Biggest 2015 Offseason Needs for the Miami Heat
With the Miami Heat now officially out of the Eastern Conference playoff race, it's time to look toward the offseason.
While Miami's year was an overall disappointment, there's plenty of reason to be optimistic about 2015-16. Chris Bosh and Josh McRoberts should both be healthy, Dwyane Wade has proved he can still play at a very high level, and the Heat have found a budding star in Hassan Whiteside.
Most of Miami's biggest pieces are already in place (or hopefully soon will be). What the team needs to do now is surround its stars with enough depth to be a legitimate power player in the East.
The Heat's cap situation is tangled, and they likely won't target free agents quite as aggressively as they have in past years. But they have enough room to make a few moves and should be able to fill some big needs this summer.
Re-Sign Goran Dragic
This is a given. Dragic is a star, and the Heat gave up a lot (two future first-round picks) to acquire him. Letting him go in free agency would be a huge step back for Miami.
Dragic isn't the ideal partner for Wade. Both are uneven outside shooters and need the ball in their hands to be at their best. However, they're both really talented offensive players, and Erik Spoelstra should be able to come up with some sets to maximize their effectiveness together.
Dragic should also pair well with Bosh and McRoberts. He was at his best running pick-and-pops with Channing Frye when they were together on the Phoenix Suns—Phoenix scored at crazy rates when the two shared the court. Neither Bosh nor McRoberts are quite the marksmen Frye is. But they're more versatile players overall and should give Dragic a little more room to breathe offensively.
Luol Deng Replacement
Deng has a 2015 player option, per HoopsHype, and it's still unclear whether or not he intends to test the market this summer. For what it's worth, he seems to love Miami, as he recently told the Palm Beach Post's Jason Lieser:
"I love this organization. It’s been top-class and everything. I’ve had one of my healthiest years. It was never anything serious. I’ve felt great about the medical staff. When you’ve been in the league 11 years, as soon as you start putting mileage on your body, you want a group that knows your body and you’re comfortable with them. The organization has been great.
"
Still, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him cash out on such a strong year. That would hurt the Heat—Deng is a good two-way wing—but it might not be too bad of a loss moving forward.
As good as he is, he's overpaid given his current production (he's slated to make just over $10 million next season). He's also only a so-so long-range shooter (33.3 percent for his career), which makes him an imperfect fit next to Wade and Dragic. It's not entirely crazy to think that the Heat could find better value in free agency.
It would be worth making a run at some potentially undervalued three-and-D wings, the best possible options being Jared Dudley and Mike Dunleavy. Both Dudley and Dunleavy can shoot (38.5 and 41 percent from deep, respectively) and are solid wing defenders.
Neither player can create all that much offense on their own, but Dunleavy has a lot of experience running around screens for the Chicago Bulls.
That could make him an interesting fit with the Heat, who run a lot of weak-side flip plays designed to get their guards and wings on the move toward the rim. Those would be perfect for Dunleavy, who's taken advantage of similar plays in Chicago.
One other potential target would be the Oklahoma City Thunder's Kyle Singler.
Singler doesn't offer quite the punch that the aforementioned wings do (on either end). But he's a career 38 percent shooter from deep and is a roughly average defender. Obviously, he wouldn't be the splashiest signing, but he's a rotation player and will be available for fairly cheap.
Alternatively, the Heat could overlook shooting and focus solely on defense. That would cause some hiccups offensively, but it could be an overall plus. If Deng goes, Miami has virtually no above-average wing defenders on the roster.
There aren't many elite perimeter defenders on the market this summer, but if Al-Farouq Aminu opts out of his deal with the Dallas Mavericks (per HoopsHype), the Heat should make a real effort to snatch him up.
ESPN's real plus-minus system pegs Aminu as the sixth-best defensive small forward in the league, and the Mavericks have asked him to defend a bunch of different positions this season. He would be awesome as one of the last lines of defense in Miami's blitzing scheme.
Off-the-Bench Shooter
Should Deng choose to stick around for next season (and maybe even if he doesn't), Miami needs to go after a cheap, off-the-bench shooter.
Since the trade deadline, the Heat have hit just 31.5 percent of their threes, the second-worst mark in the league. Injuries have obviously played a big part in that, as has a weird down year from Mario Chalmers. But even with some bounce-back expected, shooting is an issue Miami should address this summer.
Right now, the Heat's biggest weapon is their pick-and-roll play. Dragic and Wade are both great pick-and-roll ball-handlers, and Whiteside's emergence gives Miami a killer roll man to pair with Bosh or McRoberts.
What it doesn't have is enough shooting to space the floor for those pick-and-rolls. Opponents can pack the paint with zero repercussions right now, and it's borderline impossible to create a workable offense under those conditions.
All the Heat need is a solid shooter who can play something like 10 or so minutes per game off the bench. They should be able to find a player like that for fairly cheap.
The Portland Trail Blazers' Dorell Wright, the Los Angeles Lakers' Wayne Ellington and even the Suns' Marcus Thornton would all fit the bill. Each player is at least a 36 percent career three-point shooter and could play just a handful of minutes per game.
One other player worth a look is Gerald Green. Green will admittedly cost more than the other players listed here, but he would provide instant offense off the bench.
Green's launching threes at a historic rate. Not all of those shots are ideal (he's a very big fan of the pull-up three), but just having someone who's willing to shoot in bunches can be helpful for spacing. He's a truly horrible defender—ESPN's real plus-minus system rates him as one of the league's worst.
But as far as pure offense goes, the Heat couldn't do much better.
All statistics accurate as of 4/15/2015 and courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com or NBA.com/Stats unless stated otherwise.
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