Wade Defends Heat's Offseason: Welcome to Plan B

Wade's defense of the Heat's offseason was unnecessary. We all know that the Heat had limited financial tools to get anything done this offseason - in fact, that is kind of the point.

The Heat are limited in that they can only use their MLE, bi-annual exception and a veteran minimum exception to entice anyone to play in Miami (again, why MLB has it right - they don't handcuff teams willing to spend to win). But the Heat are being cheap because Mickey Arison, only worth a few billion himself, doesn't want to pay the luxury tax for players he adds to this team.

Hey Mickey, you only get one shot at this. You have Shaq on your roster, arguably one of the greatest forces that ever played in the NBA. And you want to limit your chances at turning your franchise from an average one into one of the premier franchises in the NBA because of a few million dollars?

It's like Michelangelo turning down the Sistine Chapel because he didn't want to lay on his back while painting.

Sometimes to do something monumental you have to commit to it just a little more than everyone else. After all, that is how it becomes a great achievement.

And here stands one of the best young talents in the NBA, with truly a shot at being one of the all time greats, Dwyane Wade, and he is talking about how the Heat tried but couldn't get the talent they needed. Isn't that ironic?

Pat Riley, as usual, disappears when something like this goes down. He wants to wash his hands of it and not get involved. Yet if something positive happens, he's right there to take his lion's share of the credit.

Sure, the Heat tried, but in truth they didn't really try. They didn't want to overpay - like they did with Anthony Carter, Eddie Jones, Brian Grant. They wanted to prove themselves shrewd and smart and savy, stating that they knew the market and what they needed.

Then they should have just stated up front that they were targeting Smush Parker and that is it. Because they proved themselves to be damning to their own cause: like pumping up Mo Williams' value by bringing him in for a recruiting trip. If not for that, the Heat may have landed Williams at a steal.

The Heat had an option to add one of the best talents in Europe with Barcelona PG Juan Carlos Navarro, but the Wizards were asking too much. The Heat chose not to up their offer from a draft pick and thus the Grizzlies nabbed him - for their draft pick.

So what does this mean? That Miami is still a good destination for NBA players, just they don't have the money to spend. But Riley has to realize that because of this limitation, he cannot bail himself out with a big ticketed acquisition. This calls for Plan B or "Riley Has to Coach the Damned Thing".

Dwyane Wade addressed the media from his basketball camp in Davie, and defended the Heat's offseason by stating that they just didn't have the financial space available to make a move. Yet, he also pushed Dorell Wright out there when he said it could present an opportunity for him to play.

And Wade's right. But Riley has to show he can grow as a coach and not be stubborn about playing a talent like Wright, who simply needs experience and a chance to utilize his skills; he certainly will get the chance in training camp.

Because of the Heat's limited financial situation, Riley is going to have to do his best job as a coach since as a GM he couldn't help much. Yet, this season will call for a challenge to Riley's definition of himself as a coach - he will have to be more flexible in who he is willing to play.

Since the Heat could not go out and get a big ticket item, they are going to have to turn to developing players like Wright, Jeremy Richardson, Trey Johnson, Daequan Cook and even Smush Parker to round out their roster.