That sound you hear? Yeah, that's the collective gasp of 29 other NBA teams.

[B]The numbers behind Miami's new direction[/B]

[url]http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/miamiheat/post/_/id/15068/the-numbers-behind-miamis-new-direction[/url]

Pairing James, Wade and Bosh with shooters like Allen and Lewis has destroyed Miami's opponents.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Erick Dampier, Mickell Gladness, Joel Anthony, Jamaal Magloire, Juwan Howard and Eddy Curry???

During the past two seasons, Heat president Pat Riley has scoured the free-agency pile and brought in a long line of so-so centers to fill an apparent hole in his team's lineup.

But none of those hires has worked nearly as well at center as Chris Bosh.

And that's why the Heat are fine with not introducing a big-name center Wednesday.

During the Heat's championship run, the Heat finally found a solution to their center problem: don't play a center at all. With Bosh starting at the 5, the Heat plowed through the Thunder en route to a title, as the unconventional lineups created mismatches on both ends of the floor.

This is an important backstory to the Heat's free-agent foray this summer. On Wednesday, the Heat officially introduced Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis at AmericanAirlines Arena, and you'll notice that neither of them plays center. Or point guard. They're primarily shooters with little ability to do much else offensively.

The Heat confirmed something in the Finals that they had already assumed but couldn't fully embrace: They don't need a conventional point guard or center to win a title. They already have those pieces in their superstar trio.

So they loaded up elsewhere.

Don't be surprised if you see Allen and Lewis play together on the court next season, along with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Bosh. Playing those two shooters next to the Big Three might not seem like a bankable plan, because that doesn't look like a lineup basketball fans are used to seeing. Who defends the opposing point guard? Who protects the paint?

But here's why those concerns don't hold much water.

Over the past two seasons when the Big Three played with two non-point guard shooters, the Heat outscored the opponent 239 to 150 in about 86 minutes on the court.

That translates to a 50-point win margin every 48 minutes.

Here are the numbers, courtesy of NBA.com's awesome stats tool, in case you were wondering.

Who should play next to the Big Three?
Lineup type Minutes Pts Opp. Pts ORtg DRtg Diff
PG + C 2,908 6,079 5,526 107.8 98.0 +9.8
PG + Wing 494 1,214 983 118.7 96.1 +22.6
C + Wing 482 1,036 920 112.4 99.8 +12.6
2 Wings 86 239 150 127.4 79.9 +47.4
Total 3,967 8,568 7,579 110.2 97.5 +12.7
Source: NBA.com data.


When we convert those numbers to a per-100-possessions basis, we find that the Heat have a 127.4 offensive rating with that alignment next to the Big Three. All other lineups next to the Big Three? 109.8. The average team? About 103.0.

So I know what you're thinking: What about defense? Funny thing, they've performed even better on that side of the ball. How many points do the Heat allow per 100 possessions when they play two wings instead of a center and a point guard?

That's 79.9 points. The league average, again, is about 103 points.

That sound you hear? Yeah, that's the collective gasp of 29 other NBA teams.

Lakers will have a more favorable match-up agaisnt them than most think though. THey have to make the FInals tho.

[QUOTE=Punpun]Lakers will have a more favorable match-up agaisnt them than most think though. THey have to make the FInals tho.[/QUOTE]

Nobody on the Lakers can even slow down Lebron and they have Nash on defense

[QUOTE=GaryRaymond23]Nobody on the Lakers can even slow down Lebron and they have Nash on defense[/QUOTE]
kobe and artest can slow down lebron. get grant hill and that's another body. not saying these guys will stop lebron, but they certainty help.

I think at some point not having a legit center will come back to bite them in the ass. But that point might not be until the ECF or the Finals.

[QUOTE=Punpun]Lakers will have a more favorable match-up agaisnt them than most think though. THey have to make the FInals tho.[/QUOTE]
Not sure though. Lakers have weak bench still. I hope Mitch improve bench ASAP after the Dwight fiasco. No team can win championship with a weakass bench...first unit can't bail out bench most of the time especially for older veterans

That sound you hear? Yeah, that's the OP choking on dick.

[QUOTE=NoGunzJustSkillz]kobe and artest can slow down lebron. get grant hill and that's another body. not saying these guys will stop lebron, but they certainty help.[/QUOTE]
Artest in the post yeah, but on the perimter...I'm not sure. I think he'll get in foul trouble to be honest. It just depends on how aggressive Bron is. If I was Spo, I am not allowing Kobe or Nash to "hide" on defense. I am putting out my best lineup of:

-Ray Allen
-Wade
-Miller
-Bron
-Bosh

and making them guard someone and run around off the ball.

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]Artest in the post yeah, but on the perimter...I'm not sure. I think he'll get in foul trouble to be honest. It just depends on how aggressive Bron is. If I was Spo, I am not allowing Kobe or Nash to "hide" on defense. I am putting out my best lineup of:

-Ray Allen
-Wade
-Miller
-Bron
-Bosh

and making them guard someone and run around off the ball.[/QUOTE]
Miller is likely to retire, and Chalmers is a better scorer than him anyways.


Chalmers
Wade
Allen
Bron
Bosh

or

Wade
Allen
Bron
Haslem
Bosh


:pimp:

The Heat can get away with that when they face offensively challenged centers like Perkins, Chandler, ect.

When they face the Bynums and Dwights of the league?

They will be forced to play big, or else be punished for having Bosh try and defend them in the post.

Heat just have to hope that:

A) They don't face the Lakers in the Finals
B) OKC doesn't pick up an offensively competent, back to the basket, big man

If not, then yes, playing small ball will continue to be an advantage for them.

Why does the league reward this playground bullshit? What happened to real basketball?

[QUOTE=RRR3]Miller is likely to retire, and Chalmers is a better scorer than him anyways.


Chalmers
Wade
Allen
Bron
Bosh

or

Wade
Allen
Bron
Haslem
Bosh


:pimp:[/QUOTE]

True, true, I forgot about old man miller almost dying on the court, maybe he just needs some rehab time though? Who knows?

If he does retire, I would like the second lineup with Haslem. Dude needs an appreciation thread man. They gotta retire his number once he's gone as well.

They may have breezed past the Thunder in the finals because Perkins and Co aren't much low post scoring threats. But if they play a team with a legit big they will be kicking themselves in the ass for not getting a center. A team like Indy caused them trouble, what will happen if they play Brooklyn with Dwight(if)? Or the Lakers? etc..

They should be looking to get a big center who can defend in the paint. Joel Anthony seems like that guy but he's a little undersized and not the best.

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]True, true, I forgot about old man miller almost dying on the court, maybe he just needs some rehab time though? Who knows?

If he does retire, I would like the second lineup with Haslem. Dude needs an appreciation thread man. They gotta retire his number once he's gone as well.[/QUOTE]

Haslem is big for Miami although last year he was inconsistent. But he's loved here in Miami

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]True, true, I forgot about old man miller almost dying on the court, maybe he just needs some rehab time though? Who knows?

If he does retire, I would like the second lineup with Haslem. Dude needs an appreciation thread man. They gotta retire his number once he's gone as well.[/QUOTE]
Unless Haslem has a resurgence though, the first lineup is better, at least offensively. Haslem can't create off the dribble, whereas Chalmers is probably the only Heat player outside of the big 3 who can penetrate at all (not that he's great at it, but he can do it enough to make teams pay if they ignore him). On the other hand, Haslem won't make stupid decisions, whereas that's always a fear with Chalmers :oldlol:

Everyone forgets all the trouble they had with legitimate scoring big men (Garnett, Hibbert). Hilarious.

Yes Heat, championship cruise again. We know, we know. :rolleyes:

[QUOTE=Droid101]Why does the league reward this playground bullshit? What happened to real basketball?[/QUOTE]

Dey just be mixing it up. If you cant find a way to stop it then it really isnt playground stuf then is it.

[QUOTE=RRR3]Unless Haslem has a resurgence though, the first lineup is better, at least offensively. Haslem can't create off the dribble, whereas Chalmers is probably the only Heat player outside of the big 3 who can penetrate at all (not that he's great at it, but he can do it enough to make teams pay if they ignore him). On the other hand, Haslem won't make stupid decisions, whereas that's always a fear with Chalmers :oldlol:[/QUOTE]

Chalmers reach-ins are just so:facepalm :facepalm :facepalm

They aren't even necessary, just he's still reaching in like they have to have a steal at that moment or else the game is over.

I like Haslem because of his solid D and rebounding. Dude will grab boards, take charges, knock down that J or finish on the pick and roll. Either lineup would be good though. He also doesn't take any bullshit either. Old-school dude for real.

[quote=NoGunzJustSkillz]kobe and artest can slow down lebron. get grant hill and that's another body. not saying these guys will stop lebron, but they certainty help.[/quote]

Those guys cant do shit against Lebron or Wade without help.
And guess what, if they get help off Gasol or Bynum they will have to cover three pointer shooters. And Chris Bosh.

[quote=BlackVVaves]The Heat can get away with that when they face offensively challenged centers like Perkins, Chandler, ect.

When they face the Bynums and Dwights of the league?

They will be forced to play big, or else be punished for having Bosh try and defend them in the post.

Heat just have to hope that:

A) They don't face the Lakers in the Finals
B) OKC doesn't pick up an offensively competent, back to the basket, big man

If not, then yes, playing small ball will continue to be an advantage for them.[/quote]


You don't need a centre to win now, there are 3 good ones. And the Heat have shown they can beat them already, before they hit good form and before acquiring more talent. Their team D is elite.

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]Chalmers reach-ins are just so:facepalm :facepalm :facepalm

They aren't even necessary, just he's still reaching in like they have to have a steal at that moment or else the game is over.

I like Haslem because of his solid D and rebounding. Dude will grab boards, take charges, knock down that J or finish on the pick and roll. Either lineup would be good though. He also doesn't take any bullshit either. Old-school dude for real.[/QUOTE]
IK. But then he'll have moments where he scores 12 points in the 4th quarter. Derek Fisher 2.0 IMO. Drives you crazy, but seems to have a knack for hitting big shots. Chalmers is getting better decision making wise too, hopefully he'll eventually stop with his dumb fouls lol.

[QUOTE=Droid101]Everyone forgets all the trouble they had with legitimate scoring big men (Garnett, Hibbert). Hilarious.

Yes Heat, championship cruise again. We know, we know. :rolleyes:[/QUOTE]

Most ironic post of the day. You are the one that seems to forget an awful lot. Garnett is a HOF player, dude was on one of his best playoff runs in his career. He was on a tear since March, playing like an All-Star putting up 20/10 night after night, everyone was going to have trouble with him, regardless of how big of a body they put on him.

Bosh was out against Hibbert and eventually they contained him.

[QUOTE=NoGunzJustSkillz][B]kobe and artest can slow down lebron[/B]. get grant hill and that's another body. not saying these guys will stop lebron, but they certainty help.[/QUOTE]
:coleman: LeBron will eat Kobe and MWP alive

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]Most ironic post of the day. You are the one that seems to forget an awful lot. Garnett is a HOF player, dude was on one of his best playoff runs in his career. He was on a tear since March, playing like an All-Star putting up 20/10 night after night, everyone was going to have trouble with him, regardless of how big of a body they put on him.

Bosh was out against Hibbert and eventually they contained him.[/QUOTE]
Whatever dude. The Heat can't play run'n'gun against teams with good bigs. Sorry.

[IMG]http://www.arcade-museum.com/images/118/1181242157147.jpg[/IMG]

Unless your team can exploit Bosh at center, you don't have much of a shot.

[QUOTE=Droid101]Whatever dude. The Heat can't play run'n'gun against teams with good bigs. Sorry.

[IMG]http://www.arcade-museum.com/images/118/1181242157147.jpg[/IMG][/QUOTE]
What team has good bigs these days that can punish Bosh?

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]What team has good bigs these days that can punish Bosh?[/QUOTE]
Pacers
Whatever team Dwight lands on
Lakers
Memphis
Celtics

Off the top of my head.

This sounds a lot like Cleveland when they created a team to beat Dwight Howard only the problem is they never ended up facing Dwight Howard. The Heat can't play the Thunder every playoff series, what happens when they face a team with a 4 that's mobile or a center that will abuse Bosh in the post.

[QUOTE=GaryRaymond23]Nobody on the Lakers can even slow down Lebron and they have Nash on defense[/QUOTE]

Ok no one can slow down Kobe or Bynum either. And wtf is Nash on defense? everyone know's he not the best, we didn't sign him to be a lock down defender. Yall had Chalmers/Wade/Lebron all take turns guarding Westbrook and Rondo and both ate them up for 40+ points.

Lebron can't even post up Kobe lmao. 2:49 mark [url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5m3Uw6clqE[/url] Artest should be able to slow him down in the post.

And like someone said, Miami has problems with teams that have bigs. Dwight, Hibbert, and Garnett gave them issues. I'm shocked they haven't went out and got a real center yet, just in case they are forced to play against one of these teams. But i guess they love small ball, hey whatever works i guess.

[QUOTE=Droid101]Pacers
Whatever team Dwight lands on
Lakers
Memphis
Celtics

Off the top of my head.[/QUOTE]

We took care of the pacers and the celtics. We would only have to worry about one team in the finals and i'm sure we'll make it work.

[QUOTE=Apogee]We took care of the pacers and the celtics. We would only have to worry about one team in the finals and i'm sure we'll make it work.[/QUOTE]
"Took care" of two teams that just improved quite a bit in the off season.

"Took care" of two teams that were up in the series.

"Took care" of a team missing half its players, and needing seven games plus home court advantage to do so.

Okay. Enjoy the 2012-2013 season.

[QUOTE=Droid101]Everyone forgets all the trouble they had with legitimate scoring big men (Garnett, Hibbert). :[/QUOTE]

that was without Bosh. When Bosh was playing they were toast


[IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd123/pro--sports/531351_388268991222914_370542387_n.jpg[/IMG]

[QUOTE=Droid101]"Took care" of two teams that just improved quite a bit in the off season.

"Took care" of two teams that were up in the series.

"Took care" of a team missing half its players, and needing seven games plus home court advantage to do so.

Okay. Enjoy the 2012-2013 season.[/QUOTE]

I just meant we did what we had to do to get to the finals. :confusedshrug:

tl;dr

The HEAT got 2 steals this off-season which is scary, although anything is possible in the season... they're the favorites (unless Dwight goes to LA IMO) (which doesn't guarantee a title). And if they get Haywood, I might cry.

[QUOTE=Droid101]Everyone forgets all the trouble they had with legitimate scoring big men (Garnett, Hibbert). Hilarious.

Yes Heat, championship cruise again. We know, we know. :rolleyes:[/QUOTE]


Heat >>>>> Lakers

Deal with it, son

[QUOTE=Droid101]Pacers
Whatever team Dwight lands on
Lakers
Memphis
Celtics

Off the top of my head.[/QUOTE]

they already beat two of the teams on your list. what a reach:roll:

I understand your point, I really do but I don't think you are taking all of the possibilities in. They still have big bodies on the roster just in case, it's not like they are stuck in a no-center lineup. Also, there have been other teams that have done damage without a dominant defensive presence at the five in NBA History(look at the 90's bulls).

Also, Bosh has guarded center's in the past in a land far away from Miami. He played C pretty well for the Raps and he destroyed a few guys head to head like Howard. I think you are underrating his defense, he's not nearly as bad as people say or think he is. In the finals, he rebounded and protected the rim valiantly, blocking Durant and others to seal game 4 if I remember correctly.

Dude can play the 5 if they need him to plus Wade and Bron rebound really well and will pitch in to protect the defensive glass.

Now I'm not saying that they will be impervious to good post player at the 5, but I dont think it will break them. Bynum cant pass out of double teams, Gasol(Marc) isn't a dominant post scorer, I could see Z-Bo doing work but Dwight doesnt scare me. Dude can get his thirty at times but he's not that great of a scorer to me. Hibbert played the best ball of his life in that Heat series and cooled off, you can't be seriously saying that they are a threat because of him.

I could see the Heat having trouble with LAL/MEM and whatever team Dwight is on, but those teams have to worry about Bosh/Wade and James. One matchup isn't going to kill the Heat.

[QUOTE=Hank]that was without Bosh. When Bosh was playing they were toast


[IMG]http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd123/pro--sports/531351_388268991222914_370542387_n.jpg[/IMG][/QUOTE]
You're right.

82-0, hand them the ring. In fact, why even play the season out? Let's skip to next year's draft and free agency. Maybe some other team might come close to the godly moves of Pat Riley by then.

[QUOTE=MeLO MvP 15]tl;dr

[B]The HEAT got 2 steals this off-season which is scary[/B], although anything is possible in the season... they're the favorites (unless Dwight goes to LA IMO) (which doesn't guarantee a title). And if they get Haywood, I might cry.[/QUOTE]

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[QUOTE=MeLO MvP 15]tl;dr

The HEAT got 2 steals this off-season which is scary, although anything is possible in the season... they're the favorites (unless Dwight goes to LA IMO) (which doesn't guarantee a title). And if they get Haywood, I might cry.[/QUOTE]

Rashard Lewis is a steal? :confusedshrug:

[QUOTE=RaininTwos]they already beat two of the teams on your list. what a reach:roll: [/QUOTE]
Which both improved their rosters over the summer.

Whatever, Heat win another championship. You're right. Why bother arguing?