2025 Regular Season Thread Vol. 8

[3ammy3uck3ts]

Read on Twitter

I think those are their averages thru the 1st 3 quarters;)

Bam and Herro maybe lol, when the 4th comes Spo needs them to defer to Wiggins Terry and Duncan, that’s his winning formula

[dshearn]

I'd also say, and I dont know who it is to, but that logic about who cares if Trae is a bad defender that gets hunted, because Tyler is too and you can only hunt one guy at a time - I've never bought that argument.

Hunting someone doesn't always lead to a one on one exploitation and layup, it leads to team defense breakdowns where other guys need to cover for a lapse, that leads someone else open, and exhausts the defense. Having two negative defenders on court like that does make the oppositions offense exponentially better and wears out our D more.

I'm not even saying yes or no to Trae. I see the positives. I'm saying I see the sort of negatives too that tell me why a guy with his stats can't elevate a team. I'm deeply intrigued by what he can offer our lob threats and our opportunistic secondary scorers.

That is most definitely my take....

I could be way wrong on it.....but...my take is Bam want's to be a wing defender anyway, and if I had a nickel for every time someone on the Heat scrambles back to cover a corner 3...well...I would probably be retired.

The point being we already over help, We already put tiny guys against big dudes on the regular. It seems a core tenant of the defense has been bait teams into a 3 pointer by leaving them mostly open. Trae can scramble back to the 3 point line and do nothing to affect the shot as well as anyone on this team.

outside of that, we love the zone, and if we really have a match up problem we can always stagger Herro-Trae-Mitchell-Dru-Larsson or whom ever else we end up with.


Maybe it is total disaster, maybe Trae is the worst idea ever...but there is not a whole lot of walking assist monsters that can make shots with their names floating around as possibly available.

I think it is a plausible bet that the Offense gets much better then the defense gets much worse.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

I’d personally move Herro if Trae was added, you’ve replaced Herros scoring with a better scorer and far better playmaker and herro wants an extension possibly this summer. Find an all star level 2/3/4 who isn’t terrible defender in the Herro trade and we’re good to go.

I actually think Trae has become underrated at this point. What team has he been on that should’ve been competing at a high level? Let’s not forget he led his team to an ECF against the championship Bucks and was able to get 2 games from them (the Bucks team that swept us albeit with us coming off the shortest offseason in nba history).

Again; he is not the final piece to the puzzle but at 26 and being one of the better offensive players in the entire league scoring and playmaking wise is not a bad move to make, especially considering he plays the position we lack the most and his skillset brings what we lack the most as well. We need a playmaker BAD and when it comes to Trae it doesn’t get much better in that area.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

Not to mention the dude absolutely torches the Celtics 98% of the time they play

[Heat3]

D Wade getting paid to clown on statues now

Watch on YouTube

[3ballbomber]

Read on Twitter

Would’ve been a crazy duo

I was watching Wade highlights 2-3 weeks ago and seriously what stuck out to me was how good he threw lobs whether it was Shaq and Lebron or even guys like Haslem, White, or Beasley. Then I started wondering how did he get so good at it when he probably didn't even play with other guys who could finish them until college or guys that could really finish them until NBA. He was a great passer.

Wade was just a winning, highly competitive player who did a lot of things well because he had the talent, determination & will to win. He did everything it took to compete at an elite level & get dubs. We were blessed to have him.

[3ballbomber]

I figured it was always going to be a toss up who came out smelling better between Jimmy and Pat. I just didn't think it'd be this obvious this soon.

Pat hands down is looking like the a*shole. Jimmy got all his money and is turning around a losing franchise, while we are at death's door. On a 5 game losing streak (about to be 6) and can't even beat the worst teams in the league.

That's why I was so adamant about some of you not being so delusional about being happy JB is gone and it being a "win" for us.

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

[3ballbomber]

Trae Young is a very talented player but lacks maturity & other traits that comes w/ having a good character. Bad character = bad player no matter the talent. We normally don’t take on those players being the classy organization w/ a solid reputation for acquiring high character players.

W/ that said if Trae can grow up, change his approach & willing to be guided he cld absolutely work here. We have to be adamant he fully buys in to our standards & ways. I trust our organization if they’re willing to commit to a player such as Trae.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

Drinking the fuxkin kool-aid Jesus.

[MettaWorldPanda]

Watch on YouTube

We need this next to Bam and Ware

[Beenie]

I figured it was always going to be a toss up who came out smelling better between Jimmy and Pat. I just didn't think it'd be this obvious this soon.

Pat hands down is looking like the a*shole. Jimmy got all his money and is turning around a losing franchise, while we are at death's door. On a 5 game losing streak (about to be 6) and can't even beat the worst teams in the league.

That's why I was so adamant about some of you not being so delusional about being happy JB is gone and it being a "win" for us.

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

The fuss around a timeline misalignment with Jimmy is moot because Mia doesn’t have one clear cut player to build around on its current roster.

Would have been better off sticking with him and be willing to execute bold trades to try and win a chip.

Instead, the team has become a laughing stock and the general sense is that the FO is committed to sticking with its core of Tito’s.

Been saying for years as a counter to all of the ‘trade Jimmy’ takes that once he’s gone, Mia ought to blow it up and start fresh because they will inevitably be a lotto team.

[Beenie]

Watch on YouTube

We need this next to Bam and Ware

Not a fan of this agenda

You can do better lol

[MettaWorldPanda]

Watch on YouTube

We need this next to Bam and Ware

Not a fan of this agenda

You can do better lol

I try to keep it as real as possible considering the two matching contracts in any potential deal is Rozier and Duncan. I know we have a few young assets to toss around but you need to find a team willing to take two useless expiring contracts and Utah seems good at doing that. My agenda’s are not everyone’s favorite but they’re well thought out.

[Shewasfly]

I figured it was always going to be a toss up who came out smelling better between Jimmy and Pat. I just didn't think it'd be this obvious this soon.

Pat hands down is looking like the a*shole. Jimmy got all his money and is turning around a losing franchise, while we are at death's door. On a 5 game losing streak (about to be 6) and can't even beat the worst teams in the league.

That's why I was so adamant about some of you not being so delusional about being happy JB is gone and it being a "win" for us.

So you would rather have paid Jimmy the max and lock him up for another 2 years after this season?

Our alternatives are not much better, if our resident pick experts are correct.

We are in no man's land from what is being described. Far from good enough to compete without Jimmy and no immediate draft capital to make up for it, but we were essentially a piece away with him. Actually, with Tyler's emergence this year, I wonder if we could have gotten away with simply upgrading the damn C spot and been right back at it. There is nothing scary about the east, even Boston is underwhelming.

My point is simply that the entire situation has been bungled. Even taking out the trade, not upgrading the roster in a meaningful way is incompetence that should be called out. Instead of people rightfully saying "Pat might have **** up here", we had a bunch of people running around saluting him for a job well done of getting rid of the "over the hill" "cancer" Jimmy Butler . Well look at him and look at Riley's Heat right now.

[Shewasfly]

I figured it was always going to be a toss up who came out smelling better between Jimmy and Pat. I just didn't think it'd be this obvious this soon.

Pat hands down is looking like the a*shole. Jimmy got all his money and is turning around a losing franchise, while we are at death's door. On a 5 game losing streak (about to be 6) and can't even beat the worst teams in the league.

That's why I was so adamant about some of you not being so delusional about being happy JB is gone and it being a "win" for us.

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

Obviously we've moved on from Jimmy. He's on another team that's actually winning right now. We haven't known what that feels like in almost a couple weeks

That's not what I'm talking about. Its the pretending that its a positive that he's gone that's the exact type of talk I'm referring to. Like what is the point of that lie? Who are we seeking to prove something to? Or are we just covering for Pat?

We have no worthwhile draft picks
Neither Bam or Herro are good enough as a centerpiece
We don't have trade pieces to go out and get a star to add to them

Pat and the FO has backed us into a very awful corner. I'm not all doom and gloom either. I'm hoping we pull a rabbit out of our hat and get back to contention next year. But I just have to point it out when people are being catty and petty against Jimmy instead of speaking the truth. We traded him because we had to (and it wasn't a great trade). Not because it was a positive.

[3ballbomber]

I figured it was always going to be a toss up who came out smelling better between Jimmy and Pat. I just didn't think it'd be this obvious this soon.

Pat hands down is looking like the a*shole. Jimmy got all his money and is turning around a losing franchise, while we are at death's door. On a 5 game losing streak (about to be 6) and can't even beat the worst teams in the league.

That's why I was so adamant about some of you not being so delusional about being happy JB is gone and it being a "win" for us.

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

The fuss around a timeline misalignment with Jimmy is moot because Mia doesn’t have one clear cut player to build around on its current roster.

Would have been better off sticking with him and be willing to execute bold trades to try and win a chip.

Instead, the team has become a laughing stock and the general sense is that the FO is committed to sticking with its core of Tito’s.

Been saying for years as a counter to all of the ‘trade Jimmy’ takes that once he’s gone, Mia ought to blow it up and start fresh because they will inevitably be a lotto team.

Why does it have to be about building around someone? Why can’t we acquire players around the solid core we have that wld complement one another!? Jimmy wasn’t a prolific scorer, he was just a fierce competitor that was surrounded by the right players that cld compete w/ him. Remember It was Goran that was our leading scorer in the bubble going into the finals. Heat had complimentary players, whom if had been healthy, may have won vs LA. If anybody can remember Pat said we have enough suggesting his opinion Jimmy is the star we needed to win a championship. But Jimmy wasn’t up for that challenge missing games & being disinterested during the regular season & being often injured during vital games.

Miami aren’t going to rebuild after developing players like Bam & Herro who both have taken significant leaps. That takes a lot of effort, time & patience. We invest in our players, that’s what makes us successful. And sticking w/ Butler meant paying a 36yo that has already given us all he cld. There was really nothing left w/ our relationship w/ Butler, why we didn’t pay him. Completely diff situation in GSW w/ him playing nxt to perhaps the best shooter we’ve ever seen….but eventually they may come back to earth & then they’re left w/ an aging 37/38yo w/ your money, who may again be injured (history says it’s only a matter of time).

[3ballbomber]

I figured it was always going to be a toss up who came out smelling better between Jimmy and Pat. I just didn't think it'd be this obvious this soon.

Pat hands down is looking like the a*shole. Jimmy got all his money and is turning around a losing franchise, while we are at death's door. On a 5 game losing streak (about to be 6) and can't even beat the worst teams in the league.

That's why I was so adamant about some of you not being so delusional about being happy JB is gone and it being a "win" for us.

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

Obviously we've moved on from Jimmy. He's on another team that's actually winning right now. We haven't known what that feels like in almost a couple weeks

That's not what I'm talking about. Its the pretending that its a positive that he's gone that's the exact type of talk I'm referring to. Like what is the point of that lie? Who are we seeking to prove something to? Or are we just covering for Pat?

We have no worthwhile draft picks
Neither Bam or Herro are good enough as a centerpiece
We don't have trade pieces to go out and get a star to add to them

Pat and the FO has backed us into a very awful corner. I'm not all doom and gloom either. I'm hoping we pull a rabbit out of our hat and get back to contention next year. But I just have to point it out when people are being catty and petty against Jimmy instead of speaking the truth. We traded him because we had to (and it wasn't a great trade). Not because it was a positive.

If i cld shout ya a beer i wld mate & can drink our sorrows away w/ the current state of our team. But it’s not that losing or trading Jimmy was a positive, more that there was nothing left for Jimmy to give us. He gave us his all & it was clear, at his age, he’s focus is now on the money. He proved he didn’t give a sh*t about this team when he half assed gm’s we needed to win. So us ridding of him is a positive in the sense that he became toxic, a distraction for the organization as a whole. he no longer wanted to really compete here.

Look what we’ve achieved in 5yrs. During those ECF’s & finals fans were having a ball & no complaints. We have a couple of losing seasons and fans lose their marbles. This thing is a process & it may well be a long one. The big-3 era was horrible for basketball. It made people think winning was easy, just add water & instant Championships. Winning’s hard bro. But i love the process. I love the problem solving no matter the obstacles & difficulties. It makes the nxt title more satisfying. I’m absolutely down for that grind. History will tell you also that sooner or later we will win a title again.

[VaDe255]

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

The fuss around a timeline misalignment with Jimmy is moot because Mia doesn’t have one clear cut player to build around on its current roster.

Would have been better off sticking with him and be willing to execute bold trades to try and win a chip.

Instead, the team has become a laughing stock and the general sense is that the FO is committed to sticking with its core of Tito’s.

Been saying for years as a counter to all of the ‘trade Jimmy’ takes that once he’s gone, Mia ought to blow it up and start fresh because they will inevitably be a lotto team.

Why does it have to be about building around someone? Why can’t we acquire players around the solid core we have that wld complement one another!? Jimmy wasn’t a prolific scorer, he was just a fierce competitor that was surrounded by the right players that cld compete w/ him. Remember It was Goran that was our leading scorer in the bubble going into the finals. Heat had complimentary players, whom if had been healthy, may have won vs LA. If anybody can remember Pat said we have enough suggesting his opinion Jimmy is the star we needed to win a championship. But Jimmy wasn’t up for that challenge missing games & being disinterested during the regular season & being often injured during vital games.

Miami aren’t going to rebuild after developing players like Bam & Herro who both have taken significant leaps. That takes a lot of effort, time & patience. We invest in our players, that’s what makes us successful. And sticking w/ Butler meant paying a 36yo that has already given us all he cld. There was really nothing left w/ our relationship w/ Butler, why we didn’t pay him. Completely diff situation in GSW w/ him playing nxt to perhaps the best shooter we’ve ever seen….but eventually they may come back to earth & then they’re left w/ an aging 37/38yo w/ your money, who may again be injured (history says it’s only a matter of time).

Because history shows that you need a top 5 player to win a championship. Complementary pieces matter, but without that elite talent to carry the load when it matters, you’re not winning a ring. Look at the last decade, every champion had a legit superstar: LeBron, Curry, Giannis, Jokic. In the history of the NBA ~85% of the time a team with a legit top 5 guy won.

Miami’s core (Bam/Herro) are solid, but they’re not top-tier stars. The Heat tried the depth approach this season, and what happened? Mediocrity. Jimmy may not have been a long-term solution, but letting him go without replacing him with an elite talent just leaves Miami stuck in no man’s land.

You can’t just “build a well-rounded team” and expect to compete at the highest level. You need a top 5 guy and Jimmy was this MVP level of impact for them.

[Beenie]

I thought we’ve moved on frm Jimmy. He took us as far as he cld. Wether we paid him or not his time was up here. He’s closer to retirement, our timeline doesn’t match. It’s a positive he’s gone. He showed he really didn’t care about anybody here as soon as money’s involved. He showed his true colors. That’s not a Heat leader we want. We move on & build for the future. Warriors current success has nothing to do w/ us & our future. Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

The fuss around a timeline misalignment with Jimmy is moot because Mia doesn’t have one clear cut player to build around on its current roster.

Would have been better off sticking with him and be willing to execute bold trades to try and win a chip.

Instead, the team has become a laughing stock and the general sense is that the FO is committed to sticking with its core of Tito’s.

Been saying for years as a counter to all of the ‘trade Jimmy’ takes that once he’s gone, Mia ought to blow it up and start fresh because they will inevitably be a lotto team.

Why does it have to be about building around someone? Why can’t we acquire players around the solid core we have that wld complement one another!? Jimmy wasn’t a prolific scorer, he was just a fierce competitor that was surrounded by the right players that cld compete w/ him. Remember It was Goran that was our leading scorer in the bubble going into the finals. Heat had complimentary players, whom if had been healthy, may have won vs LA. If anybody can remember Pat said we have enough suggesting his opinion Jimmy is the star we needed to win a championship. But Jimmy wasn’t up for that challenge missing games & being disinterested during the regular season & being often injured during vital games.

Miami aren’t going to rebuild after developing players like Bam & Herro who both have taken significant leaps. That takes a lot of effort, time & patience. We invest in our players, that’s what makes us successful. And sticking w/ Butler meant paying a 36yo that has already given us all he cld. There was really nothing left w/ our relationship w/ Butler, why we didn’t pay him. Completely diff situation in GSW w/ him playing nxt to perhaps the best shooter we’ve ever seen….but eventually they may come back to earth & then they’re left w/ an aging 37/38yo w/ your money, who may again be injured (history says it’s only a matter of time).

Jimmy's strength wasnt his scoring, although in playoffs, when it mattered most, he was indeed a prolific bucket getter.

His strength was/is that hes amongst the highest IQ players in the league and impacts all areas of the game.

Regarding the Tito's, I suspect you are correct. Mia is invested in them and unfortunately, neither of them are leaders.

[greg4012]

Eventually Warriors will come crashing down. They don’t have enough to win a chip.

The bold will happen by, or before, the 2026-2027 season that Jimmy got with his new contract with GS. Jimmy will be 37 at that point, Steph will be 38, and Draymond will be 36.

The trade still makes sense for both sides. GS paid the extra year for the boost of a high impact player to go all-in on this season and whatever they can squeeze out of it after that.