The Heat returns to practice today at AmericanAirlines Arena after Monday's off day and a week in China. Training camp is at its halfway point, so it's time to really start buckling down. For the team, the goodwill tour to China felt more like a weeklong vacation during the middle of camp rather than what's normally the toughest week of camp. That could be problematic.
For example, today's practice will probably be a little sluggish. At least one player (LeBron), and I suspect quite a few more, were awake at odd hours last night because of jetlag. LeBron tweeted he was awake around 4:30 a.m. I know, because I was awake, too.
Amid tired eyes and fatigued bodies, the Heat has a few important things to work on this week before it plays host to the Pistons on Thursday.
1. Conditioning
While the Chinese reporters gave him plenty of grief about his missed dunks in Beijing and Shanghai, Dwyane Wade actually looked pretty good in his return. Still, he only played eight minutes on Sunday. Wade's focus this week will be building strength in his legs. The same goes for others, including Mike Miller, Udonis Haslem, Joel Anthony, Mario Chalmers and James Jones, all of whom did not play in China.
2. Interior defense
Chris Bosh and Co. defended the paint well in the Heat's first game against the Clippers but, in the second game, the Clippers adjusted and DeAndre Jordan dominated the middle in the first half. Jordan had 18 points, going 8 of 8 from the field. Blake Griffin had a double-double (13 and 10) and the Clippers outrebounded the Heat 49-36. Now, you can probably take that performance by the Heat with a grain of salt. The Heat was already on the plane back home before the game even started and Los Angeles wanted to split in China. Still, coach Erik Spoelstra will use the video to emphasis an area of concern.
3. The final roster spot
If Terrel Harris truly has a roster spot locked down, that means only one roster spot remains open. Here's my logic on Harris. Aside from his shoe deal with Peak, Harris has plenty going for him. For one, he played well over the summer in the Heat's summer league, but, most importantly, he filled in nicely last season when Wade missed games. Defensively, Harris would again be a good insurance policy this season if Wade misses games due to injury or just sits out games to rest his body for the playoffs.
Dexter Pittman has a guaranteed contract, so he's safe. Plus, he'll be wearing Peaks this season, too. That leaves one spot. More than likely, the Heat will award the last seat on the bench to a big. Right now, it seems like a two-man competition between Mickell Gladness and Josh Harrellson. Gladness played well in the Heat's first game against the Clippers and Harrellson shined in the second game. Gladness worked out in Miami the entire offseason and Harrellson has worked extremely hard since moving to Miami. He's lost about 20 pounds over the last eight weeks.
So, what does the Heat covet most with its final roster spot, interior defense or interior scoring? Gladness is the shot blocker and Harrellson is the shot maker. Gladness had a plus/minus of plus-11 in the first game against the Clippers and Harrelson had a plus-13 in the second game. It's a tough call.
A few people have emailed more or sent me Twitter messages about Rodney Carney. While Carney has played well, numbers are against him. The Heat has plenty of wing players and Carney would likely never play.
This is more like it, Joseph
Posted by: Richie | Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 10:56 AM
These are all good points, however I really believe that the Heat are different animals. This roster is comprised of veterans who understand the value of staying in shape. It's not like this group of guys is content with 1 title. They gave up millions of dollars to pursue multiple championships. If they show up out of condition, they will only be doing a disservice to themselves as they could have stayed out of shape and made more money elsewhere...
In regards to the interior defense, I agree it could be a problem, but let's not go overboard yet. Like you said, the Heat weren't really interested in this game, and were certainly not going to go all out trying to stop the Clippers. I think when it's crunch time, Lebron will be the defacto "guard everyone" guy. I can tell you that I am truly looking forward to Lebron covering Dwight Howard on some plays in the future....
Posted by: Lance Miles | Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 11:04 AM
WELL, THE WAY I SEE IT, CARNEY LOOKS BETTER THAN HARRIS, I'M JUST SAYING.... AND THAT FINAL SPOT SHOULD BE A BIG, MAYBE VANORDO OR WHITESIDE... I'M JUST SAYING... GLADSNESS JUST DOESN'T DO IT FOR ME... JOSH CAN SHOOT, BUT ON THIS TEAM, WE NEED REBOUNDING, AND SOLID DEFENSE COMING IN OFF THE BENCH.... ENTER, VANORDO OR WHITESIDE... OR K-MART.... JUST SAYIN... 007... WATCHING ALL THINGS HEAT... LET'S GET READY... 2013
Posted by: black the trucker | Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 12:35 PM
ONE THING I WOULD LIKE TO ADD, PUTTING BATTIER AT THE FOUR DURING THE PLAYOFFS WAS A VERY INTERESTING MOVE THAT WORKED, BUT THROUGHOUT THE SEASON I REALLY THINK WE SHOULD LOOK TO START WITH A BIGGER LOOK.. MAYBE UD... MAYBE JOEL... WE CAN'T PUT THIS LOOK ON TEAMS TO EARLY... THAT GIVES THEM TOO MUCH TIME TO ADJUST... AND ADDDS DEPTH TO OUR TEAM... BUT WE CAN CHANGE LINEUPS THROUGHOUT THE GAME SO IT REALLY DOESN'T MATTER WHO STARTS ANYWAY... ANOTHER THING IS WE CAN NOT AFFORD TO LOSE BOSH TO INJURY, SO GIVE HIM SOME HELP DOWN LOW... THE CATCH IS, HOW WILL LEWIS FIT AND HOW WILL HE PLAY.... NOW, PITTMAN NEEDS A BIG SEASON OFF THE BENCH.... BUT WE STILLL, NEED ANOTHER BIG... VANORDO, CAN PLAY ON THE DEFENSIVE SIDE OF THE BALL AND IF HE HAS A NOSE FOR REBOUNDING THIS COULD BE OUR GUY... PLZ GIVE ME A CHANCE TO SEE HOW VANORDO LOOKS DURING THIS PRESEASON... WNNA SEE HOW HE PLAYS WITH A STRONG LINEUP... I THINK HE'S BETTER THAN JOEL... BUT WE'LL SEE.... CARNEY, MIGHT BE A GOOD PICKUP...
Posted by: black the trucker | Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 01:09 PM
QUICK QUESTION? WHY DIDN'T WE DRAFT FESTUS EZELI... HE WOULD HAVE BEEN PERFECT HERE....
Posted by: black the trucker | Tuesday, October 16, 2012 at 01:42 PM
WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS ROSTER, YOU REALLY HAVE TO COMMEND PAT FOR GOING OUT AND GETTING MORE TALENT. NOW, THE FINAL TWO SPOTS ARE UP FOR GRABS... WHAT DO YALL SAY ABOUT CARNEY AND HARRELSON... I THINK THEY ARE BOTH PLAYERS WHO CAN COME IN AND CONTRIBUTE WHEN ASKED... MAY NOT BE DEFENSIVE STALWORTHS BUT THEY COULD CONTRIBUTE... WHO KNOWS, CARNEY MIGHT BE ABLE TO DEFEND THE ONE, JUST SAYING... WATCHING ALL THINGS HEAT... 2013 TITLE RUN... LET'S GET IT... 007...
Posted by: black the trucker | Wednesday, October 17, 2012 at 11:14 AM