First off, I wanna thank LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and the rest of the 2010 NBA free agent class for helping bridge the gap between the NBA Finals and the start of NFL training camp. I truly appreciate it, that week or so with only the World Cup and baseball was truly brutal.
Second, I wanna send a shout out to all the new Miami Heat fans. I saw a lot of people who rooted for the Celtics after they put out the Heat in the playoffs become Heat fans last night. Welcome... but just know you ain't shit lol.
Third, I wanna send another shout out, but this time to all the rapper who plan on using lines like
"I'm staying with the Heat... D-Wade" and "I bring in the new Heat like Pat Riley." We all know you're out there.
Now, how about the Miami Heat?? I cannot believe they landed all 3 of the big free agents of the 2011 class. Wade and Bosh was huge, but LeBron just takes this whole thing to a different level. I'm still in shock, I can't believe he's coming to the Heat. I know I said the Heat would be better off if he didn't come, but I'd be lying if I said that wasn't a little bit of a reserve jinx. It wasn't 100% reserve jinx though, and it will be interesting to see how Pat Riley fills out the rest of this roster.
They've already traded Michael Beasley and his $5 million a year salary to Minnesota (wish they would've got more than a 2nd round pick, but I'll take it), so we'll see who we can use that on. We know the salary cap is going to be higher, and that Wade, LeBron, and Bosh all are gonna take less money to make this happen, so hopefully some good ol' vets will do the same.
(Side note: Now that Minnesota has added 2 former 2nd overall pick draft busts this offseason in Beasley and Darko Milicic, I think David Kahn should just finish the job and bring in the rest of the 2nd overall pick draft busts from the '00s. Stromile Swift, Tyson Chandler, Jay Williams, Emeka Okafor, Marvin Williams, and Hasheem Thabeet would be lovely additions. AND on top of that, they could change their names to the "Minnesota Busts" or the "Minnesota Underachievers." I like it!)
In actuality, all the Heat need at this point is big men and spot up shooters. Brendan Haywood has already re-signed with Dallas, but here are some other free agents I have my eye on if they're willing to play for less (in no particular order):
Brad Miller (7-footer, 34 years old, can hit open shots, plays big)
Shaquille O'Neal (wants to match Kobe in rings, not sure he'd take the huge pay cut though)
Mike Miller (still only 30 years old, great shooter from 3)
J.J. Redick (young guy, excellent spot up shooter, could make a lot more elsewhere)
Allen Iverson (looking for redemption and a pay check, not sure where/how he'd fit)
Kyle Korver (29, incredible shooter, may be willing to take less to win)
Derek Fisher (tons of heart, if he takes less it'll probably be to stay in L.A.)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas (veteran 7-shooter who can play with LeBron)
Anthony Morrow (only 24, great shooter, not sure he'd take the small contract)
Roger Mason Jr. (29, nice spot up shooter, gets no PT on current team)
And then there's the guys from last season's team who I'd love to have back like Udonis Haslem, Joel Anthony, and Quentin Richardson.
Aight, so that handle the roster options, now let's talk about LeBron's decision some more. Some people will say he took the "easy way out" but that is some bullshit. So him staying in Cleveland with scraps would have been more honorable?? I hate that all these "analysts" and "experts" are acting like if he stayed in Cleveland and continued to not win rings he'd somehow be more respectable. Stop with the bullshit! They'd be the first ones ripping him for not living up to his potential and winning rings. Loyalty in sports is a bitch, ask Kevin Garnett. Do you seriously think if KG could do it all over, he wouldn't have left the T'Wolves in his prime when he had the chance?? I mean, thank goodness he was able to finally get a ring, but so many others aren't so lucky (Patrick Ewing, Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, etc.). As far as I'm concerned, LeBron did what Kevin Garnett should have done.
Now let's talk about Cleveland. Why are these people so mad?? Yeah they lost the greatest basketball player to wear a Cavs jersey, but aren't they use to these kinds of gut punches by now?? The Drive, The Fumble, The Shot, I mean the list goes on and on. And why are they so shocked and surprised?? I mean, I always thought he was going to stay, but I never said it'd be a good idea. They HAVE to realize it would have been stupid for him to stay, and that's whether he ended up in Miami, New York, Chicago, or New Jersey. Cavs fans knew that, hell, the whole state of Ohio knew that, but still they burned his jersey and are acting like babies.
Oh, and did you get a load of Cavs majority owner Dan Gilbert?? His reaction to LeBron leaving was that of a scorn woman, not of a professional businessman (the Comic Sans MS font didn't help either). I'll talk about Danny more later, but after reading his classless response to LeBron's decision, could you really blame him for no longer wanting to play for such a bitch?? I'm sure that helped LBJ regret his decision even less.
You know what?? Fuck it, this is what Cleveland's ass gets for tanking the '02 season to land LeBron in the '03 draft. Man up, the guy took your franchise to heights it has never seen before, and will never see again. Be grateful he wasted 7 years of his career on y'all. Stop worshiping humans and trying to hold them up to these God-like standards. He had to make a decision and any way you slice it (Miami, New York, Chicago, New Jersey), the best option was NOT in Cleveland. So be sad, feel betrayed, fine. But I'm gonna need this to not linger on for forever.
And with that being said, I can't think of any city who deserved this less than Miami lol. Seriously, you know I love South Florida, but we are the fairweather fans of all fairweather fans. We are only around when things are going good. Did you see any Heat home games last year?? That arena was less than half filled on a nightly basis. And lets not even start on the Marlins, they're lucky if they get 1,000 heads for a home game. So no Miami and South Florida didn't deserve this, but I'm sure happy it happened.
The last big question to be answered is can Wade, LeBron, and Bosh play together?? My answer: fuck yeah! It's not like they've never played together before. They were all apart of the 2006 FIBA World Championship squad and 2008 Olympic gold medal team. And that's not to mention the 5 All-Star Games they've all played in together (including 2007 when all 3 started). Wade and LeBron have played on 6 together and started together all but once (2005). In particular, I remember watching the All-Star Game this year and tweeting about how great D-Wade and LeBron looked playing together. I know there isn't much defense played in All-Star Games, but their on-court chemistry was undeniable. So yeah, I definitely think they can play together.
So there you have it, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh are teammates again, but for real this time, and as members of Miami Heat. Now all we need are nicknames. I've heard the "3 Live Crew," "Miami Thrice," and some acronym with all 3 of their initials, but the 1 I like best is "Miami-Wade County, LeBroward County, and Palm Bosh County." It's a bit long-winded, but I love it because this isn't only big for Miami, it's big for South Florida.
(Side note: I like how all the proceeds from the "LeBron's Decision" special going to charity is being completely overlooked.)
(Side side note: How long before Erik Spoelstra "wants to spend more time with his family" and Pat Riley takeover as Heat head coach again??)
(Side side side note: Why was Kanye West there??)
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