The Cold War

It has started to settle deep into the background of the NBA. Lurking behind the scenes in a dark shadow, but such is the price of greatness.

There is a cold war being waged. And two of the teams that are involved are among the elite franchises in the NBA.

On one side stands the San Antonio Spurs. The defending world champs that have leaped from team on the rise to potential dynasty. They have excellent scouting. Excellent coaching. They have a nice mixture of young players in Ginobili and Parker and veterans in Duncan, Horry, and Bowen. They get the maximum out of their players and they are as smart as they are skilled. The Spurs are the class of the NBA - they cast their nets far and wide to bring home the best talent available that fits their system and plays their brand of basketball.

On the other side stands the noveau riche Miami Heat. Built with a strong foundation on the shoulders of Alonzo Mourning, this franchise rose and fell within the last 5 years of the 1990's. But like a phoenix, the Heat rose again from their ashes through the shrewd drafting of players like Caron Butler and Dwyane Wade. Pat Riley, always with a jewler's eye for talent, transferred coaching duties to his super assistant, Stan Van Gundy. This move paid off by freeing Riley from one of his toughest customers - Pat Riley the coach. No longer relegated to a certain style of play, the Heat were able to land talent to fit a system that Van Gundy could tailor to the needs of his players. The young gun team of '03-'04 gave way to the juggernaut team of '04-'05 because of the arrival of one Diesel. And the fortunes for the Heat have changed since.

It seemed like both these teams were on a collison course for destiny last season. The Heat had the best record in the East, the Spurs the best in the West. Both were strong at home and strong on the road. And this may have been where the cold war started - with two super powers eyeing each other from afar, anticipating the final showdown.

The Heat felt they weren't strong enough at small forward and took a chance on Qyntel Woods, the super athletic but troubled talent let go by the Trailblazers. Woods, at the time, was selecting between the Heat and the Spurs.

Then there was Glenn Robinson. Rumors were flying that early in the season the Heat were thinking of dealing Eddie Jones away for Robinson from the Sixers. The deal made some sense as the 'Big Dawg' could fill in for the Heat at small forward and provide some more offense at the position. Big contracts could have been moved, too. But it never came to pass, and Robinson was released. Still a target for the Heat, although a mild one, the Spurs ended up scooping Robinson. In response to missing out on Woods? Or only to keep the Heat from landing Robinson and having one less weapon to face in a showdown?

Then there is the courtship of Michael Finley. Finley, as reports recently have stated, has decided to sign with the Spurs. It is widely known that the Heat and Phoenix were also favorites to sign the 32 year old veteran. The Heat could offer up their entire mid-level exception as well as a possible starting job and a chance to win a championship in the coming future. More money, a starting position and a chance at a ring. The Spurs could only realistically offer one of those things. Still, Finley signed with the Spurs.

The details are not yet revealed as to why. But there is one thing that does seem to be lingering here: is there indeed a cold war between the NBA superpowers the Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs? Are they stockpiling talent while keeping their collective gazes fixed on the other side?

If there wasn't a cold war before, there certainly is one now.

The Education of the Miami Heat fan

So many in the media have begun to spin out of control over the chemistry issues with the new "Heatians" that have arrived in Williams, Posey, and Walker. Aside from the fact that we added two more "W's" to the roster, this shouldn't even be questioned as a positive.

We will detail, with statistical analysis, why this transaction will work for this team in a coming blog. So keep your eyes peeled. But what we do need to address here is the notion of basketball and what a Heat fan should take note of.

Know first and foremost, your team just got better. A 'helluva' lot better. The talent pool, regardless of all the emotional attachment to EJ and all the promise of a talent like Woods or even Butler, has gotten much thicker. Like cement-poured-in-water thick.

Let's take a very simplistic look at that notion. A team's goal is to win. Win as often as it can. To do that, you need players that can play better - and more consistently - than the other team. In other words, you got to have talent. More talent = more chances of winning. Good teams win games. Great teams win championships.

Now, the Heat have great talent. Sure, asterisk it with *on paper. And yes, we have seen great teams assembled not win it all. But more likely than not, you will see a great team on paper win it all than a not-so-great team on paper even come close.

Which brings us to the big 'chemistry' question. Is there such a thing as "bad chemistry"? Indeed there is - and you may have seen it with last year's Timberwolves or even the Chris Webber/Allen Iverson Sixers. But if there is such a thing as bad chemistry, then it is necessary to also honor a thing known as good chemistry.

But all of this is not the point. Chemistry, is just a general term for reflecting how a team plays together. And we honestly don't know quite yet how this team will play together - so be wary of anyone who claims to know how this team will perform. Especially in a sport like basketball where the very nature of "team" is most immediately illustrated as 5 guys decide to play against 5 other guys with only 1 basketball. In fact, it seems like the sport is designed for psychological disfunction.

As a Heat fan, you must realize that all things won't begin to click right away. This isn't football, South Florida. It isn't day after day of practice for one game. It isn't a season dictated by a measely 16 game schedule. No, this is about 82 games. And how a team grows over those 82 games. There is plenty of time to learn - and also plenty of time to learn about this team.

So read and enjoy all the media sensationalism about how the Heat may have ruined their chances and have somehow opened up Pandora's jar full of things like "bad chemistry" and "egotism" and "the '03-'04 Lakers". And remember the one simple principle we pointed out here today - greater talent means a greater chance at winning. The Heat, under the guidance of Pat Riley, have been able to achieve just that.

Now, let's leave it up to the players to decide.

Please Riley, scrap DJ

Know anyone in the league that would like a 3 point assassin for a PG? One that plays with his back to the basket - while taking the ball over half-court? How about one that has a patented karate-kick move used to ward off defenders? Or has so little lateral quickness and footspeed you would think he had cement in his shoes? You don't?

Me neither.

Especially not the Heat. Sorry, Damon Jones, you seem to have overvalued yourself. And thank you for doing so. Because the last point guard that did so was Anthony Carter - and thank God his agent couldn't file the papers on time. That little miscue not only afforded Pat Riley a mulligan on what would have been another terrible move (note: he was serving both as coach AND GM at the time) from a contractual perspective, but opened the door which lead to Lamar Odom's arrival. And eventually, that door was torn off the hinges for Shaq's entrance.

The Heat also has a history of making careers for point guards. Just ask Eric Murdock. Or Rafer Alston. Or witness the return of Timmy Hardaway. DJ would just be another in a long line of one-hit wonders that passed through Miami and gained from playing in a great system.

The latest reports out of Cleveland are that they are getting tired of waiting for DJ to decide. They have offered him, reportedly, a contract but the most they could work out to was $21.5M - or the $3.7 cap space extended for 5 years with raises built in. Considering he opted out of his $2M contract for this season, that figure seems to be in the right neighborhood. And it frightens me that Riley may be giving DJ what he wants - and that is why there is a delay in DJ's decision.

If the Heat match what Cleveland supposedly is offering, they will do so without really tapping into their mid-level exception - which is worht $5.1M. Now, this is smart because it allows the Heat to sign a couple of players without any penalty. If they chose not to sign DJ, they would still have to sign a backup PG but do it while using their mid-level exception - possibly in or near its entirety.

But that is the best option. There are several intriguing players available still that can not only fill the need of backup PG but can also be upgrades over DJ. Chris Duhon, who was a big part of the Baby-Bulls phenomenon, has signed an offer sheet with the Raptors for 3 years at around $2.5-3M per season. (He is a restricted FA and the Bulls are believed to match). Steven Blake, a Miami High product, is another option although also a restricted FA. Dan Dickau, who had a very productive season as the starter for the Hornets in 67 games last season, has also drawn some interest. Getting 13.2 points per game and 5.2 assists on that team is not half bad. Imagine what Dickau could do with the Heat.

All of these players will cost less than the $4M per season that DJ wants. Sure, you would have to use that mid-level exception to land one of these players, but you would also have to use about the same amount of the MLE to retain DJ's services anyway.

Why not upgrade the position? Go with a younger guy who is a better ball handler, passer and has more defensive skill and athleticism? Earl Watson is available as is Jannero Pargo.

So Pat, don't overpay for DJ. The Heat just attained some payroll flexibility in this latest trade, not to mention generated quite a buzz around the league and making you look even more like a genius along the way. Don't ruin that by overpaying for DJ who looks better than he really is on this Heat team.

Jason Williams and James Posey for EJ? Do it, Riles

The latest rumor heating up for the Heat this offseason is a possible deal that will land the Grizzlies' Jason Williams and James Posey in Miami for long time Heat and fan favorite Eddie Jones. Well, maybe 'maligned' fan favorite anyway.

It is indisputable how much EJ meant to the Heat. He played out of position at SF and was able to muster up excellent defensive efforts against players larger than him. He did this for the sake of the team all while wearing that 'C' on his chest.

But this is exactly why the Heat need to make this move.

Defense, like speed and pitching in baseball, is there EVERY game. Detroit won the Eastern Conference Finals because of injuries to the Heat, definetly, but the indisputable aspect of their game was defense. The Pistons' team defense was there every game, night in and night out. In order for the Heat to take that next big step, they will have to improve their overall defensive effort. This is precisely what Williams and Posey offer.

The other need that had to be addressed was the Heat's ability to create offensively. It cannot be a one man show in Wade. The Heat need other players that can create with their dribble. There are few better in this game than Jason Williams. He is like a poor man's Jason Kidd. Arguably one of the better passers in the game, he can stick an open three as well. With Shaq, he will get plenty of opportunities to do so. But the other aspect JWill brings is his ability to penetrate. How many times did we see Damon Jones posting up from half court, with his back to the basket when we needed someone to approach straight up with atleast the threat to take it to the hole? This is what made Keyon Dooling so valuable here and now that he is gone, that need becomes even more pressing for the Heat.

And James Posey will be as staunch a defender at SF as EJ was - maybe even more so because of his size. At 6'8", Posey will present more of a physical presence as well as a longer wing span. He also can score and even shot .386 from 3 point range back in a healthy '03-'04 season. On this team, he will get more space wiht Shaq in the post and will also get more open looks. He is a freakish athlete who can draw contact - which means more fouls and free throws.

The only downside is parting with EJ - the heart and soul of this Heat team. Fans, most of the fair-weather variety, would whine and complain about EJ's salary and his seeming lack of production. Anyone who knows anything about the game of basketball saw how blatantly obvious EJ's contributions were. And how much the Heat needed them. But this deal is a no-brainer and makes the Heat a more dangerous team on the offensive and defensive ends. Plus, it gives the Heat the ability to spend more money potentially as it does not even dip into it's mid level exception ($5.1M).

Make this deal, Riley. Make the Heat even better than last year's team. With the Nets vastly improved, the Pistons getting back to stability and the Pacers getting Artest back, the Heat have to play catchup. This will put them into a class unto themselves.