Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks hold court

Outside the Miami-Dade County courthouse for a promotional event, Heat forward Shawn Marion and point guard Marcus Banks talked about their situations for the upcoming season.

Marion likely will enter the start of training camp Saturday without a contract extension, and a deal that will expire after the season. Smartly, he said that he would not let it become a distraction and insisted his focus is on basketball. It remains to be seen whether Marion is able to maintain that attitude throughout the season, since his name could continue to pop up in trade rumors. He indicated that negotiations are ongoing with the Heat, but don't expect that to drag through the season. From the Heat's standpoint, the front office probably views his contract status as extra motivation. Plus the team has yet to see what Dwyane and Marion can accomplish together, since injuries prevented them from playing much together the last few months of the season.

Banks said the way he sees it he has been trying for the past three months to prove that he should be the starting point guard. Entering his sixth season, Banks said he is ready to have his "own" team. But he also said he has no issue sharing everything he knows with rookie Mario Chalmers.

A few questions to ponder:

-Do you think Marion can remain happy without a contract extension?

-Will Banks win the starting point guard job and why or why not?

*In other Heat news, forward Stephane Lasme, who was waived by the team recently signed with perennial  Serbian League power Partizan Belgrade.

Comments

[rafy]

he is happy,because he got it play good for a new contract

[rafy]

they going trade him before all stars break

[phil]

I believe that Marion would be a great fit to play along side of Wade, however if a team like Miami gets a good trade offer where they can get rid of Marion and Blunt or Banks for a vet PG and maybe a very good center with a good draft pick maybe he might get traded. Personally I hope they offer him a three or four year contract at around 11 mil declining per year and so we can be solid at the 3 and 4 and 2 for many years, and if Chalmers works out as our PG of the future we can concentrate on landing a very solid Center in the next two years and work on having an even better bench or sixth man.

[gs]

trade marion for a big center and go after Stephon Marbury.

pg stephon marbury
sg dwayne wade
sf micheal beasley
pf udonis haslem
c someone we can get by trading marion

[JEANNIE]

YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME. MARION IS GOT HIS HEAD ON HIS SHOULDERS,AND A VERY TALENTED BASKETBALL PLAYER. LEAVE THE GUY ALONE. WE NEED TO KEEP HIM. MALBURY HAS A LOT OF ISSUES, AND THAT IS A BIG DISTRACTION. GIVE THE POINT GUARDS WE HAVE A CHANCE. THEY ARE YOUNG AND WILL PROVE THEMSELVES WORTH KEEPING. aS FAR AS CENTERS, WORK WITH THE ONES YOU HAVE. LOOK WE PROBABLY HAD THE BEST TWO CENTERS IN THE NBA,AND LOOK WHAT HAPPENED WE PAID TO HAVE THE BEST AND SHAQ GAVE US HIS BUTT TO KISS AFTER 2 YEARS, AND 40 MILLION DOLLARS LATER. WE PAID ALOT TO WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP.

[Danny]

Marion is going to go out there and play hard. Banks will probably be our starting point guard to start the season off, unless we end up aquiring Marbury.

[joey]

I agree with you Phil.... I hope Chalmers works out as a very good starting PG down the road too and that we extend Marion with a 4-year contract.... plus the SG/PF inside-out duo that we're building around in superstars Wade and Beasley, Marion would be an allstar piece of htat core and DPOY candidate.

There are 4 other pieces i hope remain: Haslem and James Jones as 27 year olds that are GREAT to have off the bench in their roles, they should be around for the next 5 years with Chalmers/Wade/Marion/Beasley I hope.

And Cook as a primary scorer off the bench, and Banks as a good backup PG for years to come. Both of them are young too and can grow with the team in their roles.

[joey]

Yo Banks could be a very good PG though if he has grown up/matured a bit and improved his decision-making..... next to Wade what he lacks in assists wont be the end of the world cuz of how great Wade is at playmaking from the backcourt.

Banks is big, strong, fast, talented, good length, very athletic, a good scorer, great handles, can push the tempo, can score and create for teammates off the dribble, can get to the foul line, has a good 3point shot to spread the floor, and MOST IMPORTANTLY is very very very good on defense (man-up, team, and fullcourt pressure).