Pat Riley has long been known as one of the best when it comes to pulling off big moves to improve his teams. So when he traded Norris Cole, Justin Hamilton, Shawne Williams, Danny Granger and two first round picks to the Phoenix Suns for Goran Dragic at the NBA trade deadline, nobody was completely shocked he had pulled it off. Maybe they should have been. Landing Dragic was an absolute steal for Riley and the Miami Heat, and it suddenly launches them right back in to the conversation as a contender in the Eastern Conference – when everyone is healthy. The unfortunate set of circumstances surrounding the health of Chris Bosh will obviously keep Miami from reaching its potential for this season but if he can return to form for next season, then the Heat will undoubtedly be a conference contender once again.
Heat Got A Lot For A Little
Dragic clearly wanted out of Phoenix and forced the Suns hand in order to get his way but it was the Heat president that made sure he did what it took to land a player that could absolutely thrive in South Beach. Dragic was a third-team All-NBA player a year ago and has put up excellent numbers this season despite having to share the ball while playing for a fringe Western Conference playoff contender. The fact that Riley was able to land Dragic as his starting point guard despite not giving up any key pieces from his roster is what stands out the most about the deal. Dragic is the elite ball handler that Miami really needed and the fact that they were able to get him without trading a starter like Luol Deng will make them that much more dangerous moving forward to next season.
Strong Starting Lineup
A starting five that includes Dragic, Deng, Bosh and Dwyane Wade would already rank among the best in the East. Dragic is the complete package at point guard and he will be a perfect compliment to the other starters. Deng can play at a high level at both ends of the floor and he should be even better with the addition of a primary ball handler that will command a ton of attention and open up plenty of room for him. Wade still has the ability to play at a high level in spurts. But perhaps the player that will benefit the most from Dragic’s presence is Bosh, who if he can come back healthy next season, will be in a position to maximize his potential. It wasn’t long ago that Dragic was thriving with another big man that had excellent shooting range in Channing Frye and we could see a similar situation with a more complete player in Bosh.
Only A Piece Or Two Away
The Heat will already be a legitimate contender in the East with Dragic, Deng, Wade and Bosh in their starting five but it’s also important to look ahead to next season about the team’s future and the potential to add to that core with more talented pieces. Hassan Whiteside has been one of the stories of the year in the NBA so far after coming out of nowhere to become a legitimate force. He rounds out a starting lineup that will be fairly strong from one to five. While the Heat need to re-sign both of those players, they should be in good shape if they can do that. And don’t forget about Josh McRoberts, who hasn’t given the Heat much this season (due to injury) but should be a decent bench performer.
The key might be a slew of expiring contracts as the Heat will have Wade ($16.1 million) Chris Andersen ($5 million), Mario Chalmers ($4.3 million) and Udonis Haslem ($2.8 million) entering the final year of their deals next season. If Andersen, Chalmers and Haslem still have something left in the tank coming off the bench, Riley may want to keep them around. If not, that’s roughly $28 million in expiring contracts that the Heat will have to move around next season and we all know how valuable expiring contracts (read: cap space) can be in the NBA.
While the bench isn’t great, the starting five is strong and the Heat are backed by Riley, who is always on the cusp of building a contender. They came out of nowhere to land Dragic but now that they got him and didn’t give up much, the team is going to be a force starting next season.
