Your 2012 NBA Champion, Miami Heat. That’s really all that needs to be said. LeBron James got the monkey off his back and took the first step in their promise to win several rings upon his joining powers with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in South Beach. In order for the Heat to repeat next year, they still need to make a few moves this off-season.
Miami Heat (46-20 last year)
2012-13 Projected Depth Chart:
C: Chris Bosh/Joel Anthony/Dexter Pittman/#Ronny Turiaf
PF: Shane Battier/Udonis Haslem
SF: LeBron James/James Jones
SG: Dwyane Wade/Mike Miller/*Terrel Harris
PG: Mario Chalmers/Norris Cole
NBA Free Agents:
C-Eddy Curry (UFA)
PF-Juwan Howard (UFA)
#F/C-Ronny Turiaf (PO)
*SG-Terel Harris (RFA)
2012-13 Team Salary: approximately $65.6 million
Team Needs:
1. Big Man:
The Joel Anthony/Eddy Curry/Dexter Pittman/Ronny Turiaf quartet is certainly not the solution. Miami realized this in the Finals using a small starting line-up with Chris Bosh at center with Udonis Haslem backing him up. That small line-up was obviously effective enough to win a ring, but adding a serviceable big man who can bring some physicality, rebounding, and a back-to-the-basket game will increase the team’s chances of repeating.
2. Shooter:
Immediately after Miami won the NBA Championship, there were rumblings that Mike Miller was contemplating retirement due to nagging injuries. When he was on the floor, though in limited minutes, Miller was the Heat’s most dangerous outside shooter. If he is forced to retire, Miami must find another shooter who can stretch the floor and benefit from LeBron and Wade’s drive and kick ability.
3. Keep the Big 3 Healthy:
With LeBron, Wade, and Bosh all likely playing for Team USA at the Summer Olympics, management will be praying that all three stay healthy. The only thing standing in the way of making another run at the NBA Title is one of the Big 3 gets injured. Wade and Bosh battled injuries during the season so as long as they don’t overexert themselves in London and fully recover before next season, everything will be gravy.
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OTHER NBA TEAM NEEDS PAGES:
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BROOKLYN NETS
CHARLOTTE BOBCATS
CHICAGO BULLS
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
DALLAS MAVERICKS
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INDIANA PACERS
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
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MILWAUKEE BUCKS
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
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PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
PHOENIX SUNS
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
SACRAMENTO KINGS
TORONTO RAPTORS
UTAH JAZZ
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft on the web.
You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik