ASK IRA: Are NBA Finals offering a lesson in depth to the Heat?
Q: Ira, you, and I think Pat Riley, have pointed to the dangers of trading depth in order to go for a whale. But look at the Celtics. Their bench has been terrible in these playoffs and they still are a win from the title. Forget about the role players, get Jimmy Butler some A-list assistance before it is too late. – Andres.
A: First, I’m not sure I have advocated depth over substance, but if you choose to include me in a group that includes Pat Riley, I’m also not going to fight the notion. But, yes, at least for these Finals against the Mavericks, it is remarkable how much the Celtics have accomplished with a bench basically limited to Sam Hauser, Payton Pritchard and, now, Xavier Tillman. Part of that, of course, has been the absence of Kristaps Porzingis, which has moved Al Horford into the starting lineup. But the reality is depth also doesn’t mean nearly as much in the playoffs, with the absence of back-to-back sets and sizable breaks between games and also series. But depth does matter when attempting to navigate the regular season, which was a decided issue for the Heat this past season. All of that said, there is no issue here – none – with trading multiple Heat supporting pieces for something more substantial to augment Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. If the Heat truly hang their hat on player development – which they do – then supporting pieces can be cultivated, just as the Heat have done for years. The question is whether there is anyone out there who values the Heat’s ancillary pieces to the degree the Heat have in recent years.
Q: Ira, what the heck is our direction now? I feel we are in a vortex of uncertainty. Looks like Jimmy Butler’s days are gone, Tyler Herro ain’t it, and looks like our best basketball guy is our coach. We need players, dog. – Gregorio.
A: It also looks like the Heat have not played for nearly two months, which they haven’t. That, in turn, has created ample time, perhaps too much time, for questions that cannot be answered immediately, as others have played on. Once the Finals are over and free agency and the draft start to be more directly addressed, there will be a better sense both of what can be done and what needs to be done. Still, to go into the offseason and expect Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro and other rotation components to all be swapped out is unrealistic. The Heat are not coming off a bad season, just an uneven one. And save for the breakup ahead of clearing the cap space for the Big 3, the Heat have not opted for sweeping change for a while now.
Q: The real reason for the Celtics success is the fact that they went out last offseason and acquired two All-Stars in Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday, while the Heat went out and got two minimum-wage, perennial backup players in Thomas Bryant and Josh Richardson. In other words, Brad Stevens clearly outmaneuvered Pat Riley, but hopefully this offseason will be different. – Gregory, Jacksonville.
A: And outmaneuvered the rest of the NBA, thus his Executive of the Year award. Of course, after losing to the Heat in last season’s East finals, the Celtics also were the more desperate team. Now we’ll see how the Heat approaches playoff disappointment.