Andray Blatche and the Miami Heat Feel Strangely Right Together
On the surface, the two would seem an unlikely basketball fit: one an organization renowned for its success and newfound star power, the other a hardwood misfit with a lengthy set of skills and a past rap sheet to match.
So why do Andray Blatche and the Miami Heat feel strangely right for one another?
First, some background: According to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, the Heat—still reeling after LeBron James’ departure—have made “preliminary inquiries” into the frenetic forward in recent weeks.
Now, with Heat training camp mere weeks away, it seems as though the two parties might be striking a deal sooner than later:
Blatche was purportedly flying directly to Miami from Spain, where the former Brooklyn Net and Washington Wizard has spent the last week marshaling the Philippines National Team in their ill-fated attempt to make the knockout round of the 2014 FIBA World Cup.
For anyone who’s followed Blatche’s almost Dickensian career, the genesis of that story began when the former high-school prodigy was granted naturalized citizenship by the Southeast Asian country—widely regarded as one of the most basketball-crazy places anywhere on the planet.
From the outside looking in, it was easy to view Blatche’s move as a cynical gambit, a way to showcase his talents not just to Philippines fans but to the hundreds of scouts and basketball denizens in attendance.
There’s just one small problem with this perspective: The gamble worked.
Behind averages of 21.2 points and 13.8 rebounds, Blatche emerged as one of FIBA’s unlikeliest stars, this despite the out-manned squad’s 1-4 group-play finish.
Speaking to Grantland’s Rafe Bartholowmew, Philippines head coach Chot Reyes acknowledged that, for all Blatche’s baggage, the sheer exposure he brought to bare was more than worth whatever headaches might arise:
“We said, we’ll take a risk,” Reyes said. “We may not be sure about the other parts of his personality, but at least we’re sure about his athletic ability. … In my mind, we could assimilate anyone as long as that person is open. Working with imports, bringing them from the cold into a team — we have a lot of experience there.”
That’s precisely the rationale Blatche hopes will help sell Miami president Pat Riley on bringing the 28-year-old pivot into the Heat fold.
Despite its somewhat polished public image, Miami has been down the rescue road before, most notably when it brought aboard both Greg Oden and Michael Beasley—a pair of lottery disappointments with completely different backgrounds as NBA busts—prior to the 2013-14 season.
Sadly, neither Beasley nor Oden authored quite the productive performance the Heat had hoped for, casting into further doubt their respective redemptive potential.
But while Blatche might boast a more troubling off-court history than even Beasley, it’s one the Heat may be willing to look past if it means a bigger post-LeBron bounce-back.
Beyond Chris Bosh and the fundamentally limited Chris “Birdman” Anderson, Miami—for all its impressive offseason moves—remains noticeably thin in the frontcourt.
Unlike Anderson and Bosh, Blatche has never been known for his defensive prowess. What he does bring, however, is the kind of refined offensive skill set that could pay big dividends as a focal point of Erik Spoelstra’s second unit, currently highlighted as it is by oft-injured forward Danny Granger.
Should Spoelstra opt to go big, a front line of Josh McRoberts, Bosh and Blatche—all of whom boast inside-outside range—might prove quite the formidable troika indeed.
In his most recent “Ask Ira” installment, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s Ira Winderman captured the give-and-take at play in Miami’s pursuit of the oft-troubled big man:
"I don't know about [Epke] Udoh, because I simply haven't seen enough. But the way Blatche has looked at the World Cup, of course he would be preferable. But it's also a matter of the commitment the Heat would be willing to take in terms of role. For example, with Chris Bosh and Josh McRoberts starting, and with Chris Andersen brought back on a two-year, $10 million deal, would there be enough of a role there for Blatche to embrace? Otherwise, I don't see how he wouldn't help. Add Blatche and Ellington and I don't think there would be nearly as much concern about a drop off with the Heat bench if Ray Allen doesn't return.
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The importance of Miami’s financial situation cannot be discounted. According to ShamSports.com, the Heat currently have north of $61 million in committed salaries for the 2014-15 season. With the league-sanctioned salary cap set at $63.2 million, that doesn’t give Miami much in the way of leeway in terms of offering Blatche an attractive tender.
Based purely on his productivity, Blatche probably isn’t too keen on taking another pay cut, as he did when he signed a three-year deal with the Brooklyn Nets ahead of the 2012-13 season—particularly considering he just got done opting out of the final year (worth roughly $1.5 million) to become an unrestricted free agent.
He might not be worth the $7.2 million the Washington Wizards paid him in the last year of his contract, but if Blatche has already made it known he’s not willing to play for comparative peanuts, Riley will have to make quite the potent pitch to reel in another offseason steal.
Unless, of course, all Blatche wants is a change in scenery—from the blustery winters of his native North to the sunny climes of South Beach. That, coupled with Brooklyn’s uncertain prospects heading into the 2014-15 campaign, could make Riley’s case that much easier to close.
Blatche’s performance at FIBA proves his is a game on which many teams, including the Heat, would be wise to take a flier. Even if it means betting the fringe benefits they use to woo him—sun, fun and good times—don't come back to haunt all involved.
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