Charlie Bell: The One That Got Away?

Well, as we all know (and some of us expected) the Bucks matched the Heat's offer for Charlie Bell - which means he won't be moving to Miami anytime soon.

We could all pin our hopes on a trade, but it was more likely the Heat were going to make a trade if they retained Bell than they would actually trade for Bell.

What this means is the Heat's offseason continues to disappoint. Sure, it was a long shot and Riley basically took a shot in the dark on this, but it wasn't quite like the genius moves of the 2003 offseason where Riley dangled money for Elton Brand only to snatch up the Clippers other RFA, Lamar Odom. Mo Williams re-signed with Milwaukee, but because they are possibly even cheaper than the Clippers they had enough money to match Bell, too.

But this brings up an interesting discussion - or two rather.

1) Is the restricted free agent situation even a worthwhile pursuit? It seems like teams hold all the cards and the only negotiation ploy for an RFA is to threaten to go to Europe. This is what Bell did, and it is what Sarunas Jasikevicius is doing as is Mickeal Pietrus. Pietrus just wants to play in Miami, but it is looking like Golden State has some kind of weird vendetta against Pietrus and will stop at nothing to flounder his ideas. So, he threatens to stay in Europe - but the trick is, even if he does go to Europe, when he comes back to the NBA the Warriors still hold his rights and he is still in the same situation.

As an RFA in the NBA, you're basically screwed. Methinks that will get tinkered with come time for the next CBA.

2) Did signing Smush as an act of desperation stifle the Heat's ability to sign a guy like Charlie Bell? Yes, it did. But the real question is, who was more valued - Bell or Smush? It seems Smush is, but if he isn't, than what is the explanation for the Heat? Bell was available all summer, yet they made no overtures. They would have been better off pushing for a deal at the start of the offseason, like the Raptors did with Kapono, and we may have had him here in Miami. After all, the Bucks had to deal with the Yi situation and then the Mo money scenario. Quietly going after Bell at that time would may have been too much for Milwaukee to handle and they might have let him go since they were trying to plan on retaining the other priorities.

That is, if you think Bell was a highly coveted target at all. I think it was more of a 'hey, why not?' kind of move for Miami. No risk, all reward. And now the Bucks have to deal with that 5 year contract.

All's Quiet on the Offseason Front

We shouldn't mistake the relative quiet from the Heat for inactivity. Rest assured that options are being explored but don't bet on anything happening at this point.

I know we all but gave Mickael Pietrus a Heat jersey, but it is looking like the Heat are retracting their interest. Maybe it is a ploy to drive up Dorell Wright's value - or maybe they really are that interested in Wright after all. One thing is for certain, Riley needs to play him and give him a shot and the only thing that seemed to keep him shackled on the bench was his inconsistent shot. Statistically, you might be surprised to learn that Wright fared pretty well against his peers at his position. He demonstrated himself to be fairly efficient, but he excelled at rebounding and that is something the Heat need more of, especially on the offensive side.

That and the fact that the Heat "leaked" information that Wright is now being listed at 6'10" make him an even more intriguing prospect that even last season. Perhaps some time at PF in addition to SF? We'll see. But it is also one of the reasons why Riley is going to stand "pat" with the roster at this point.

Also, there is the Penny factor. He has been getting rave reviews from other players who have seen him in private workouts, and also he has been doing a pretty good job working with some of the young players like Daequan Cook and Jeremy Richardson - a sleeper at the SF spot that might even get some significant PT if he makes this team.

So, although the Heat haven't made that big splash, and it is uncertain if they will or not, there is reason for hope here as some of the key young players have room for growth and with Kapono and Posey almost entirely out of the way, there is certainly an X factor that could see the Heat's identity change and grow. That is, if Riley is open to it. Which may be illustrated by a trade - if he makes one, he needs to make it. If not, he might be satisfied with his talent already.

Pietrus Still Wants to Play in Miami

Reports out of France are that Mickael Pietrus still wants to play in Miami and there is a slight chance that could still happen - but it will depend on how valuable James POsey is to the Golden State Warriors. Or some other team for that matter that would like to be a part of a three team deal to send Pietrus to Miami and grab Posey for themselves.

The Warriors just re-signed Matt Barnes, an unrestricted free agent, to a one year deal worth about as much as Mickael Pietrus' offer of 3.5M. There are concerns that because the Warriors signed Barnes to a 3M portion of their MLE, they will go further into the luxury tax to keep Pietrus - something they are not willing to do. Which means there may be a window of opportunity for Miami to make something happen - if they value Pietrus enough to go over the luxury threshold themselves.

Is Mickael Pietrus or Matt Barnes Coming to Miami?

Reports out of France are that Pietrus was on TV talking about how much he wanted to join the Miami Heat for the upcoming NBA season.

Meanwhile, the Heat have shown interest in the 6'6" French swingman, but what would set off Pietrus to practically demand a move to Miami? It could be that he learned Golden State and Miami were in discussions - his agent was the one who most likely informed him of this:

Golden State restricted free agent Mickael Pietrus, perhaps the best small forward still available, wants to play for Miami, agent Bill McCandless said, but it will only happen through a sign-and-trade. Talks between the Heat and Warriors are ongoing, but it's unclear if a deal will get done, McCandless said Tuesday. Miami Herald

The Sign & Trade? Most likely James Posey.

The Warriors have offered a 3.5M contract to Pietrus and any team that offers him a deal will have to exceed that amount to get him. Most likely the Warriors will match any offer, since the most Pietrus could get is the full MLE (5.3M) from teams still on the free agent hunt. Knowing this, they also know Pietrus has value and the Warriors also have a 9M trade exception they could use due to the draft day deal of Jason Richardson.

Will Mickael Pietrus land in Miami? He definetly wants to be here but the Warriors are playing hardball. Of course, the sign-and-trade could be Posey for Matt Barnes, too. Check out the San Jose Mercury News as they report that talks with Miami are ongoing, but that it is Barnes that should be the target and not Pietrus. Posey is viewed as an improvement over Barnes, in this case.