Wednesday, August 4, 2010

15 Strong Part 2, when the sequel is better than the original

The original 15 strong had Riley on the bench, but I would trade the fuzzy feeling that I get when I see his slicked hair pacing the sideline for our current roster in a heartbeat. The announcement that Patrick Beverley has received a two year fully guaranteed deal has placed the Heat at the regular season 15 man roster limit. Kenny Hasbrouck and Shavlik Randolph bring the total to 17, but their contracts are not guaranteed. Miami could still add three more as the camp limit is twenty.

However, this article is about the 15 guaranteed deals, because as of today that is your 2010 Miami Heat roster. Walk up a mountain, to the top of a building and just scream from the top of your lungs like you are Chris Bosh at the Three Kings introduction. Riley's vision has come full circle and an amazing team has been assembled. Can it be improved? Will it be improved? Yes and yes. In fact, I expect a new addition or two by the team the playoffs begin, but that is a story for another day. These guys have all earned the right to be at the ground floor at what should be a multiple championship core (not two, not three... you know what I'm getting at).

I would not expect too much action now because the free agent market is pretty bare and only Mario Chalmers can be traded to clear a roster spot between now and December 15th, so let's see where we stand:

C - Anthony - Ilgauskas - Magloire - Pittman
PF - Bosh - Haslem - Howard
SF - James - Miller - Jones
SG - Wade - House
PG - Chalmers - Arroyo - Beverley

Pittman is the most likely to be wearing a suit until he gets into game shape. If he develops quickly it could put Magloire's spot in jeapardy, perhaps opening up a slot for the recovering prospect swingman Da'Sean Butler. Another possibility that might be worthy of opening up a spot for is somebody like Roger Mason and even Tracy McGrady could be intriguing if he is willing to rehab with Tim Grover throughout the season, earning minutes as he goes. That is also a matter for another blog, back to these guys...

The bottom of the roster options on this roster may not be the most exciting for some of us greedy fans, but everybody could play an important role in route to the franchise's second title this coming June. I don't think I am being a homer, because I called the Lakers repeating after they signed Artest. People were going back and forth about breaking the chemistry, his being a headcase, etc. I calmly rejected all arguments and said, we've been here before, this is like when Phil Jackson added Rodman to the Bulls... what do you know, I was right and so was half of the population - don't think I am special because of that pick. Just saying, this is one of those moments, like when the Pistons added Rasheed Wallace. The only difference about this talk about "final pieces" is that ours was LeBron James.

Think about that for a moment. If you follow the chronology our core was Wade and Bosh, and then the next day we added LeBron. In two days, the history of the franchise was forever changed. Miami has just made the leap into the elite franchises of this league and we don't completely understand what has happened yet. The role players have arrived and half the nation (or more) is still in denial. So, go ahead, think about upgrades if you like, but your 15 strong championship squad has already been delivered. Smile.

87 comments:

  1. From Foxsports - the best Christmas day game:

    2004: Heat 104, Lakers 102 (OT)
    After the Shaq-Kobe feud dominated the sports pages all year, the
    NBA couldn't resist matching the two following Shaq's trade to Miami. The game drew the highest regular-season TV ratings in six years (and wasn't surpassed until the Lakers-Celtics Christmas game in 2008) and lived up to the hype. Though Shaq fouled out, Dwyane Wade lifted the Heat in overtime. Kobe scored 42 points but his 3-pointer rimmed out at the OT buzzer. The Heat ended up beating the Lakers three years in a row on Christmas. Will they do it again this year

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  2. Jason Williams re-signs with Orlando. I prefer Arroyo and Beverley, because Carlos might actually have a little more left in the tank. I think they may allow Carlos to take more risk, he was conservative to a t last year.

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  3. JGtruth says:
    August 5, 2010 at 1:46 am

    About time. No wonder the blog has been on its best behavior. Even the one I can not mention has been trying to be careful today. Nice job by Chris T.
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    Yeah nice job Chris T ...what?

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  4. Rogue Blogger says:
    August 5, 2010 at 1:54 am

    I think it is because Chris T is “moderating” one of my posts in which I posted a few (harmless) articles for the blog’s consumption and then I replied to my moderated comment.

    Sorry…
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    That's been my experience more. You can hardly post any links and got forbid they are for this blog... taheati, heathoops? Knock yourselves out... this one here? That is why Cyrus got banned. Too powerful. They remember when everyone left.

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  5. I appreciate your words, but I'm gonna need more readers for this whole thing to work.

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  6. Nah, man I usually just read... I notice nobody really talks on the board anymore.

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  7. Hahaha. Yeah, it's like being in seclusion has turned us into two different bloggers. I couldn't leave you alone. Fuck the sunsentinel. I'm your dark side persona that has your back.

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  8. This is really, really stupid... but I think we are making a point.

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  9. Maybe if we post all day to each other people will get the idea that this site is not dead. People just need to come here to post their ideas.

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  10. Heck, I'll post interesting things from that other blog so people feel at home.

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  11. Hahaha... man, I got my own pen pal to get me through the days until people come to their senses and realize what they are doing to themselves.

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  12. That's cool. Hopefully this doesn't last too long, because I can only single handedly push the blog forward so far.

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  13. Waiting until the season opens is not smart. We have something special here. People need to climb on the bandwagon here. Over here we run the show.

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  14. I will never forget what it was like when this blog opened. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced... the best bloggers were writing articles and you could really see the potential.

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  15. Sledge was having a hissy fit about the traitor blog.

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  16. I guess it is make it or break it time. If people are really happy at the sentinel, this place will not be as big as it should be...

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  17. If we just up and leave the sentinel together, we would be the most hated and best Heat blog in south florida. I'm like Dwyane Wade on the recruiting path. I need to find my Chris Bosh and LBJ and then have the role players fill the gaps.

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  18. This is a big waste of time, I am just remind you all what a blog looks like :)

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  19. Don't worry about Cyrus... we can always just become three people and start disagreeing with each other for the hell of it.

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  20. Shaq is being called the Big Shamrock

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  21. I think he should be the big irish

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  22. always wanted to see those two on a team

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  23. Watch out or chris teidje will ban you

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  24. you can say a few non pc things here and there and the blog will decide if you are out of line

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  25. makes a lot of sense to listen to the blog about what the blog wants

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  26. you don't ban ctv because he's telling you that you are doing a terrible job and that half the blog will be here for the season as a result of his ineptitude.

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  27. frankly, i thought i was being nice by giving him a heads up on how it is going to go down.

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  28. i hope this accelerates the process... i can write circles around ira winderman

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  29. Write circles? I don't know about that. Ira's being doing this shit for 30 years.. look at how much hair he has lost in the process.

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  30. I mean, you're good. But you have to stay humble. If you were that good, do you think you would be talking to yourself on your 3rd day of banishment?

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  31. How's that for a dose of perspective for ya?

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  32. I love you homie, but these guys writing at the newspaper, they're pros... they went to school and shit... legitimate stuff.

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  33. I like Wallace more than Winderman as far as writing, but the guy is a lazy blogger.

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  34. Did you know I am a trained journalist?

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  35. Yeah, I was a writer for the top news tv station in Arizona a few years back.

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  36. They wanted me to write for the morning show, but I had to turn it down because I was getting my masters.

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  37. Some of my teachers in school are award winners and I could easily get letters of recommendation if I wanted to get back into it.

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  38. My problem is that I want to do something other than journalism, because they work you to the ground and pay you peanuts.

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  39. If I could get a job in South Florida that would be pretty cool, but I would probably just be doing it so I could catch the Heat playing basketball.

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  40. LBJ/Wade/Bosh - that's disgusting. Too damn good. I might have to shift back from the movie industry into sports writing or tv or something.

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  41. Man, I'm tired of talking to myself... how do the trolls do it?

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  42. I mean, I love me... but this is ridiculous.

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  43. I'm going to do it, because I believe we should be posting 100 comments per article I post... that is how you let a writer know his work is appreciated.

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  44. It's just two of us now, but soon the guys will come to their home... I know it. And then we can talk basketball!!

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  45. Hasbrouck has game and he could possibly beat out Mario Chalmers if it was a fair fight (they were both rookies and undrafted, as an example). However, I know Chalmers would have an upper hand, because he is a guy that has shown he can be in the top ten in steals in this league... that has value.

    Even though we have seen the warts in his game, Riley likes to develop guys that are elite at something. Perhaps Hasbrouck is elite at something, we'll see.

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  46. It was Bev and the reason is because he does the little things exceptionally well.. he fills the stat box with picking up loose balls - like rebounds... the little things that Ira claims to look at when determining UD's value.

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  47. I swear there is a homo-erotic vibe with the Haslem love... I mean he is good, but if I see him fight LBJ or Bosh for a rebound that is clearly theirs I hope they knock him to the ground.

    I have never seen a guy hustle so hard to steal rebounds from his teammates to pad his stats. You can call me what you like, but if you want to get my respect... fight for the hard boards, don't steal the gimmies. I can't believe the coaches put up with that nonsense.

    I hate to see a ball go out of bounds because teammates fought each other for it... and Haslem is always there when it happens. It would be ok if it was because he was fighting for everyboard... but he doesn't, he fights for the ones he can get to. I guess you can't really fault him for being so tiny amongst the tall guys and even the short ones that can sky high and have 7 foot wing spans.

    He is a marginal NBA talent, who is in this league because he plays hard and can hit a jumpshot. I love him for who he is, but I would not hang his jersey up just because of longevity. Give me Rice, Steve Smith, Seikaly, or Eddie Jones... the guys that put the franchise on the map. Heck, I know it is ridiculous, but give me Harold Miner. Yeah, he sucked as a ball player, but his slam dunk competitions help put the Heat on the map too. My point is that UD does not make sense... Kurt Thomas, PJ Brown, Kevin Willis, Brian Grant - those guys brought similar things to the table and could play center... UD cost Michael Beasley his Heat career because he could not play the center position, what a failure that experiment was.

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  48. I mean, the guy comes in and does his job... and does not complain.

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  49. He took a paycut to come back and bring you titles.

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  50. I swear some people have to complain about everything.

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  51. Also, the guy was a total fat bastard and he lost all that weight in France... he must have been taking some mad drugs. You have to respect the man.

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  52. If we had 15 UD's we would be fighting for the 8th spot in the east, but that is not the point. He keeps the other guys hustling, that's why he is a captain. He represents Heat culture.

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  53. No, you're right, but Ira has a man-crush on Haslem because he is the "hustlema" of the journalism world. BTW, not all the things the trolls say are lies or unfunny.

    I actually like the sentinel trolls when they are taking their medicine.

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  54. Look, I think we can all agree to never look back at the Beasley situation and say what if, because Riley found a way to build around a core of Wade/Haslem.

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  55. I don't think Riley and Wade get enough credit for convincing two all-world players that they needed to take a paycut so that we could sign UD.

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  56. I think he is way overrated, but he is a coaches pet... the next Keith Askins. God bless him. BTW, is it me or was Askins a really underrated Heat player. HEck, give me Keith Askins on the rafters if you are discussing Hustlem.

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  57. Also, wtf is wrong with Riley retiring Jordan and Marino's # and then bringing LeBron and having him change his number, only to have Miller and having him wear #13.

    I get Marino did not play in the league, but I thought his number was off limits? Probably because it is a bad luck # and nobody should wear it. Marino is one of the greatest, yet ringless... and now Nash is about to do the feat in the NBA... retire the number!

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  58. I'll be here if you get lonely and can't do it anymore.

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  59. ALthough, I feel you... what is the point of writing articles daily if nobody is here.

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  60. I mean, I know they all say they will come here when the season starts, but I think they just mean the live chat. It's a shame too because none of that gets recorded.

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  61. Hey tycoon... I appreciate the human interaction

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  62. We don't always have to see eye to eye... it is always about communicating and explaining your point of view.

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  63. You see, the trolls... they don't really have a point of view. They are rigid in their arguments... real bloggers are able to carry a conversation.

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  64. The trolls say the same thing over and over. It is called spamming and they spam the hell out of your brain.

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  65. Wow, look it is almost time for another article.

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  66. I wonder what I will write.. I am always free-styling it... blogging ain't easy, but somebody gotta do it.

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  67. Hey Cyrus, it has been funny listening to you talk to yourself, but I think you have a problem. Where are all these bloggers you were bragging about? This place is deserted. ;)

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  68. Had a great hike up the canyon today - tomorrow we do it again!

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  69. Gotta head to a doctors appointment... get those std's checked out, ya know...

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  70. I don't know that much about basketball and you know my dad is a big Celtics fan, so that is where my heart is at really, but it sounds like Miami is gonna be hella good too!!! :)

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  71. Alright, I'll be back in a few hours. Just showing some support for the cause I guess. Your friends should be here soon - I HOPE! Hang in there buddy :)

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  72. Thanks Sherm. It has been kinda hard being kicked out of the club. I did what I had to do though... I don't put up with BS.

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  73. Yeah, what are you gonna do... I wasn't gonna sit there and watch him show up again like he did in May and then disappear without doing his job... getting people's hopes up for nothing... if you think about it, what has changed? I left because I hate trolls taking up the blog space with their spamming of the same thought over and over... we are trying to have conversation and move forward... they like it to be groundhog day... every day spewing out whatever bs they thing is smart at the time.

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  74. You are too emotional, just like me :)-

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  75. It is what it is... some people are intense and some go with the flow. I should be more like Haslem, I suppose.

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  76. You are more like Kevin Garnett :)

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  77. Thanks for the love. Go take care of your business...

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