The post-LeBron James era in Miami has officially begun and it started with a win over the Washington Wizards. The Heat appeared to be going through business as usual regardless of the loss of James who departed in free agency. The roster appeared efficient along with the deep bench that should help Miami down the road. However, could that deep bench also force trades in the coming months?
The Miami Heat have three point guards on the roster, all of which are capable of starting in the league. Norris Cole and Mario Chalmers return to the court alongside Shabazz Napier who was drafted No. 24 overall following a move up to get the former Connecticut Huskies point guard. A look at the contract statuses for each player shows that someone could be trade bait if the rookie proves to be as talented as he was scouted to be.
According to Cody Taylor of BasketballInsiders.com, Erik Spoelstra and company really like what they see from Napier and instead of trying to create minutes for three different point guards, they might just opt to trade someone. Cole got the nod as starter for the first game, but the move could come down to contract sizes.
Cole is set to be a restricted free agent in 2015. Mario Chalmers has one more year remaining on his deal after the Heat signed him to a two-year contract worth just over $8 million. According Taylor, Cole is the better trade for the Heat considering his contract. Getting the starting nod will certainly up his value in the league considering at the moment he is not really a hot commodity. He averaged 6.4 points and 3.0 assists last season while spending time as both a starter and bench player. If Cole can show he has improved, the Heat could strike a deal quickly and move on with Napier and Chalmers.
The Heat got an improved Cole in the first night of the season. The point guard put up 23 points along with two assists, the second best stats of the night. Miami clearly did not miss James as Chris Bosh led the way with 26 points and 15 rebounds as the star of the show. Bosh notes that just because James is not on the team, it does not mean they are not title contenders.
"It drives us a lot, because I understand that yeah, factor in his talent and what he brought, of course he makes anybody an instant championship contending team. He gives you title hopes, but just because he's not here doesn't mean that has to vanish with him," Bosh said, via the Washington Post. "I want us to be able to exceed everyone else's expectations and compete for the top spot."