2011 NBA Draft Grades: Is Norris Cole the Player the Miami Heat Are Looking For?

Miami Heat Get a Positive Grade for Acquiring Norris Cole in the 2011 NBA Draft

The Miami Hear probably could have chosen to stand pat with the No. 31 pick in Thursday's draft, and they still would have ended up with the man they wanted. Instead, Pat Riley and Heat brass chose to force the issue by making a deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves for the No. 28 pick, which the Wolves had acquired from the Chicago Bulls.

Ultimately, the Heat ended up with the Norris Cole, a point guard out of Cleveland State.

Sure, Cole isn't exactly a household name, but he's not chopped liver either. We're talking about a guy who averaged better than 21 points, five assists, and five rebounds per game in his senior season. Whether it's pass, shoot, drive, or rack up steals, there are few things Cole can't do. And at 6'2" and 175 pounds, you can't knock him for being undersized.

However, there is one legit knock on Cole. Cleveland State is not exactly a powerhouse school, nor does it play any other powerhouse schools. The old "inferior competition" argument definitely applies.

But hey, let's give Cole some credit. He's pretty good, and good doesn't wear a uniform.

But now Cole is wearing a Heat uniform. That means he's in the brightest (and harshest) spotlight the NBA has to offer. And given Miami's struggles at the point guard position this past season, it won't be long before Cole will be forced to earn his stripes.

As of right now, Mario Chalmers is projected to run the point for the Heat next season. His job will basically be to get the ball to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade or Chris Bosh as quickly as humanly possible, and then take up a position outside the three-point line. This is a formula that actually worked out okay from time to time, as Chalmers hit some pretty big threes here and there. He hit at least two threes in four of the six games in the NBA Finals.

That said, Chalmers was really the only option the Heat had at point guard that proved to be even somewhat reliable. Carlos Arroyo couldn't make the grade, and Mike Bibby did a whole lot of nothing after the Heat picked him up.

That's where Cole comes in. Right away, all he'll need to do is provide some much-needed depth at the point for the Heat. If they get something out of him, great. If not, the Heat will still be good. They may not be NBA champions, but we shouldn't kid ourselves by thinking that the Heat are going to suddenly fade into irrelevance.

In order to take that next step, though, the Heat need more. You can argue that a reliable center is the team's biggest need, but the fact that they made drafting Cole a priority goes to show what the Heat think of their own needs.

Don't let 'em down, Norris. If you do, you'll never hear the end of it.

Grade: B