The Miami Heat open 2015’s training camp with a lot of familiar faces. The Heat return super stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. They also return recent key additions like Luol Deng and Goran Dragic. Josh McRoberts, an offseason signing from last summer should be getting healthy for this coming season. Let’s take a look at some key additions as well as some training camp players hoping to make the regular season roster.
Stoudemire joins the Heat
Amare Stoudemire
Once upon a time Stoudemire was a bonafide stud. You can count on him for 20 points and roughly 10 rebounds a night. He has since had many injuries and has aged to the point where he’s a shade of himself. He split last season between the New York Knicks and Dallas Mavericks averaging 11.5 points and 5.6 rebounds in roughly 20 minutes a game. He’s no longer a starting power forward but is great for spot starts. He can bring a lot of energy and intensity off the bench for the Heat. He’s a lock to make the regular season roster.
Gerald Green
Gerald Green has had an interesting tenure in the NBA. Originally a 2005 1st round pick by the Boston Celtics, Green went onto win the 2007 Slam Dunk Contest. He had a rocky rest of the way in the NBA and eventually fell out of the league by the end of the 2009 season. After some stints overseas, Green joined the D-League and played well. The New Jersey Nets gave him an opportunity via a D-League call-up and Green impressed. He showed he could drive, shoot from outside and defend. His short time in New Jersey allowed him to get reserve roles with the Pacers and Suns. He should provide great athleticism off the bench for Miami.
Hopefuls looking to make the 15 man roster include the following:
Center Keith Benson – Signed a 1 year minimum non-guaranteed deal.
Guard Corey Hawkins – Signed 1 year minimum non-guaranteed deal.
Guard Tyler Johnson – Played last season for Miami. Is in the 2nd year of his deal which is partially guaranteed
Forward James Ennis – Played last season for Miami. Is in the 2nd year of a 3 year deal but salary is guaranteed if he makes opening night roster.
Forward Greg Whittington – Signed a 1 year minimum non-guaranteed deal.
Guard Tre Kelley – Signed a year minimum non-guaranteed deal.
Guard Josh Richardson – 2015 2nd round pick signed a 3 year deal that is partially guaranteed but fully guaranteed for this season.
Forbes recently did a study on the NBA’s best fans. They use five variables in their algorithm to determine which team has the best fans. The first variable is hometown crowd reach, which is a percentage of local individuals who listened, watched, or attended a game in the last year. The other variables consist of three years worth of television ratings, three years of capacity reached for an attendance based approach, three years of merchandise sales, and social media followers, which is the combination of Twitter followers and Facebook likes. There are also factors that count in behavioral variables such as loyalty and television ratings. Social media reach was calculated as a percent of the city population. Dual city teams had their local population cut in half to account for multiple team options in a single city.
The Miami Heat are on quite the skid as of recent losing five of their last six games. Throughout their first 18 games, the Heat have struggled with continuity. They have used six different starting lineups in their first 18 games. Dwyane Wade has recently missed seven games due to a hamstring injury, and Luol Deng injured his right hand, leaving him questionable for a couple of recent games.
The Miami Heat have started this season off with a bang, winning five out of their first seven games. They started the season winning their first three games against Washington, Philadelphia and Toronto. They lost their next two games against Houston and Charlotte and won their next two games after that against Minnesota and Dallas. Their next game is on Wednesday as they welcome the Indiana Pacers to American Airlines Arena.