Bill Simmons thinks Heat aren't a title contender

[Lkr]

http://www.790theticket.com/Episodes.aspx?PID=1206

First play button on the page

[Super Cool Beas]

I find Simmons to be a moron but he's entitled to his opinion. The Heat are an instant title contender with 3 All-Stars fronting the line-up...I thought we've all come to terms with the fact that's pretty obvious at this point.

[Poe]

Bill Simmons is not a smart man.

[SRV]

Bill Simmons can go suck a dick

[bigdog17k]

LeBatard is a retard though... Bill grew up watching classic LA/BOS Basketball.

[Lkr]

You guys should actually listen to his argument. The Heat don't even have anyone with rebounding potential and even a guy like Erick Dampier would make a load of difference to them. He also says that they can't even compare with Boston from 2008 because Boston had several role players and bench players that provided huge contributions, something the Heat do not have. The Heat also have no draft picks in the coming years.

[Poe]

You guys should actually listen to his argument. The Heat don't even have anyone with rebounding potential and even a guy like Erick Dampier would make a load of difference to them. He also says that they can't even compare with Boston from 2008 because Boston had several role players and bench players that provided huge contributions, something the Heat do not have. The Heat also have no draft picks in the coming years.

 

Dude, the Heat haven't even assembled the rest of the team yet

 

 

Don't worry, they'll get those guys

[SRV]

We don't have a bench, but what veteran DOES NOT want to play with us right now? The bench will come floating to us soon enough.

 

We already got Mike Miller, he is a great shooter. We are probably gonna get Haslem, a very underrated player. We will get Raja Bell, a good defender and bench player. Joel Anthony will probably be with us, he is a great defender. I honestly don't see anything wrong with the direction we are going. Plus, our rookies are pretty good if you ask me, Pittman is gonna be playing at 40 pounds lighter than he did in college, so that might help him out.

[Lkr]

Dude, the Heat haven't even assembled the rest of the team yet

 

 

Don't worry, they'll get those guys

Yeah, they have so much money to use to fill up a roster. They can't use the MLE and if the Mike Miller deal goes through, do they have ANY money left?

 

And like Simmons said, Raja Bell has been old, injured and washed up for 2 seasons now. He'll make loads of difference and intimidate opponents. Leon Powe was a big reason why the Celtics beat the Lakers, a simple role player.

[Super Cool Beas]

Dude, the Heat haven't even assembled the rest of the team yet

 

 

Don't worry, they'll get those guys

That's what I am saying. Bill would have a point to make...if the Heat were done assembling their roster. Either way, on paper, the Heat are title contenders right now....how could they not be? The "Bro-Pact" plus Chalmers, Miller, and what should be Haslem & Raja Bell, that's plenty to be put into contention status.

[Lkr]

We don't have a bench, but what veteran DOES NOT want to play with us right now? The bench will come floating to us soon enough.

 

We already got Mike Miller, he is a great shooter. We are probably gonna get Haslem, a very underrated player. We will get Raja Bell, a good defender and bench player. Joel Anthony will probably be with us, he is a great defender. I honestly don't see anything wrong with the direction we are going. Plus, our rookies are pretty good if you ask me, Pittman is gonna be playing at 40 pounds lighter than he did in college, so that might help him out.

What vets are there to sign? Fisher, AI, TMac? Do you REALLY want TMac or AI on your team?

[SRV]

No I don't want AI, Shaq, or TMac. They are greedy washed up all-star divas, the last thing we need right now. Raja Bell, Mike Miller, and Haslem are three great pickups for us considering we have like no money left. Plus we have Chalmers, who got a load of steals his rookie season and played great basketball. I don't know what happened to him last year.

[Lkr]

So are those all of the vets you are going to sign? Doesn't that give you 6-7 players on your roster? The only actual good pickup there is Mike Miller. Raja Bell is too washed up to contribute anything at this point, just look at him the past two seasons. Also, wasn't Haslem already on the team? Or did they have to resign him?

[SRV]

Assuming we get what we are rumored to get...here is our roster

 

Wade

Bosh

Lebron

Chalmers

Miller

Anthony

Haslem

Bell

Pittman

Butler

Varnado

 

Thats 11 right there, and who knows what Riley is doing right now.

[MiamiThrice]

Bill Simmons is jealous that with this new Miami team and their superior Big Three, the Celtics now have 0% chance of making the Finals with all of the Grandpas on their team. Chris Bosh is better than anyone on that team let alone Wade/LeBron LOL. Once Miami adds that guy capable of solidifying the center position(hopefully Shaq) no team will have a chance. Also LOL @ Bill Simmons praising that the 06 Heat won because of guys like ANTOINE WALKER LOOOL

[Warren2ThaG]

Whats wrong with Bill?

[Heir Rose]

I don't understand how Simmons thinks anyone will be able to drive right in on the Heat because they have no shot blocker at the moment. When you've got two All-NBA defenders on the wings and a solid young defender in Mario Chalmers as well, it's going to be tough for anyone to get deep enough into your defense to challenge Bosh and (fill in center here).

 

They should do just fine at filling out the roster. With James, Wade, Miller, and Chalmers, I think all they need now is a versatile backup that can play the 2 and/or 3. Raja Bell might be that guy, or perhaps they're high on Butler and plan on giving him early minutes. Another point guard for insurance would be nice -- what about Arroyo? At center, I don't think targeting one veteran big will be enough. Zydrunas Ilgauskus, Erick Dampier, and Brad Miller are candidates to fill the void. Ilgauskus would be a good fit because he's got the size you need and the ability to step out and hit an open jumper. The same can be said for Miller.

 

Haslem and Quentin Richardson are a couple of other guys I've heard they could try to bring back, and both would be solid playing off of the new "big three."

[EastCoastNiner]

The Heat would get obliterated on the boards if they had to face the Lakers in the finals.

 

The Lakers are the clear class of this league, even though I hate them, and if Bynum is HEALTHY, I'd give the Heat a 25% chance of beating the Lakers in a 7 game series no matter who else they sign.

[SRV]

Lebron can rebound, so can Bosh. Rebounding is more about positioning than it is skill, you can't say one guy will kill the whole team because he can rebound.

 

If we know rebounding is a weakness, Spo has to find a way to make it work, aka, teach people to be physical and box out.

[NomarFachix]

Simple, Simmons must be a pure hater. Give his words no credit, he is blinded by UMAD.

Edited July 11, 2010 by Standing Tall and Talented

[YugoRocketsFan]

More people with a lack of basketball knowledge trying to find weaknesses for the Heat. How will rebounding be a problem for the Heat?

 

Just because they currently dont have a center who is a known rebounder doesnt mean that they will get killed on the boards, they already have Bosh (11 rpg), Lebron (7.3), and Wade (5), if they sign Ilgauskas it is over.

Edited July 11, 2010 by YugoRocketsFan

[Real Deal]

More people with a lack of basketball knowledge trying to find weaknesses for the Heat. How will rebounding be a problem for the Heat?

 

Just because they currently dont have a center who is a known rebounder doesnt mean that they will get killed on the boards, they already have Bosh (11 rpg), Lebron (7.3), and Wade (5), if they sign Ilgauskas it is over.

The lack of basketball knowledge would be displayed by those who think this team has no weaknesses. I wouldn't be so quick to attack others for not stroking themselves over Wade, James and Bosh.

 

Wade and LeBron aren't going to box out someone like Howard, Bynum, Gasol or even Yao. Sorry. And flying in to grab your boards will usually get you an over-the-back call. I rarely see those two jetting from the perimeter to snatch up a board, and playing elite teams, they are going to have to sit on the perimeter.

 

I find this funny. A lot of people were throwing out excuses as to why we would lose the Finals with an injured Drew...how we couldn't take advantage of our size. Two years now, and the reason we lost in 2008 was supposedly because Gasol couldn't man the middle by himself.

 

Suddenly, Bosh can man the middle basically by himself, and a size advantage means nothing? It's all because of the all-star trio and the hype around it.

 

Rebounding is more about positioning than skill? Positioning is a skill, one that great rebounding bigs are good at. LeBron grabbed four and five boards in the two games against the Lakers this season. He has just two games where he grabbed four offensive boards all year long. Howard has 40 games where he grabbed 4+ offensive boards, four where he grabbed seven or more. Gasol has eight games where he grabbed 7+ offensive boards.

 

You can put those numbers together all you want, guys. Bigs boxing out other bigs allow guys like LeBron and Wade to grab those boards.There are a lot of guys that Bosh can't box out. Having Shaq would probably help, but you only get him for 20 minutes a game.

 

You won't have concerns over scoring unless you're playing a lock-down defensive team, and you may be good to go anyway as long as you don't keep throwing out isolation plays for each of those three, expecting them to score 30+ on elite defenders. Your backcourt defense won't be a problem. We don't know about chemistry yet...the team won bronze together, didn't win gold if they weren't led by Bryant and Melo (Bryant beat Spain by himself in the fourth). Low post scoring...don't see much of it yet. Post defense, don't see any of it yet. Once you get to the conference finals, that will be key, no matter what you say in July.

[Check my Stats]

I didn't watch the video or click the link but Simmons is kind of stupid, he is funny, but dumb at the same time. Anyways, the Heat ARE contenders, how do you define a contender anyways? The Heat have two of the best 3 players in the game, instantly come playoff time that makes them contenders, now they have the best 3rd option offensively in the entire NBA? People forget the Heat have 15 million dollars or so to fill out their roster, they can get some REALLY solid guys with that, via trade or signings.... I don't think Haslem is the answer (though he would be solid on the bench). They need a solid C who can hit the glass and finish off inside of 2 feet, nothing else.... they need a wing player, not necessarily a PG, but a wing who can shoot the ball and play at least a little bit of defense.

 

They don't need a deep bench considering almost the entire game they will always have 2 all-stars on the floor and almost always have a top 3 NBA player on the floor.... Wade/LBJ log 40 minutes and Bosh 35+, they don't need great backups at these positions. If the Heat can sign solid shooters and some good rebounders who know their role offensively they are instantly the best team in the East.

 

Of course the Heat right now are not contenders, they don't have a roster.... 15 million is a lot of money to fill out an NBA roster, they can sign 3 solid guys for around 5M a piece then fill out with MIN contracts, that would give them a solid 7 man deep team or so (how many guys did the C's have at the start of the year), then whoever gets bought out during the year could join them. The Heat already have more advantages than they do disadvantages. Also I don't know much about the draft, but who knows, one of those 2nd rounders could be the Heat's own Glen Davis.

 

I know Laker fans are annoying people are declaring them champions already, but the Heat can't be overlooked... not to mention Bosh was pretty successful against the Lakers and Magic (top interior threats) this past season on a largely inferior team, I'm not saying Bosh can lock Dwight down, or Pau either, but he either outplayed them or stuck right with them in both games playing beside Andrea Bargnani....

Edited July 11, 2010 by travesy3

[SRT Spidey]

all i know is im starting to hate these [expletive]s more and more every day...

[SRV]

all i know is im starting to hate these [expletive]s more and more every day...

You guys have a big three too..you don't see people making a big deal over that.