Miami Heat Regular Season Thread 21-22 Vol. 2 - Can we get to first place?

[3ammy3uck3ts]

IMO Lowry future with the Heat is dependent upon Oladipo. If Heat commit to Dipo long term then Lowry will be moved. Spo wants Dipo at point guard.

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I doubt that. Why would he want no true Pg on the team and a guy running Pg who hasn’t played PG since his rookie season? Dipo is a SG. We tried to land both of them at the deadline last year but the Raptors were being stubborn.

He started at point when he played here. And he played point guard in Orlando.

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Nunn and Dragic ran point. Either way they wouldn’t be trying to bring them both in if that was the case like they did last deadline.

[Wiltside]

I haven’t looked it up but apparently Covington has been terrible from what I hear this year. Not hard to bring defense and 3 point shooting when that’s been your role your whole career though

As a former owner of RoCo's in NBA Fantasy - can confirm he has been trash, but has turned it around lately.

last 8 games:

11.5ppg, 7.3rpg, 1.0apg, 1.5bpg, 2.6spg, 1.4tpg in 32.5mpg on 42.3%fg, 41.9% 3fg (2.3 treys per game) and 82.4% ft

[gom]

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Jerami Grant is the same price as Turner. What’s yalls take on giving up picks? Deal would have to be something like Duncan Morris KZ and 1 or 2 1sts.

Since we would have to trade firsts so far in the future (unless OKC is involved and unprotects the pick we gave them), I see it as unlikely. I am against trading picks that far in the future unless they are heavily protected.

Heat won’t be heavily involved in a trade market that prioritizes draft picks.

I'm not against trading picks, even future picks, even unprotected far future picks. I don't trade them for Turner or Grant though. I'm not sure we would be a better team than we are now. We have a roster space. Buyout market should be enough for this season. We are a very deep team and should go far in the postseason. Whether we will be champions or not isn't the slight margin that Grant would provide. I prefer keeping Herro, Robinson, & the first round picks.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

I haven’t looked it up but apparently Covington has been terrible from what I hear this year. Not hard to bring defense and 3 point shooting when that’s been your role your whole career though

As a former owner of RoCo's in NBA Fantasy - can confirm he has been trash, but has turned it around lately.

last 8 games:

11.5ppg, 7.3rpg, 1.0apg, 1.5bpg, 2.6spg, 1.4tpg in 32.5mpg on 42.3%fg, 41.9% 3fg (2.3 treys per game) and 82.4% ft

Nice, I’m definitely not against it

[gom]

I like Dipo, but I don't see him as much of a difference maker at least this season, except on defense, where he could really excel on our team. I watched many more games of Victor Oladipo on the Pacers and Magic than the Heat or Rockets (all of us really, right?) My impression is he is a great guy and a good basketball player with quick hands and a high iq, which he uses to clog the passing lanes. I am not too impressed with his offense except with the Pacers (& maybe the end of the season with the Thunder.) That was his high-water mark.

It's important to remember that Jameer Nelson was the point guard when Dipo was drafted by the Tragic, and Victor wasn't able to keep the team at any comparable level. They were pretty bad. The next season they drafted Elfrid Payton and Luke Ridnour was the backup. In the 2015-16 season the Payton-Oladipo backcourt played lots of minutes together. Dipo was not the point guard, because whenever Orlando gave him that role, his shooting dropped off enormously. Also his assist-to-turnover ratio was never very good.

I don't think many Magic fans were much impressed with Oladipo playing point in Orlando. They did try, but it never worked out. He became a better player after the deal for Serge Ibaka, but early on he was much better off the ball, even shooting 3's at average percentages. His career 3p% is 34.7%, which is just below Duncan Robinson's performance this season (34.8% after the Toronto game.) His 2017-2018 allstar season was the only time his ortg was higher than his drtg. In only 3 of his 8 seasons did he shoot over 36%. I don't think he's a great 3-pt shooter. He is a high-volume low-pct shooter who could drive nicely to finish on layups (iirc, for a couple seasons with the Pacers, he was really good finishing at the rim), and a very good defender.

I'm saying... don't count too much on Oladipo.

[puppa bear]

dipo is someone I would love healthy... playoff situation he is absolutely a game changer ...but let's get real ...he is a pipe dream and it's very unlikely that he will happen for the Heat
That is so why we got players like lowry, pj, gabe, strus, calvin, etc ...hoping they can substitute he's supposed output in important games... he is gone baby gone... perhaps providing some relief as a secondary player for a couple of years

Why is it a pipe dream? Miami has had him go on road trips, he seems to be more engaged with the team, he seems to be in good spirits. It's quite possible with another team he'd already be on the court but Miami seems to drag out players getting back to the court which I think they do on purpose to make it easier on Spoelstra to keep players out of the rotation.

14 May Oladipo had surgery.
Around 3 months later he was lifting weights.

Spoiler:

27th of September he said he was walking without discomfort.

Spoiler:

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The 1st of October he was walking without a limp.

Spoiler:

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Also, during some early game this season (possibly preseason) Oladipo actually jumped a chair celebrating someone's dunk

If this were the 90s I'd be way more weary of him coming back, now I'm not too worried where science is at this point, with the last surgery done wrong which caused issues so I'd think they'd double/triple check what it was done right this time, the messed up surgery has already cost him millions(even if it's just this season).

Oladipo has known his last surgery didn't go well but it was either play through the pain and keep making money(a new contract) or possibly have another surgery and miss out on millions with a surgery, he finally didn't have the choice of playing through pain anymore.

It's always possible that he isn't right but I think everything is being scrutinized at this point in his recovery where they could fix whatever the problem is, even if that meant another surgery.

This. Klay can tear his ACL and Achilles but he’s the 2nd coming of Christ when he returns but Dipo is apparently done and not good enough to play.

I said this like a week ago. It’s one thing for the rabble on TGB to be like that, but Heat fans should be a little more optimistic than that.

Klay hasn’t been the second coming, and he has been trash. He’s been solid. If we get the same from Dipo it’s a huge boost to get 15-20mpg of solid Dipo off the bench with Herro.

[3ballbomber]

I like Dipo, but I don't see him as much of a difference maker at least this season, except on defense, where he could really excel on our team. I watched many more games of Victor Oladipo on the Pacers and Magic than the Heat or Rockets (all of us really, right?) My impression is he is a great guy and a good basketball player with quick hands and a high iq, which he uses to clog the passing lanes. I am not too impressed with his offense except with the Pacers (& maybe the end of the season with the Thunder.) That was his high-water mark.

It's important to remember that Jameer Nelson was the point guard when Dipo was drafted by the tragic, and Victor wasn't able to keep the team at any. The next season they drafted Elfrid Payton and Luke Ridnour was the backup. In the 2015-16 season the Payton-Oladipo backcourt played lots of minutes together. Dipo was not the point guard, because whenever Orlando gave him that role, his shooting dropped off enormously. Also his assist-to-turnover ratio was never very good.

I don't think many Magic fans were much impressed with Oladipo playing point in Orlando. They did try, but it never worked out. He became a better player after the deal for Serge Ibaka, but early on he was much better off the ball, even shooting 3's at average percentages. His career 3p% is 34.7%, which is just below Duncan Robinson's performance this season (34.8% after the Toronto game.) His 2017-2018 allstar season was the only time his ortg was higher than his drtg. In only 3 of his 8 seasons did he shoot over 36%. I don't think he's a great 3-pt shooter. He is a high-volume low-pct shooter who could drive nicely to finish on layups (iirc, for a couple seasons with the Pacers, he was really good finishing at the rim), and a very good defender.

I'm saying... don't count too much on Oladipo.

I just want him back healthy on the crt man

[3ballbomber]

Grant has Miami Heat written all over him. It would be harder for us to find a better fit/player unless of course Riley decides to go all in and trade Herro for a star.

Herro IS a star!

[3ammy3uck3ts]

Grant has Miami Heat written all over him. It would be harder for us to find a better fit/player unless of course Riley decides to go all in and trade Herro for a star.

Herro IS a star!

He’s definitely getting there but there’s levels

[MettaWorldPanda]

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Grant not happening.

[Hallstar]

If we had the money, it would be Miles Bridges in the offseason.

Hornets didn't want to pay last offseason, and they'll regret that when he comes back with an offer sheet

[DayofMourning]

Get that money Grant. Money ain't a problem anymore if you can get that type of cash.

[AirP.]

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[dshearn]

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Grant not happening.

does not seem a good fit.


Not sure if the money is worse or the dedicated scoring is.


I would much rather hear, " I am looking to come in and move the needle, whatever is asked of me"

[greg4012]

That's been my concern with Grant's fit here for a minute. Seems like he wants to be a top option on offense. If he's a ball stopper or looking to get his own numbers, then that won't serve us.

Earlier in this thread, AirP mentioned Portland as an interesting trade partner--specifically looking at Larry Nance or Robert Covington. I think that could be a VERY intriguing fit.

Spo would absolutely froth Covington. He'd be Spo's new crush for sure.

Not sure how keen Portland are to take on 4.5yrs of Duncan Robinson though, but who knows. RoCo would take Martin's spot in the rotation though, for better or worse.

I haven’t looked it up but apparently Covington has been terrible from what I hear this year. Not hard to bring defense and 3 point shooting when that’s been your role your whole career though

I can't say I've paid any attention to Covington this year, but I agree with your general point. It's easy to lose focus and play a subpar level when everything is seemingly going wrong in Portland. It reminds me of Jae Crowder with Memphis before we traded for him

[greg4012]

Optimistic hope for Victor Oladipo: Derrick Rose career arc

[AirP.]

Optimistic hope for Victor Oladipo: Derrick Rose career arc

With the way Oladipo moved last year with an incorrect surgery and dealing with pain he looked very athletic, having an expected good surgery and now having no pain my expectations are him being just as athletic.

I still believe other teams would have ramped up Oladipo quicker and would have him on the court now, Miami for whatever reason is giving Oladipo more time to get closer to his new normal but we need to remember that he'll be rusty and will take about a month to get in game shape. This season I expect to see him play like C.Martin with way more upside that he may not get to until next season with a good offseason.

From BBRef, here's a couple of players sizes and Oladipo's. I think Oladipo's going to play as a wing (Guarding 1-4) and be one of the players in a committee of ballhandlers.

Strus 6'5 215
C.Martin 6'5 205
Oladipo 6'4 213

Miami is putting together a team with more multi-position defenders which is a very good thing for the playoffs and also for long-term success.

[greg4012]

Optimistic hope for Victor Oladipo: Derrick Rose career arc

With the way Oladipo moved last year with an incorrect surgery and dealing with pain he looked very athletic, having an expected good surgery and now having no pain my expectations are him being just as athletic.

I still believe other teams would have ramped up Oladipo quicker and would have him on the court now, Miami for whatever reason is giving Oladipo more time to get closer to his new normal but we need to remember that he'll be rusty and will take about a month to get in game shape. This season I expect to see him play like C.Martin with way more upside that he may not get to until next season with a good offseason.

From BBRef, here's a couple of players sizes and Oladipo's. I think Oladipo's going to play as a wing (Guarding 1-4) and be one of the players in a committee of ballhandlers.

Strus 6'5 215
C.Martin 6'5 205
Oladipo 6'4 213

Miami is putting together a team with more multi-position defenders which is a very good thing for the playoffs and also for long-term success.

Agree with all this. Even playing on a botched surgery leg, he showed plenty of athleticism last season. I expect that to be the eventual baseline after he gets back into a groove on the court. I expect him to be a defensive playmaker.

THe big question is offensively. He has been a solid spotup 3 point shooter for a few years now. The question is if he will settle into an off-ball role and not try to press too much. I think he likely needs to initially keep his shot count down and his selection conservative (a la Caleb Martin). The hope is eventually he comes back to being some form of offensive generator and can be a primary ballhandler for stretches, but we shouldn't be in a rush to test that.

[MettaWorldPanda]

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[3ammy3uck3ts]

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It’s literally our only avenue to improve. He has to go if we want to get better.