Point guard is Heat’s focus with lone pick in NBA Draft
 |
| Photograph by: Chris Keane, Reuters |
But they apparently have targeted what they will get.
Or at least what they most want and most need.
"In a perfect scenario," Heat Vice President of Player Personnel Chet Kammerer said Wednesday, "we would probably lean more to a point guard."
The Heat have been doing plenty of leaning in that direction over the past six weeks, amid private workouts of prospects conducted at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Of the seven six-player workouts that Kammerer said the team has conducted, he estimated 15 of those prospects were point guards.
The Heat currently has no point guard under contract for next season. While Heat President Pat Riley said Tuesday that he views Mario Chalmers as a starting-caliber point guard, Chalmers is a restricted free agent, with the Heat having a $1 million qualifying offer in place that allows them to match outside bids.
Among the point guards the Heat have worked out, during their run to the NBA Finals and beyond, were Kansas’ Josh Selby, Duke’s Nolan Smith, Washington’s Isaiah Thomas and UCLA’s Malcolm Lee.
"The only thing I would say about this draft, as far as point guards, I think a lot of ’em are kind of combo guards, they’ve played maybe more two than one," Kammerer said. "But they’re all projected maybe to be ones in the NBA. But at this point, there’s quite a few guys."
Asked what the Heat are targeting in a point guard, Kammerer said, "I think speed and quickness, very important. I think leadership, can run a team, very important. A guy that has that ability to run a team. And everybody wants everybody who can shoot the ball."
The Heat’s other prime offseason area of concern is center, where only Joel Anthony is under contract for next season. Many of the big men the Heat have worked out, however, are power forwards, with the Heat seemingly having that area covered with Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem.
"I think it’s going to be difficult," Kammerer said of landing a true center. "I look at it as length. I think there’s some fours that have length that have potential to be a big for us."
The No. 31 selection was obtained from the Minnesota Timberwolves in last July’s Michael Beasley trade.
With their first-round pick dealt to the Toronto Raptors to complete the Bosh sign-and-trade transaction, and with their second-round pick dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2009 draft-night trade for Patrick Beverley, the Heat are not in much of a position to dictate their choice.
Because of that, the Heat have worked out a cross-section of prospects who could fall to No. 31, even though the team is deep on the wing, with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Mike Miller, with James Jones and Eddie House also holding player options for next season.
"You also have to go with who think are the best players," Kammerer said. "So we brought in a lot of players at different positions, trying to get a feel for what will happen."
Among those who have passed through AmericanAirlines Arena over the past six weeks who could fall to the Heat at No. 31 are Florida forward Chandler Parsons, Duke forward Kyle Singler and Purdue forward JaJuan Johnson.
"What I look for in the draft," Kammerer said, "is trying to add a piece to the nucleus that we have that’s different than what we presently have on our roster, add a dimension of a player that brings us something that we don’t have presently."
With the Heat, a greater issue than positional concerns could be going for a polished player who might fit in right away or a player with potential, since there could be several spots at the end of the roster vacated by the core of aging veterans the Heat carried last season.
"More than likely, that scenario will happen," Kammerer said of a debate between polish and potential. "That will be a tough call."
© Copyright (c) McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
Category Article Miami Heat
