Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting on the Miami Heat, who have players that want to win like anyone else but also need to think about themselves and not just the team because many of them are in a contract year. It also presumably means the team could look very different in a year.
When the Miami Heat regroup for training camp in just over a week, a singular goal will be a return to the playoffs. But the question is whether other singular goals will be in play, as well.
For as much work as Pat Riley and his staff put into attempting to prevent a lottery repeat, there also was a forward-thinking approach with the roster, one that provides flexibility for what some expect to be a free-agency free-for-all next July, when the entire league will be flush with cap cash.
As a result, three-fifths of the Heat’s anticipated starting lineup will be playing in the final (or lone) year of their contracts, when counting Hassan Whiteside, Luol Deng and Dwyane Wade, with only Chris Bosh and Goran Dragic under contract beyond 2015-16.
Beyond that, prime reserves such as Amar’e Stoudemire, Gerald Green, Mario Chalmers, Chris Andersen, and even Udonis Haslem and Tyler Johnson will be in the final seasons of their contracts.
That presents a roster that both wants to win . . . and wants to get paid.
