At last season's trade deadline, it appeared Miami had made the moves to be contenders in the East. They picked up Goran Dragic in a trade with the Suns to team with Dwyane Wade, a breakout Hassan Whiteside and Chris Bosh.
Miami Heat 2015 roster: Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh get some reinforcements
The Heat have the roster to challenge LeBron James and the Cavaliers ... if they can stay healthy.
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Unfortunately, Bosh was diagnosed with blood clots in his lungs and had to sit out the remainder of the season. The Heat's plan was delayed, but only until the 2015-16 season. Bosh is healthy and ready to return to the court, and the Heat have the pieces to emerge as a challenger to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference.
Miami brings back much of the roster that failed to make the playoffs in a weak conference last season, but, as mentioned earlier, they were missing Bosh. With him back and Whiteside a year older and stronger to go with Dragic, Wade and Luol Deng, the Heat are loaded with talent.
Plus, the failure to reach the playoffs last season did prove to be helpful in one sense: they were able to draft Justise Winslow with the 10th pick in the NBA Draft. Winslow was superb at Duke and could contribute immediately for the Heat off the bench. Miami is poised to make some noise in the East this season.
LAST YEAR
RECORD: 37-45 (10th in Eastern Conference)
PLAYOFFS: Did not qualify
OFFENSIVE EFFICIENCY: 101.5 (22nd)
DEFENSIVE EFFICIENCY: 103.8 (19th)
ROSTER
No. | PLAYER | POS | HEIGHT | WEIGHT | AGE | COLLEGE |
| 1 | Chris Bosh | PF | 6-11 | 235 | 31 | Georgia Tech |
| 3 | Dwyane Wade | SG | 6-4 | 220 | 33 | Marquette |
| 4 | Josh McRoberts | PF | 6-10 | 240 | 28 | Duke |
| 7 | Goran Dragic | PG | 6-3 | 190 | 29 | Slovenia |
| 8 | Tyler Johnson | SG | 6-3 | 190 | 23 | Fresno State |
| 9 | Luol Deng | SF | 6-9 | 220 | 30 | Duke |
| 11 | Chris Andersen | PF | 6-10 | 245 | 37 | Blinn College |
| 14 | Gerald Green | SG | 6-8 | 210 | 29 | High School |
| 15 | Mario Chalmers | PG | 6-2 | 190 | 29 | Kansas |
| 20 | Justise Winslow | SF | 6-6 | 220 | 19 | Duke |
| 21 | Hassan Whiteside | C | 7-0 | 265 | 26 | Marshall |
| 32 | James Ennis | SF | 6-7 | 208 | 25 | Long Beach State |
| 40 | Udonis Haslem | PF | 6-8 | 235 | 35 | Florida |
| 99 | Amar'e Stoudemire | PF | 6-10 | 245 | 32 | High School |
| Josh Richardson | SG | 6-6 | 200 | 22 |
Tennessee |
Coach: Erik Spoelstra
Assistant coaches: David Fizdale, Juwan Howard, Keith Smart, Chris Quinn
OFFSEASON CHANGES
IN: Justise Winslow, Amar'e Stoudemire, Gerald Green, Josh RIchardson
OUT: Shabazz Napier, Zoran Dragic, Michael Beasley
The Heat were gifted with Winslow with the 10th pick in the draft. With how well he played for Duke in the NCAA tournament, Winslow looked NBA ready. The biggest news for the Heat this offseason was almost losing Wade thanks to a contract dispute, but they were able to keep him on board. They were able to sign Amar'e Stoudemire to a one-year deal, and he's still a threat when healthy.
DEPTH CHART
POINT GUARD | SHOOTING GUARD | SMALL FORWARD | POWER FORWARD | CENTER | |
STARTER | Goran Dragic | Dwyane Wade | Luol Deng | Chris Bosh | Hassan Whiteside |
RESERVE | Mario Chalmers | Gerald Green | Justise Winslow | Josh McRoberts | Amar'e Stoudemire |
RESERVE | Tyler Johnson | Josh Richardson | James Ennis | Udonis Haslem | Chris Andersen |
RESERVE |
THE KEY QUESTION
What does Dwyane Wade have left?
This is a legitimate question, but I think one of the most valuable pieces that is easy to overlook is that Wade had his longest offseason in several years. He should be rested, rejuvenated and be ready for the season. Erik Spoelstra even said that there are no restrictions for him this year.
Wade has enough left to lead the team, but not enough to play 38 minutes a night and be efficient. He should be around 33 minutes and 20 points and keep the efficiency while Goran Dragic and Chris Bosh continue to lead in other aspects. Wade will benefit from the talent that is on the roster. I think he’s also ready to take a reduced role to help the team.
-Matt Pineda, Hot Hot Hoops. Read the full season preview here.
PREDICTIONS
BEST CASE: The Heat stay healthy and emerge as the most likely team to defeat the Cavaliers in the East. Bosh is rejuvenated after the health scare, Wade plays with fire to force the Heat to pay him the big bucks next summer and Whiteside breaks out even more than he did last season.
WORST CASE: Bosh struggles to get healthy and Wade ages even more, leaving the Heat out to dry. They once again miss the playoffs and decide to reload in the offseason, parting ways with the final two pieces of the Big 3 that brought them two titles.
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