Pookie Not Enough

There is no reason why Wade should be in Barkley's fave five these days (thanks, TMobile, I expect that credit on my cell phone bill!) and certainly not with the way the Heat are playing. The Jordan comparisons, for now, can stop. Wade is not the one man wrecking crew he turned out to be in '05-'06. He isn't healthy and the only man to not realize this is Riley himself.

"I'm sick and tired of being asked if we have any other offensive options other than Dwyane (Wade)," the author of the book "The Winner Within" said Saturday night. "I say, "No, we don't.'"

Sure you do, Pat. You just choose not to see it.

And no, I don't mean Whaq, the 20M blackhole. Might as well be a statue of Shaq that we purchased because the real Diesel hasn't been around since after we won that championship. And even then there were weak parts to his diminishing game.

No, I am talking about Daequan Cook, Dorell Wright, and even Alexander Johnson. I am also talking about Mark Blount - yes, Mark Blount - and Earl Barron.

I am certainly not talking about Ricky Davis who all of a sudden has lost his shot. Maybe he should start yelling "fore" when shooting. Not "nachoooooo" like Gilbert "Crazy Eyes" Arenas does. Heck, at least people would be warned and there would be less injury to the spectators.

Cook, however, has shown flashes of being a star in this league. Curiously, everyone except Riley sees it. I mean, I know you drafted Jason Smith, but you did trade for Cook for a reason. You had a thought in there that was correct - get me more offense. Cook's brash young attitude may not mesh with Riley, but Smush he certainly is not. Whom we could use, by the way, but Riley doesn't believe in cornrows. The exception being Udonis and Ricky Davis - whom he had traded a few years back for precisely the same stupid rationale.

Look, I love Riley. The man is a great coach and a great tactician but frankly, when you are only focusing on one player and neglecting to explore other options simply because they are young is just plain dumb. Sun Tzu wouldn't do that. Nor would anyone else - especially the man who built the team. Might as well not sign anyone this past offseason and rolled with 8 players.

When the Heat actually played well during this 13 game losing streak, it was without its two best players - Whaq and DWade. And it was on the road against the Mavericks.

Why? The Heat played as a team and Riley coached a TEAM and not a player surrounded by supporting cast. This isn't a stiff action film where the cast is cardboard and formulaic just to support the notion of a script. This is a film that requires a bit more from its supporting cast and a bit less from its star lead. If Riley only let the team play and shifted his focus off of Wade so much it would achieve two things:

1) A team concept
2) Allow Wade to put out less effort, gain his health back and work within a team concept

In other words, Riley would have to coach and just possibly, this team might start winning again. Pookie ain't enough. Whaq's return certainly isn't going to help our defense and will in all likelihood clog up the lane as a statue with one arm frozen in the air calling for the ball.

Pookie ain't enough. And if Riley is sick enough of saying that, maybe he could go for the obvious and start playing his younger players and let them develop. Heck, this is all about next year.

Deal or No Deal?

The question is becoming paramount, almost the defining point of this season - should Miami trade for help or not?

The Heat are 8-24 and even as Ira Winderman points out, it is with great optimism at this point the Heat could get back to contending for a playoff spot. Let alone a shot at the title. The Heat would have to win 33 of their remaining 50 games to get to that .500 winning percentage which basically assures a playoff spot. That means 33-17 the rest of the way and there is no reason to estimate that as probable.

The season, as it stands, is a failure. The only questions to be answered is how many games will Whaq show up for and how many games will Riley coach from here on out.

The Heat have to commit to the future - that is what Riley himself seems to be commenting about.

So the answer is obvious - the Heat are in win maybe mode. They need to refocus on the young players they have (Cook, Wright, Barron, Quinn, Joel Anthony and Alexander Johnson) and see where that takes them. Maybe even Cook, Wright and Wade could turn out to be something akin to the Odom, Butler and Wade lineup that was on the verge of shocking the world (at least Indiana) in the 2003-2004 season.

Even Isiah Thomas, the league's worst GM, realizes that today's NBA game is a small man's game. Riley, for all his coaching talents, has only begun to realize this last season. At least publicly. But let's not make the same mistake Thomas has made - taking whatever is available and forcing it to work - that seems to be what this past offseason was about.

Sure, Riley tried this offseason: yet as Yoda says, "do or do not, there is no try". And he did not improve the Heat's chances with the players he acquired. Thankfully, he did not put the Heat in as bad of a position as Isiah did with the contracts he got in return. Arison wouldn't sign off on it.

The Heat now are forced to build around what they have. What they have is a frustrated young superstar in Wade who doesn't like losing. What they have is a grumpy old center that has to find a way to recover his game as it slips from his mighty hands. Shaq's refusal to reinvent himself in his latter years is the true reason why Miami is faced with the fall from grace few championship teams have ever faced. The Heat look more like a flash in the pan than a sustaining force. A trend more than a classic.

But there is hope if one chooses to see it. Daequan Cook looks to be a legit NBA scorer with star potential - he has the mental makeup to stay in this league and build with Wade. So does Dorell Wright - when Riley actually plays the both of them which injury has forced him to.

Riley's inability to change also has been his downfall. Stan Van Gundy always showed an ability to work with whatever he was given - just look at how much his team changed from 03-04 to 04-05 and how the Heat sustained success. He did something even Riley in his rigidness could not do.

There should be no deal for Miami unless it is a deal for the future and not for the now. Any deal to try and salvage this season should be predicated on the fact that the Heat are not going to win a championship this season but look to the future instead. If Riley, proving stubborn and ever the optimist, makes the mistake of dealing for parts to win now, he is mortgaging the future on his narrow view as a coach instead of a broader view which is demanded of a GM.

There is no greater illustration of this than Riley's gamble on Jason Williams knees. The Heat's 2007-2008 season was bet on his creaky knees being healthy and as a result the Heat franchise has stumbled and now are found on their knees.

Heat In Need of Makeover

It could be cosmetic or even a bit more serious, but Miami is in need of change these days. Riley knows it, Wade knows it, and even Shaq now realizes it.

Right now, this team is confused. Jason Williams was cleared by Riley to get back to his "White Chocolate" style of playing, but has admitted it is something he is struggling to do. Why all of a sudden was Williams unleashed?

Shaq, frustrated over not getting enough touches, has now realized he has done a terrible job this season and vowed to change. Yet, recent comments have shown Shaq to have lowered his expectations.

What is going on? Miami has no identity - and Riley is not helping matters.

This team doesn't shoot particularly well, it doesn't play strong defense, doesn't have high energy, doesn't dominate the paint. It is a jack of all trades but a master of none. Their record, 13 games below .500, indicates that as well.

Also, there is a particular pattern you could almost bank on each game for the Heat. They come out sluggish, with no energy, and fall behind by double digits. Then the Heat pick it up and either tie it up or take the lead. When the 4th quarter rolls around, however, Miami slacks off defensively and gives up a double digit run. A loss at the end of the buzzer and Miami shakes its defiant and proud head.

So, even though there is no definite identity for the Heat and their players, their losses follow a particular pattern. What has Riley done to adjust? Too much.

Miami has to make changes, but they need to be changes that address the problems they are facing. Not enough energy to start games? Start the younger players like Cook and Wright. Bad defensive stretches at the ends of games? Play more active defenders - Shaq is not an option for two reasons now at the end of games, his horrible free throw shooting and his lack of defensive intensity.

Speaking of Shaq, he really is better suited to coming off the bench to maintain leads. He slows the game down and can control the pace of a game. He also is playing less minutes these days do to his age and wear-and-tear. Can you convince a massive ego like Shaq to come off the bench? You have to. Statistically, Shaq is not doing anything wrong. Yet chemically, in fitting in with the fabric of the team, he is not helping by becoming a statue on the offensive side of the ball, too.

The reason Zo's injury is such a big loss is because he can change a game with his defensive play - one ferocious blocked shot would result in a Heat fast break opportunity. Shaq does not have that ability - or at least, doesn't demonstrate that desire to do so.

Miami must begin games faster and with more energy. Insert Cook, Wright and Wade. Put Barron at PF and plug in Joel Anthony, a shot blocking defensive dynamo, at center to start. Hey, we are 13 games under .500, why not try something completely different? All these players will defer to Wade who will manage the ball anyway. Cook provides vitality and a scoring threat from anywhere on the floor. Wright gives the Heat rebounding intensity and an athletic presence on the wing that works well with Wade. Barron can spread the floor with his jumper, but also provides a bit of a downside in regards to rebounding - but Haslem has peaked himself and it doesn't seem like the Heat lose too much with him off the court to start games. Anthony can provide a shot blocking presence that will force teams to think twice about playing in the low block.

This allows the Heat to substitute immediately Shaq at center, if they want to hold the lead or even build on one, and Haslem can come off the bench to provide a further calming influence on the game. You could even slide Barron back and forth between center and power forward.

The Heat have to make a commitment. Based on the patterns in their losses, the Heat are looking at some tough changes or their season will be lost.