LeBron, Wade Nearly Signed with Bulls: How Would This Have Changed the Heat?
In recent media interviews, both LeBron James and Dwyane Wade admitted that they both heavily considered signing with the Chicago Bulls and Derrick Rose.
Luckily for us Miami Heat fans, they resisted this urge and decided to join forces with Chris Bosh in Miami.
But this recent admission by the dynamic duo had me thinking.
Such a violent shake up of the NBA landscape was made when the three All-Stars decided to combine down in Miami.
It is only logical to believe that if they ended up in Chicago, that things would be looking an awful lot different down in Miami right now.
***Major Disclaimer: I know that not all of these facts are going to be 100 percent plausible, and I realize this in writing it. A lot of the ideas are quite far-fetched, but I thoroughly enjoyed writing this article about what could have been if things all went wrong. I hope you enjoy reading it, just remember to keep in mind that this was just one crazy man's imagination at work.***
No LeBron James and Dwyane Wade = No Chris Bosh
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Only logical, right?
Chris Bosh would of ended up in another town. The question remains, however, which one?
Bosh was being heavily pursued by the Houston Rockets, who without Yao Ming, was a franchise without a face.
They definitely had the pieces and draft picks available to conjure up a sign and trade deal with the Raptors, which is what Bosh would of wanted.
For arguments sake, let's just assume that this deal went through. Toronto could of received young players like Chase Budinger, Courtney Lee and Patrick Patterson, along with future draft picks.
And Houston would have received the All-Star in Chris Bosh, a 24-10 player.
A fresh start in his home state of Texas, and he would be the man.
What ripple effect would this have on the rest of the league?
Houston could of made a playoff push, granted that Bosh would keep up his high level of play from his Toronto days. An improved supporting cast around him could of landed Houston somewhere in the lower seeding in the West, as they only finished three games out of this year's playoffs.
If Bosh ended up in Houston, not Miami, the Cinderella story of the Memphis Grizzlies could never have come to fruition.
Picking Up the Free Agent Scraps
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The reason why Bernie the Miami Heat mascot is the photo in this instance?
Because Miami would have had 47 million in cap space, and no free agents to spend it on.
Fair enough, because who would want to wind up in Miami, who's only two players under contract would of been Michael Beasley and Mario Chalmers?
Amar'e had already signed with New York. Joe Johnson was with the Hawks. Dirk was back in Dallas. Pierce and Allen were also back with Boston.
Miami would probably have to throw money at promising young talent, and build around what little talent they already had.
One thing is for sure. There would be no marquee free agents in Miami right now.
Michael Beasley: The Franchise
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Michael Beasley was traded soon after LeBron declared he would "take his talents to South Beach".
Traded in a complete salary dump, that is. A second-round pick would be coming Miami's way, and Minnesota would receive Beasley.
But if LeBron were to join the Bulls like he said he had seriously considered, then Miami would not have traded Michael Beasley.
In fact, Michael Beasley would now be the face of the Miami Heat franchise.
He, along with Mario Chalmers, would of been the only two players under contract.
A scary thought indeed.
Miami Would Be Competing with the Cavaliers for the League's Worst Record
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Miami would be focusing on drafting at this point rather than focusing on the playoffs.
For without Dwyane Wade, the Heat would have been lucky to win 20 games.
The offensive talent of Michael Beasley, however, would of blossomed more so in a Wade-less Miami than it did in Minnesota.
Instead of being a near 20 point per game player, Beasley probably would of been pushing towards the 25 mark, simply due to the fact that he would have to carry the Heat on his back night after night.
Effect on Chicago
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Forget the Heatles, the Chicago Bulls would have been receiving the hatred from every one outside of Illinois.
They would have had to endured two "returns". One to Cleveland, and one to Miami.
They would have been scrutinised just as Miami was for the whole season, maybe more so.
Would Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen come out with those comments of "never needing help to win Championships" if it was their former team which had orchestrated these massive signings?
Would it work? Instead of having two players who supposedly do the same thing in Miami now, Chicago would have three.
There are many questions that would need answering, but if there happened to be a LeBron/Wade/Rose trio, there would also be some facts.
1. They would find a way to win. LeBron, Wade and Rose are all willing passers, and would feed off each other.
2. Derrick Rose would not be the MVP. As much as he has improved, he wouldn't be the best player on his team. That honor would reside with LeBron. As for league's MVP? That honor would most likely fall to Orlando's Dwight Howard.
3. Chicago would be theoretically unbeatable. Granted, there would be holes in their squad that would need filling, but Miami had that very same problem, and for a large portion of the season, they rode on the Big 3's back.
4. Chicago would boast the best perimeter team in NBA History with a trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Derrick Rose.
Summer of 2012 for the Miami Heat?
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Pat Riley could have once again put all of his eggs in the free agency basket.
If, in 2010, he signed the majority of players to two-year deals, in preparation for the summer of 2012, he could have the cap space needed to sign both Dwight Howard and Chris Paul.
Combine this with Michael Beasley, and in all probability, two very high draft picks from expected disappointing seasons in 2011 and 2012, and you can see why Miami could very well look like a favorable destination for these two superstars.
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