Daffy]

When you look at the type of players we had w/ each Championship or Finals/deep runs there’s one common denominator we had that exemplified Heat basketball/culture. Tough minded players.

Wade, Shaq, Mourning, Haslem, Riley coaching, Butler. These are some of the toughest sob’s you can get as competitive basketball players/coach. I didnt mention big-3 because that was simply a stacked squad that was supposed to dominate.

Butler was a goddamn warrior & as damn gritty as you can get He went to war, wanted smoke & didn’t give a f*ck who he fought. Just a tough competitor. He was a significant factor for our recent runs.

This is the problem we have currently once Butler bounced. Who is left to carry that fire? We have one of the softest players mentally given the team captain badge. The fish rots from the head down. Can you feel confident going to war w/ Bam as your captain, who after a loss is happy to hug, smile & schmooze w/ the very players that just beat him. Spo, as much as he talks about grit, being forged in fire etc ain’t Riles. Riley was tough as fawk, disciplined his players. He’d scold Bam for his post gm cuddles. Spo not so much. A great coach w/ the X’s & O’s but lacks the tough trait that spreads to his players. Haslem is no longer on the bench also.

You notice also all the players i mentioned were not only great offensively but just as staunch defensively. Unfortunately we also sold out & marketed Heat Culture like it’s a product we sell. It’s not something you buy it’s what we impose on our opponents. You don’t sell our toughness, we show it.

I cant remember who Spida was bullying during one of the gm’s in our series w/ Cavs but i was watching thinking somebody wld step in & go at Mitchell. Nobody did & we looked like complete chumps. Bam, team captain, didn’t want that smoke w/ his good friend. As a leader allowed it to happen.

We need to get back to acquiring these sort of players or build it into these kids through the process. Mitchell may have that trait & the reason we love the kid. We need toughness on this team again - that’s Miami Heat ball.

There are some fair points in here. I'll say this and leave the topic alone, because I know someone is going to come in here with a multi-post tirade and shut the thread down for the day - I don't think Bam is a chump, I think he has his way of leading which is unique to him but not in the same mold of a Zo, UD, or Wade. Some would even say our problem is talent, not leadership, I'd argue its a little of both. The greatest example being all of the blown leads late in games. Those are the moments you are looking for someone to ignite the team and it just wasnt there. We have a team of nice guys which is cool but to your point we do need some fire and Mitchell does have the qualities you desire.

Hopefully a long offseason for Spo to refresh mentally with all the personal stuff he had going on and a couple of trades does this group some good

I firmly believe our problem is "offensive talent". We need more juice on the offensive end. At least 2 more guys who can create their own shots. One of them being a high end talent and the other being a solid guy off the bench. Outside of Herro and Bam who do we trust to go out there and get us some buckets? If 1 of Bam or Herro misses a game it becomes a long night for the one that plays that game out there to carry the load. Especially with us not having a PG who can find people (prior to drafting this kid hopefully). This is why I'm kind of in favor of acquiring Kuminga if the price is right.

[Bhut Jolokia]

I would rather have Kuminga over Wiggins with this team for the future. Wiggins needed to be part of the Butler deal instead mainly due to salary but maybe the Warriors may want Wiggins back to win now.

[Daffy]

I've seen people saying we should go for the pacers approach of having multiple guys who can produce. I like that thought process but the one question that sticks out to me is Spo. Is he capable of running an offense like that to get the most out of multiple players.

[SoFlaKingReal]

Shams is pushing this Kuminga stuff non-stop…

[Daffy]

Shams is pushing this Kuminga stuff non-stop…

I'm expecting it to happen at this point.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

If you get Kuminga just trade Bam and probably Tyler and let’s go full youth movement. Kuminga will be prioritized over Bam offensively and he will be stealing away reps from Herro as well with his tunnel vision. Get your 6-10 1st round picks for those 2 and go the youth route. Davion can walk in this scenario too even though he’s apparently our leader.

KJ
Pelle or Jaime
Kuminga
Jovic
Ware

[EMC5466]

Shams is pushing this Kuminga stuff non-stop…

Because it’s true. Shams doesn’t get stuff like this wrong.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

Shams is pushing this Kuminga stuff non-stop…

I'm expecting it to happen at this point.

Same unfortunately, which someone correct me if I’m wrong but that basically ends the Luka to Miami stuff or just being players in 2026 free agency for a max guy period. Unless we sign and trade for them but then things start getting tricky

[Kobewade11]

I firmly believe our problem is "offensive talent". We need more juice on the offensive end. At least 2 more guys who can create their own shots. One of them being a high end talent and the other being a solid guy off the bench. Outside of Herro and Bam who do we trust to go out there and get us some buckets? If 1 of Bam or Herro misses a game it becomes a long night for the one that plays that game out there to carry the load. Especially with us not having a PG who can find people (prior to drafting this kid hopefully). This is why I'm kind of in favor of acquiring Kuminga if the price is right.

Absolutely, I agree

[3ammy3uck3ts]

Shams is also the one still hinting at a solid chance giannis asks out while others are denying it. They may be trying to keep that as quiet as possible so they can work together to get something done in silence and Shams probably doesn’t care and is just leaking what he’s told.

[SoFlaKingReal]

Shams is pushing this Kuminga stuff non-stop…

Because it’s true. Shams doesn’t get stuff like this wrong.

I don’t doubt it one bit, there are just so many factors in play with Kuminga being a RFA and the Heat having to orchestrate a sign and trade.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

What are the ramifications of being hard capped again?

[SoFlaKingReal]

What are the ramifications of being hard capped again?

Can’t go over the first apron.

[Daffy]

Shams is pushing this Kuminga stuff non-stop…

I'm expecting it to happen at this point.

Same unfortunately, which someone correct me if I’m wrong but that basically ends the Luka to Miami stuff or just being players in 2026 free agency for a max guy period. Unless we sign and trade for them but then things start getting tricky

Yup. I think it ends it. I would much rather wait and see what that FA could potentially bring first though.

[SA37]

It is if they're hesitating on re-signing him. It isn't even like they had him as a 6th man.

He may still turn out to be a good player in the league. Who knows. But, yes, it is definitely a sign of where he is given he has now completed 4 seasons in the NBA.

The Warriors don’t have time to develop a guy they have Curry, JImmy, and Draymond they need to win it all tomorrow. He also isn’t getting the ball in that group. You think Draymond the guy who told KD to basically STFU and stay in his lane is going for Kuminga getting a big leash?

I watched the Warriors a ton this year, he’s just a bad fit there. He needs to be featured to really shine. He’s one of those type of guys, the argument then becomes if them being featured is worth it, but typically those guys are getting paid close or to the max he can be had on a long term deal for much less than that.

If he touches the ball a lot he’s going to score, and he’s a guy you can let ISO people which is exactly what we don’t do well. I’m not looking for a skill set I’m looking for the guy who really wants it like that, and he’s one of those guys.

Kuminga does have good production in games where he gets opportunity.

Over the first 4 seasons of his NBA career, these are his stats in all games where he played 30+ minutes (40 games at 33.8 mpg):

20.8 ppg
53.8% FG
40.8% 3pt (3 3pa per)
71.6 FT (5.6 fta per)
6 rpg
2.4 apg (2.2 topg)
1.7 stocks per

Pretty nice for early career numbers. He can get buckets. My concern is playstyle. He's a guy who gets a lot of his production playing as a pseudo-big (PF and smallball C minutes). Not a developed 3 ball (encouraging numbers in these games tho), handle or playmaking. Betting on ramping up usage for a black hole player is often a trap. I wish he had better onball defense. Very much mixed feelings for me here. But, if the price is right, I can dig it.

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/in-games-jonathan-kuminga-plays-over-30-minutes-what-are-his-career-stats-per-game

Yeah, there is so much overlap in playing style and likely impact with Jerami Grant. Maybe he's more Richard Jefferson. Nothing wrong with that, but as I've said and as you say here: it depends on the price. I just find it hard to believe he won't take the QO if he doesn't get at least $100M in guaranteed money since there should be more teams with cap space in 2026. That's a big bet.

And that is a lot of money for a guy who apparently needs to be the focus on offense to get his numbers, but may not lead to much team success (again, see Jerami Grant).

[3ammy3uck3ts]

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Lol

[3ammy3uck3ts]

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[Daffy]

I'm hoping this Kuminga move is a chess piece. Acquire him. Build him up. Showcase him. Flip him later on down the road with other pieces for a key piece in a year or two.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

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Apparently this Dain Dainja dude is 6’9 260 with a 7’7 wing span and a good handle

I thought Ballo is on the SL roster also?

Yea they did, looks like they left him off by accident