Dewayne Wade said recently that if the Heat aren't contending for a title, he isn't staying. He wants to win another. This is a big year for the Heat for that very reason. If things aren't going well this year, expect a lot of movement. You might see some before then. Wade has a player option next year and could bolt. Udonis Haslem, Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Quinn will all be free agents next year. Instead of losing the whole lot, you could see some deals again. Let's take a look at the current lineup. Listed beside each player is how many wins they achieved statistically last year.
PG-MARIO CHALMERS 6
SG-DEWAYNE WADE 10
SF-MICHAEL BEASLEY 4
PF-JERMAINE ONEAL 4
C-UDONIS HASLEM 4
D COOK 4, J MOON 3, C QUINN 2, J ANTHONY 2, J JONES 1, Y DIAWARA 1, J MAGLOIRE 1
That adds up to 42 wins. With this lineup alone, they should exceed that next year. Chalmers had an amazing rookie year for a second round player earning the second most amount of wins for a first year player. Usually those totals rise, but 6 wins is very good in any year. Beasley didn't always start, but will now. So, expect him to reach the 6 maybe 7 win total. And, a full year for O'Neal and Moon should also produce better results. They could increase their win total by 5 with this lineup. But, they need some more help to be a title contender. They need more inside presence.
However, if Beasley can turn into the phenom that we expect him to be and O'Neal can get back to the top of his game, you could have 3 horses to run with along side 2 very solid players in Chalmers and Haslem. Oh, and one of those horses is at times the game's best player.
