Miami's Offseason Road to a Three-Peat

by Kaelen A. Jones

The Miami Heat have claimed their second title of the Big 3 Era

The Miami Heat are now back-to-back NBA champions. 

The question which now poses itself heading into the 2013 off-season is how will the Heat manage to improve its roster and prepare itself for what should be a growing, physical Eastern Conference which boasts great interior forces? There's no questioning that the Heat struggled during their postseason run matching the size of the Bulls, Pacers, and Spurs. 

Miami had struggled during the early half of the regular season rebounding the ball with Chris Bosh playing as their center. To find a stop-gap solution for their rebounding issue, they signed Chris "Birdman" Andersen, who's intensity in the post would prove important to the Heat's success during their playoff run, shooting 80% in the playoffs, averaging 6 points, a block, and nearly four rebounds in an average of 15 minutes a game. It's rather notable, however, that Birdman only averaged 15 minutes during the postseason and regular season, because when he was in, he was often overpowered on defense. It's hard to overlook his impact both offensively and in terms of momentum-building plays, but his inefficiency on the defensive end led to him sitting out of both games 4 and 5 of the Finals. His pertinence to the title run fell off at one point, and you really have to wonder if the Heat would be willing to pay the 34-year old up to possibly $3.2 million next year, as opposed to signing free-agents to lower wages. 

The size issue has even brought questions concerning whether or not Chris Bosh should be dealt during the off-season, but that will be addressed in the latter of this piece. What must be addressed prior to that, is what value the Heat can bring in around the Big 3 before looking to break them apart. 

The first step in this process is figuring out their cap space, deciding how the team surrounding the Big 3 can be tampered with in order to match what their competition presents before them. The Heat have multiple options of clearing space to acquire more depth at the expense of role players before possibly trading away Bosh. 

The 33-year old forward Mike Miller is scheduled to make $6.2 million next season. The Heat will probably use the amnesty clause on Miller this off-season if they cannot find a team willing to trade for him, which would ultimately save Miami $20 million over the next two seasons, making Miller a favorite to be one of the first removed from this Heat roster during this off-season. The ailing veteran has played in 139 games during his three seasons with Miami, and unfortunately his injuries have prevented him from making a full impact during his tenure.

Along with Miller, center Joel Anthony could quite possibly be on his way out during the off-season. Anthony struggled to make any lasting impact for Miami in the low post, and as a result was limited to an average of 9.4 minutes a game. Anthony is on track to make $3.8 million next season, which is nowhere near worth his production. At 6'9" Anthony struggles to challenge lengthier centers like Roy Hibbert or Brook Lopez, and his inability to extend above the rim for rebounds makes it even more difficult upon him to keep larger opponents outside of the paint. Unless Anthony's contract can be thoroughly restructured it's more than likely he'll be on his way out.

With the removal of an estimated $10 million off their books, the Heat could look to sign a couple free agents to fit the needs of their roster heading forward. The Heat need size at the center position so that Chris Bosh can move back to his natural power-forward position. The most intriguing free agents to step in and fill that center role are Jermaine O'Neal, J.J. Hickson, and DeJuan Blair. Each of these players would have a strong impact from the get-go, as all three of these players bring a physical presence in the low post. Most importantly, each knows how to rebound the ball.

With O'Neal, the intrigue is not only with his experience, but his value as well. Last season, the 34-year old played rather well for the Suns, averaging 8.3 points and 5.3 rebounds a game. He was under contract for the veteran minimum of $854,389 last season, and although one can assume he'll be looking for a higher wage this year, the intrigue of a possible championship shouldn't raise the price too high, as the former Heat center has yet to win a title in his 18-year career.

If the Heat could add J.J. Hickson, they would have to dish out a bit more cash, but having a younger presence like him would give the Heat a potential piece to establish for a longer period of time alongside the Big 3. Hickson is only heading into his fifth year in the pros, and last year averaged 12 points and 10 rebounds a game for the Portland Trailblazers. He's most likely going to walk as a free agent this off-season to see what his value is on the market since Portland already has an inside presence in LaMarcus Aldridge and a younger building-block in Meyers Leonard. If the Heat have the cap space to add a player with talent like Hickson, they should do so, as he is one of the more consistent players available on the market.

Finally, we come to the dark horse here in DeJuan Blair. Personally, I've been fond of Blair's ability since he was playing college basketball at Pittsburgh. He's not the most athletic or lengthy, but he is a presence, and sitting behind the likes of Tim Duncan has given him the opportunity to watch one of the greatest big men of all-time in action, however at the same time hasn't given him the opportunity to progress through experience. It's not too often that a player from the losing side of a Finals will necessarily pursue to join the team that had just defeated them, but if the Heat at least show interest in Blair, he'd be receiving the opportunity to showcase his talent that has been on the shelf for the first four years of his career. 

Regardless of who the Heat land to add to their depth at the center position, the Heat will still need to address the forward positions if they're going to accomplish the three-peat. Earl Clark, Elton Brand, Antawn Jamison, and Corey Brewer are all players that Miami should target during the off-season. Each of these players possess scoring ability that the Heat could potentially use in a front-court role. 

Clark and Brewer both are younger players who can spread the floor. Brewer could be used more as a small forward or shooting guard, but his 6'9" frame, athleticism, and high motor would make him a commodity whether he'd come off of the bench or should he be inserted into the starting line-up. Clark has the ability to play in the low-post with his size, which also helped him defend against undersized small forwards. Each would be nice a addition to the Heat roster and help an already efficient and consistent offense become even more so.

In potentially signing veterans Jamison or Brand, Miami would be able to address their need for depth at a low cost. Both players are nearing the end of their careers but have yet to win any championships, which bodes well in terms of wages for the Heat in attempting to acquire either. Brand has the ability to also play the center role, which could push Bosh back to his power forward role if Miami were to sign him. He showed last season that he could at least still manage to work efficiently in the low post, and the Heat wouldn't be taking much of a risk in targeting him. With Jamison, it's harder to tell whether or not he'll be willing to leave Los Angeles if they offer him a new deal. In Kobe Bryant's absence he proved that he can still be an offensive threat, reeling off seven games in which he tallied at least 10 points during the last 11 games for the Lakers. Although undersized, he may fit Miami's scheme, should they choose to continue playing with smaller lineups.

If the Heat choose to--which they most likely will--they will be able to remove heavier contracts making room for possible free agent additions. Even with that possibility, there is the chance that they attempt to deal Chris Bosh in order to add a more dominant post presence, like Kevin Love, for example. 

There's actually multiple options for the Heat in dealing Bosh. The most intriguing of these trades are deals which could include C-Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves, or C-Brook Lopez/G- MarShon Brooks from the Brooklyn Nets, or C-Robin Lopez/F-Ryan Anderson from the New Orleans Pelicans.

However, there's simply too much value in keeping Bosh to trade him away for any of these tandems. Despite not scoring in the most vital game of the year, he's a major, influential piece in the Heat's line-up which adds a dynamic which few teams will be able to match once he is back to his normal position at power forward.

As he's shown particularly this season, Bosh is not afraid of taking the outside jumpers away from the basket. In fact, he had a career-high 53% field-goal percentage this season, despite shooting 28% from three. But how many teams, other than a handful, can even say that their center was shooting that high from beyond the arc? Bosh has the uncanny ability to spread the floor from a big man position which is crucial to the flow of Miami's offense.

Coach Erik Spoelstra took advantage of the strong shooting ability of his squad by spreading the floor, using smaller line-ups which featured Bosh as the center. On offense, this paid dividends, but defensively, once an opponent got the ball inside, Bosh's smaller frame was taken advantage of by larger opponents. Don't get me wrong, Miami had the best defense in the league this past season, but their active hands and ability to switch quickly were the true reasons as to why they were able dominate their opponents and create easy, transition scores. The Heat simply need a presence on the inside that they can use to match their competition in the Eastern Conference. They do not have to necessarily completely abandon using smaller line-ups to help spread the floor so that LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Mario Chalmers, or whoever else may handle the ball has more space in getting to the rim.

The blueprint this off-season for Miami is simpler than most teams, and shouldn't be too difficult for them to accomplish. They need to figure out how they can remove unnecessary cap space being used on unproductive players, then figure out how they can add some type of physical presence to their interior that can help both defensively and on the boards. If the Heat fail to find a stronger post-player down low, they'll have a much harder time competing with the likes of a progressing Indiana Pacers squad or a Chicago Bulls team which would be getting a healthy and determined Derrick Rose back to their line-up. 

The road to the three-peat is going to be a grind for the Miami Heat this upcoming season, and if they're going to accomplish this rare feat, they'll need to add players who can competitively help grind opponents in the post, so that the Big 3 can continue to thrive and build off of their growing success.

Follow Kaelen Jones on Twitter @kaelenjones

Sources: ESPN Stats & Info, Ira Winderman, HoopsWorld.com