Zydrunas Ilgauskas will join fellow Cavalier teammate and close personal friend, LeBron James, on the Miami Heat next season.

He will accept a two-year contract at the veteran minimum salary. The first season will pay him $1,352,181. The second will be a player option at $1,399,507.

The Cavs offered Ilgauskas a guaranteed contract, but he elected to go to Miami, where his wife Jennifer has family. He was a beloved member of the Cavaliers franchise for the past 14 years.

Ilgauskas, who will officially execute his Heat contract after Mike Miller, is a nice complement to the Heat’s star-studded lineup. Big Z is a solid mid-range shooter, stretching out to between 15 feet and 20 feet. He is also an effective offensive rebounder, often using strong hands around the basket to tip in missed shots. He figures to round out a starting rotation that also features Dwyane Wade, Mike Miller, LeBron James and Chris Bosh, though the rotations figure to be something of a fluid concept.

However, Ilgauskua, 35, is an aging center whose defensive capabilities are oftentimes not on par with the expectations of a Riley-run organization. He often struggles against more athletic opponents, particularly in pick-and-roll situations.

The more athletic but less coordinated and “big” big man, Joel Anthony, figures to spell the 7’3″ center for large portions of the game, including key stretches during close ball games. But he is by no means a definitive answer. Joel has certainly come a long way over the past two seasons, but he is still not somebody you would trust to catch a basketball, let alone take in and place it in the basket. And while his shot-blocking prowess is absurdly good (third in the league last season in blocks per 48 minutes, at 3.96), his rebounding prowess is not (9.0 per 48 minutes, good for 71st in the league).

The Heat still hasn’t found itself an ideal starting center. Given the limitations at the position, the Heat might be better served shifting Chris Bosh to center, James to power forward, and Miller to small forward. With Chalmers and Wade in the backcourt, the starting rotation would become an offensive juggernaut built around ideal floor spacing.

Udonis Haslem has now officially signed a 5-year contract estimated at just over $20 million, suggesting that my previously rounded figures may actually be exact. His first year salary, around $3.5 million, would be less than half of his $7.1 million last season total.

One major factor aiding in his decision was swingman Mike Miller’s decision to join the Heat – something the team still has not announced. Miller and Haslem have been close friends since their days at the University of Florida.

Assuming the Heat chooses to retain its rights to Joel Anthony, Haslem’s contract leaves the team with an estimated $5.0 million to devote to Mike Miller. That would equate to a five-year contract of roughly $29 million.

The Michael Beasley transaction was completed yesterday with a bit of an unexpected turn. Instead of a swap right of future first round positions, Miami will acquire Minnesota’s 2011 and 2014 second-round picks.

The rest of the off-season figures to be low key from a draft pick trading standpoint.

Here’s an overview of the Miami Heat’s future draft pick scenario:

2011: No first round picks; one second round pick (Minnesota)
2012: One first round pick (swap right to Cleveland); one second round pick (Memphis; top-55 protected)
2013: No first round pick; one second round pick
2014: One first round pick; two second round picks (Minnesota)
2015: No first round pick; one second round pick

Here is a detailed review of the pick flow: Read more…

Per Ira Winderman of the South-Florida Sun Sentinel:

Udonis Haslem will be back with the Miami Heat next season.

The veteran power forward confirmed his return Monday afternoon to the Sun Sentinel in a text message that read: “Turned down full mid level from Dallas and Denver. See u next season.”

Instead of packages from other teams that could have reached $34 million over five seasons, Haslem, 30, is expected to sign off on a four-year Heat package at about a third of that total, although details still are being sorted out.

With the Michael Beasley trade official, it would now appear that the contracts of both Udonis and college roommate Mike Miller can be finalized.

Of note is the final quoted paragraph above, in which it is suggested that Haslem is expected to accept a package worth approximately one-third that of a full Mid-Level Exception deal. I would be shocked if this were true.

A full mid-level deal would pay Haslem exactly $33,437,000 over five seasons. One-third of that value is just $11,145,667. Spread over four years, that implies a starting salary of $2,487,872. I have previously suggested an alternative which could pay UD around $20 million over five seasons (60% of such an MLE deal), which seems much more palatable to all parties involved. Time will tell.

In any case, Miller and Haslem will split 9.5 million 2010-11 dollars. Each would be eligible to receive 8.0% annual, non-compounding raises for up to five total seasons.

This is not the first time Udonis has provided a hometown discount. Only days into the July 2005 negotiation period with the Heat, Udonis agreed to a five-year, $30.25 million mid-level contract. After completing the negotiations, Jason Levien, Haslem’s agent at the time, estimated that he left around $10 million on the table in order to meet Haslem’s hometown wishes.

These are rare and altruistic acts for a player in the me-first world of professional sport.

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh officially became Miami Heat teammates last week, turning a Pat Riley vision nearly three years in the making into glorious reality and simultaneously unleashing a torrent of suspicion: Was it planned all along? If so, was it tampering? Collusion? Illegal?

The answer, as far as N.B.A. officials are concerned, is an emphatic no.

Tampering is when a player or team, directly or indirectly entices, induces or persuades anybody (player, general manager, etc.) who is under contract to another team to negotiate for their services.

Although each player was set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of last season, each was technically still under contract to his existing team through June 30.

Since James’ announcement on July 8, which followed those of Wade and Bosh the day before, rival teams and frustrated fans have wondered whether the outcome was predetermined. The three players had spoken openly of convening a “free-agent summit” to discuss their plans, well before free agency formally opened. They reportedly conferred with each other throughout the process.

Suspicions became more concrete on Saturday, when The Cleveland Plain Dealer published a detailed narrative that traced the alliance back to 2006, when James, Wade and Bosh became teammates for USA Basketball. The article, based mostly on anonymous sources, referred to “a complex master plan that was the trio’s desire for much of the past four years.”

The issue of tampering was discussed at the N.B.A. owners meeting in Las Vegas on Monday.

“What we told the owners was that the three players are totally, as our system has evolved, within their rights to talk to each other,” Commissioner David Stern said after the meeting.

Players on different teams who discuss the idea of someday playing together “is not tampering or collusion that is prohibited,” Stern said.  Read more…

There’s not much to report today, so I’ll instead offer a Sunday evening editorial.

I continue to read stories from across the nation vilifying LeBron James for his decision. While I tend to try to remain largely objective in my writing, I will offer my own retort.

James has certainly fallen from the greatness upon which he was once bestowed, reduced to the ranks of the most condemned among professional athletes. The events of Thursday will undoubtedly leave him forever mired with infamy.

The method in which he chose to communicate his “Decision” was shockingly cold-blooded and cruel – live and before a televised audience, without so much as a reasonable period of notice, and without a sense of true recognition for what he was doing. In deciding to leave, he had already driven the knife through the collective heart of the city of Cleveland. There was simply no need to twist it from within.

In that respect, Dan Gilbert had it right. This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports, and probably the history of entertainment.

But don’t confuse Gilbert’s anger. His anger is not one of narcissism and self-promotion. James surely did not become a narcissistic self-promoter on Thursday night. It was an attribute that has been ingrained within Gilbert’s former star since an early age. Greatness often breeds arrogance. Read more…

The vision is beginning to take shape.

Pat Riley and Micky Arison met with Derek Fisher for three hours at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in downtown Miami on Saturday and apparently made Fisher a “compelling” offer.

Given the contract situations of Udonis and Mike, the compelling nature of the offer was more likely a vision of Fisher as the starting point guard on a team that also features among the most talented trio the game has ever produced than it was of monetary reward.

At the same time, the coup from Cleveland appears it may continue. Free agent center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is contemplating the option of rejoining LeBron James, his close friend, in Miami. It will certainly be interesting to see if the fanatics of northeastern Ohio deem the 12-year veteran center a Benedict-Arnold-like traitor, or if that title is devoted exclusively to far more talented but far less tenured former members of the organization.

More interesting are the implications the two additions could have on the Heat organization. Riley’s vision appears to change by the day, as new and unexpected possibilities avail themselves. As of now, it seems to follow along the lines of:

Starting Rotation: Derek Fisher, Dywane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Zydrunas Ilgauskas.

Second Unit: Mario Chalmers, Raja Bell, Mike Miller, Udonis Haslem and Joel Anthony.

The concept of the two units, however, is likely to be a fluid concept. There may never actually be a moment when Dwyane, LeBron and Chris are all resting comfortably together. Perhaps the best part of having three legitimate superstars that can each dominate a basketball game in his own right is that each can take long, rejuvenating rest stops, in rotating fashion, throughout the course of a game. The concept of tearing down a body by playing forty-plus minutes per game may be a thing of the past for each of the three, vastly decreasing the potential for injury and prolonging the career.

When you consider the bench that Pat seems to be putting together, such a rotation system may even be a preferred alternative. The natural concern about such a Big Three trio is the perhaps less than complementary nature of their games. On the other hand, Bell, Miller and Haslem are all knock-down shooters that would complement the games of a superstar wonderfully – with the range of Bell and Miller stretching all the way behind the arc and that of Haslem to the top of the key extended.

The lesson we can take from the Orlando Magic and Phoenix Suns of yesteryear is that when you surround a playmaker or two with a gaggle of shooters, it makes it exceedingly difficult to defend and nearly impossible to double-team. It creates wide open driving lanes which, if closed, will leave Mike Miller wide open for a three point field goal attempt (where he shot 48% last season) and, if not, will produce a series of thunder-dunk highlight reels the likes of which the NBA has yet to ever see from a single team.

A fully-rested Big Three on the court together in the final minutes of any game that happens to be tight has to be a scary proposition.

The Heat figures not to be just an offensive powerhouse, but a severe match-up problem for just about every team in the league. Consider the flexibility afforded by having a Second Team All Defensive shooting guard, a First Team All Defensive small forward who has the quickness to cover opposing point and shooting guards and the frame to cover opposing power forwards, and a lanky 6’11″ power forward who, despite the lack of hardware, is among the game’s best statistical rebounders, as well as a strong pick-and-roll defender who moves his feet and alters shots with his length and leaping ability. Read more…

Dorell Wright’s six-year stay in South Florida has come to an end. Wright signed a three-year contract worth just shy of $11 million to join the Golden State Warriors.

The 6’9″ small forward seemed to be turning a corner last season, averaging 7.1 points and 3.3 rebounds in his 21 minutes per game. It was the best overall season of his career, a season during which he began to show the promise that warranted his No. 19 selection in the 2004 NBA Draft.

But the Heat didn’t have the cap room to offer Dorell anything more than a minimum salary contract.

Here’s wishing all the best to Dorell Wright.

Apparently, the guys and girls with money to burn think the Miami Heat will win the 2011 NBA Championship.

According to sports-betting website Bodog.com, the Heat is currently a 7/4 favorite to take home the Larry O’Brien trophy.

Among the teams with anything other than a remote chance, the current odds break down as follows:

Miami Heat: 7/4
Los Angeles Lakers: 11/4
Orlando Magic: 10/1
Boston Celtics: 12/1
Chicago Bulls: 15/1

Could the NBA be shifting to an Eastern-Conference-heavy league?

How highly do you value your first round draft picks?

Not so much if you’re Pat Riley.

And for good reason. Riley has been shockingly unsuccessful with his first round draft selections since having Dwyane Wade fall into his lap with the fifth overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft.

In 2004, with the Heat in desperate need of a point guard, Riley selected Dorell Wright with pick No. 19. Jameer Nelson was the next player selected.

In 2005, with the Heat seeking depth at power forward, Riley selected Wayne Simeon with pick No. 29. David Lee was the next player selected.

In 2006, the Heat had no pick.

In 2007, Riley completed a draft-day swap for Daequan Cook at pick No. 21. Cook never shot better than 38% in any season during his Heat tenure, and was unceremoniously exiled last month, along with a first round draft pick, in favor of the cap space.

In 2008, with the Heat again starving at point guard and the blockbuster free agent class of 2010 flush with power forwards, Riley selected Michael Beasley with the No. 2 overall pick. Beasley is being shipped away for two second round draft picks. Russell Westbrook, selected two picks later, has become a perennial All-Star at point guard.

In 2009, the Heat had no pick. It was sent to Minnesota as part of the regrettable Ricky Davis, Mark Blount trade. The Wolves used the pick to draft Ty Lawson.

Not good. And Pat knows it:

I’ve said in the past, and I believe this, that the way I always want to build a team is through free agency and trades. Probably some of the best players we’ve gotten here were free agents and trades.

Also, through the draft. But the only way you build through the draft is to lose and get three, four, five years of Top 10 lottery picks. Since (losing to get those picks) has never been a philosophy of mine – we’ve only had three lottery picks in 15 years – I always use (draft picks) as an adjunct to help free agency and trades. As chips I would use maybe to acquire players through trade.

Perhaps his philosophy is one formulated by a track record of consistent failure. But he certainly has remained staunchly committed to his word.

Riley has traded away four first round and two second round draft picks in the past few hours, for two players already committed to the Miami Heat.

Read more…