10/24 Heat @ Grizzlies 8:00PM SUN SPORTS

[JLop]

I think this team is the one worth going forward with:

Cole/Napier
Wade/Chalmers/Dawkins
Deng/Ennis/Granger
McRoberts/Williams/Haslem
Bosh/Andersen/Hamilton/Birch

I agree on your picks for this team. Khem Birch is a solid choice for the Heat. Last month (September 28), Birch just turned 22 years old. He has little basketball experience. For what I heard, he did not have a coach until recently. He was also a part-time player (of course, I could be wrong in all of this). K. Birch has a height of 6' 10" and very long arms, plays with high energy (very dynamic) and shows potential to become a well-rounded player. In the next two years, his body will be growing (could become taller, a little faster and stronger). All he needs during trainings is to focus on his shots a little more. Frequently he has been compared with Joel, but in two years, I can see a better Chris Andersen in him (a Birdman who can play more than 30 minutes) or perhaps in four years we could see another DeAndre Jordan.

The one thing Bird has over Birch is his hands. Bird has always been able to grab passes, lobs and balls in his ballpark. Although Birch is no "stone hands" like Joel Anthony, I haven't seen those Bird-type hands yet and I am not sure he has them. He needs LOTS of work on the offensive side IMO. Needless to say, I like him as a developmental player.

I couldn't have said it better myself. The way that Khem Birch plays tells the story. He seems the type of player that listens to his coach and will always give you 100%. There is not doubt in my mind that he will improve his game. If he can score 10 points a game and gets even better at defense, Khem Birch will be a steal for this team. Can he do it in less than two seasons?, absolutely. Birch just turned 22 years old. He is like an empty drive waiting to be filled. Some one who can become a HEAT Lifer.

[KingDavid]

I think this team is the one worth going forward with:

Cole/Napier
Wade/Chalmers/Dawkins
Deng/Ennis/Granger
McRoberts/Williams/Haslem
Bosh/Andersen/Hamilton/Birch

I agree on your picks for this team. Khem Birch is a solid choice for the Heat. Last month (September 28), Birch just turned 22 years old. He has little basketball experience. For what I heard, he did not have a coach until recently. He was also a part-time player (of course, I could be wrong in all of this). K. Birch has a height of 6' 10" and very long arms, plays with high energy (very dynamic) and shows potential to become a well-rounded player. In the next two years, his body will be growing (could become taller, a little faster and stronger). All he needs during trainings is to focus on his shots a little more. Frequently he has been compared with Joel, but in two years, I can see a better Chris Andersen in him (a Birdman who can play more than 30 minutes) or perhaps in four years we could see another DeAndre Jordan.

The one thing Bird has over Birch is his hands. Bird has always been able to grab passes, lobs and balls in his ballpark. Although Birch is no "stone hands" like Joel Anthony, I haven't seen those Bird-type hands yet and I am not sure he has them. He needs LOTS of work on the offensive side IMO. Needless to say, I like him as a developmental player.

Birch has hands but he's very underdeveloped in awareness. I posted this in another thread. Awareness, thankfully, can be practiced and learned -to a certain extent of course. The kid hasn't been coached until recently.

[JLop]

I agree on your picks for this team. Khem Birch is a solid choice for the Heat. Last month (September 28), Birch just turned 22 years old. He has little basketball experience. For what I heard, he did not have a coach until recently. He was also a part-time player (of course, I could be wrong in all of this). K. Birch has a height of 6' 10" and very long arms, plays with high energy (very dynamic) and shows potential to become a well-rounded player. In the next two years, his body will be growing (could become taller, a little faster and stronger). All he needs during trainings is to focus on his shots a little more. Frequently he has been compared with Joel, but in two years, I can see a better Chris Andersen in him (a Birdman who can play more than 30 minutes) or perhaps in four years we could see another DeAndre Jordan.

The one thing Bird has over Birch is his hands. Bird has always been able to grab passes, lobs and balls in his ballpark. Although Birch is no "stone hands" like Joel Anthony, I haven't seen those Bird-type hands yet and I am not sure he has them. He needs LOTS of work on the offensive side IMO. Needless to say, I like him as a developmental player.

Birch has hands but he's very underdeveloped in awareness. I posted this in another thread. Awareness, thankfully, can be practiced and learned -to a certain extent of course. The kid hasn't been coached until recently.

Good to see you again. Just like you said, Khem Birch "hasn't been coached until recently". If he would have been able to score eight points per game and with his defensive skills, Birch would have been picked in this draft: do you agree with me? In the next four months, how much you think he can improve?, would it be enough to make an impact? In the 2013 NBA Finals Chris Bosh didn't score any points in Game seven. Even so, CB was brilliant.

[Maroko]

I feel like these last two preseason games have teased me in the worst way. Wade looks like the D-Wade of old with a much more consistent post game presence. Please give us this Wade for the whole season + playoffs. I know Wade won't play every game this season but gah damn, that man is so enjoyable to watch

This season is crucial for Wade's legacy, he has to play good because outside Heat's fans he is not judged on his real value.
So far he looks good, hope that will continue

[KingDavid]

The one thing Bird has over Birch is his hands. Bird has always been able to grab passes, lobs and balls in his ballpark. Although Birch is no "stone hands" like Joel Anthony, I haven't seen those Bird-type hands yet and I am not sure he has them. He needs LOTS of work on the offensive side IMO. Needless to say, I like him as a developmental player.

Birch has hands but he's very underdeveloped in awareness. I posted this in another thread. Awareness, thankfully, can be practiced and learned -to a certain extent of course. The kid hasn't been coached until recently.

Good to see you again. Just like you said, Khem Birch "hasn't been coached until recently". If he would have been able to score eight points per game and with his defensive skills, Birch would have been picked in this draft: do you agree with me? In the next four months, how much you think he can improve?, would it be enough to make an impact? In the 2013 NBA Finals Chris Bosh didn't score any points in Game seven. Even so, CB was brilliant.

I do agree with you to an extent. To date, he's much more fluid and not as raw as he was when he was drafted. If he was what he is right now as a player (defensively speaking), and he had the awareness to catch those surprise passes, he would have been hailed as the next DeAndre Jordan. The kid is gifted for someone that hasn't been coached at filling lanes properly.

As far as improvement, it's hard to tell. It's all up to how much work he puts in at the gym. We'd have to see where this all goes. He has the physical tools to go as far as he wants but we'll have to see where he's at mentally. He's another player, like Dawkins and TJ that could seriously benefit going to Perth like Ennis did. Those three guys need the attention that Ennis received last year to improve their game. A lot of minutes on a professional team plus a lot of team oriented drills. The D-League seems to be awful at developing talent, imo. And competition seems to be stronger overseas than it is in the D-League. Birch, TJ, and Dawkins might not get the minutes (experience) they need to improve. But that's why the games are played. We'll see.

[JLop]

Birch has hands but he's very underdeveloped in awareness. I posted this in another thread. Awareness, thankfully, can be practiced and learned -to a certain extent of course. The kid hasn't been coached until recently.

Good to see you again. Just like you said, Khem Birch "hasn't been coached until recently". If he would have been able to score eight points per game and with his defensive skills, Birch would have been picked in this draft: do you agree with me? In the next four months, how much you think he can improve?, would it be enough to make an impact? In the 2013 NBA Finals Chris Bosh didn't score any points in Game seven. Even so, CB was brilliant.

I do agree with you to an extent. To date, he's much more fluid and not as raw as he was when he was drafted. If he was what he is right now as a player (defensively speaking), and he had the awareness to catch those surprise passes, he would have been hailed as the next DeAndre Jordan. The kid is gifted for someone that hasn't been coached at filling lanes properly.

As far as improvement, it's hard to tell. It's all up to how much work he puts in at the gym. We'd have to see where this all goes. He has the physical tools to go as far as he wants but we'll have to see where he's at mentally. He's another player, like Dawkins and TJ that could seriously benefit going to Perth like Ennis did. Those three guys need the attention that Ennis received last year to improve their game. A lot of minutes on a professional team plus a lot of team oriented drills. The D-League seems to be awful at developing talent, imo. And competition seems to be stronger overseas than it is in the D-League. Birch, TJ, and Dawkins might not get the minutes (experience) they need to improve. But that's why the games are played. We'll see.

This is what Ira Winderman has to say:
"Like Tyler Johnson, Drew and possibly Jones, Birch is expected to be offered the opportunity to join the Heat's NBA Development League team, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. The Heat paid the shot-blocking power forward out of Nevada-Las Vegas a $50,000 guarantee to attend training camp.

While Brown survived the cut to 15, it could be argued that Birch had the most impressive preseason of the Heat rookies outside of Ennis and Napier. He appeared in six exhibitions, averaging 1.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.17 blocks, as well as one assist and one steal, in an average of 16.9 minutes."

I would not be surprised if after December 15 we make some trades and we sign Khem Birch to a 10 days contract. Anyway, Birch will benefit from the experience of playing either in Australia or in the Heat's NBA Development League team. Nonetheless, I would also like to see him playing overseas.