Miami Heat Rumors: Gilbert Arenas Would Be Bad for Development of Young Heat PGs

After the Orlando Magic used the amnesty clause to release point guard Gilbert Arenas, he cleared waivers and is now a free agent. The Miami Heat are among the teams rumored to be interested, but signing Arenas would compromise the development of the young point guards already on the roster.

According to Marc Stein of ESPN.com, the Heat are among the teams atop Arenas' wish list, and Heat executive Pat Riley might be willing to bite. While signing Arenas would severely damage the Heat in any way, there simply isn't any reason for it.

At this point, due to Arenas' multiple knee injuries, he is little more than a three-point shooter off the bench. The Heat need another one of those like they need a sharp stick in the eye as Mike Miller, James Jones and Eddie House are already on the roster.

Miami doesn't have much experience at point guard, but Mario Chalmers certainly had his moments as a starter last season, particularly in the playoffs. Also, rookie Norris Cole has been extremely impressive leading up to the start of the regular season as he handed out eight assists in Miami's preseason win against the Orlando Magic.

Neither Chalmers nor Cole have the pedigree of Arenas, but both are younger, fresher and better fits for the Heat's needs. The best thing for Chalmers and Cole is for them to mesh with the "Big Three" of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh while receiving ample playing time.

I get the feeling that Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra would be compelled to play Arenas quite a bit, but he shouldn't get big minutes in favor of Chalmers and Cole. A perfect example of this type of situation is the Boston Celtics when the brought Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen together.

The Celtics could have gone out and gotten a veteran point guard to play with those guys, but they pretty much went with the unproven Rajon Rondo right from the get-go. The gamble ultimately paid off as Rondo thrived and developed into an All-Star player at his position.

I'm not saying Chalmers or Cole will become All-Stars, but the Heat may never find out if they have that type of potential with a dinosaur like Arenas stealing minutes. Arenas may be able to serve a purpose for some team, but the Heat aren't that team.

Miami already has plenty of good veterans coming off the bench, and Arenas would be a terrible fit as a starter. Chalmers and Cole may not be proven starters yet, but in time I think one of them will be.