Miami And The Three Amigos

No, this is not a posting about a sequel to a 1986 movie starring Steve Martin, this is all about the Miami Heat. Where to begin? Most would focus on Lebron, Wade, and Bosh coming together but first I would like to look at the real genius behind it all, Pat Riley. Besides coaching 'The Lake Show' to 4 titles in the 80's and the Heat to their first ever title in 2006 (Oh and the frequent mob boss jokes), Riley is proving to be even more of a mastermind at the administrative level. Riley orchestrated the move that brought Shaq to the Heat in 2004 in return for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, Brian Grant and a first-round draft pick. It seemed a bit much for an aging superstar at the time, but it eventually led to the Heat becoming champions of the basketball world in 2006. Meanwhile the Lakers struggled mightily until they acquired Pau Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies in early 2008. For a while it seemed as if the Heat had moved back into basketball mediocrity, Shaq was traded to the Suns around the same time as the Gasol deal, and Wade continued to battle injuries. Then came the summer of 2010 where Riley once again worked his amazing GM skills. The Heat looked to resign D-Wade and get some much needed support around him. Riley more than accomplished that by not only bringing in Chris Bosh but acquiring the unmatched talents of Lebron James. The outlook for the Heat is bright this season, NBA.com already has them as the favorites to win the Eastern Conference. To tell you the truth, thinking of the possible number of championships the Heat could win in the next 5 to 10 years is making my mouth water.

Byron Scott New Cleveland Head Coach

Its been over a month since my last posting but in it you may recall (all two of you that read it) that I predicted that Byron Scott would be the next coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Needless to say that earlier this week the Cav's organization offered Scott the job, an offer he then accepted. Might Scott have jumped ship too early though? We're just into the beginning of free-agency and there's no guarantee that Lebron will be returning to his "hometown." (By the way, since when is Cleveland his hometown? Last time I checked James was born in Akron so enough with the nonsense!) Anyways, Scott is in an interesting position considering what will happen with the Cav's if Lebron decides to take his Akron grown talent elsewhere. There are two options for the Cavaliers, one: use the extra cap space to go out and sign a big name free-agent (CB3 maybe?) or two: tank the 2010-11 season and pray that you receive the number one pick in next year draft. Personally I'd go with option one, considering how many teams with the worst record have actually gotten the first overall pick, and believe me not that many have done it. But what do I know? I mean obviously the Cav's know more than me, why else would they have fired the best coach they've ever had and a GM that has consistently brought in talent to surround Lebron? I guess I just don't know basketball that much...

Brown Couldn't Do Enough For You?

With 66 wins in 2008-09 and 61 wins this season the Cavaliers decide Mike Brown just didn't cut it as a coach. I mean the Cav's failing yet again in the playoffs couldn't possibly be any of the players fault right? Granted, coaching is a critical factor in any teams post season success but it is not the only factor. Based on the lackadaisical effort I saw out of Lebron James in that series its really hard for me to place the blame solely on Brown. I mean what else do you want from the guy? Suit up and play 30 minutes a game? If the Cav's wanted to have addition by subtraction to start this off-season they should have released Shaquille O'Neal, not Brown. Shaq is the oldest (and might I add slowest) player in the league at this point we have to face the facts. Shaq is not getting any younger and I doubt that he will suddenly find the fountain of youth if he decides to return for another season. So then why release Brown? And excuse me for asking, but what is trend where a coach wins the coach of the year award only to be fired a year or two later? Do they magically not become legitimate coaches? In my opinion you're either a good coach or you're not, period. You don't suddenly turn into a great coach just as you don't suddenly turn into a bad one. There are certain times where a team goes through a slump or has an off year. This is not the coach's fault basketball fan, this is called life. If every team was on top of their game every year, the Lakers would be the NBA champions for the next 5 years. But thats not going to happen, because not everyone is always on top of their game, even if they won't admit to it. Right now the Cav's just need to focus on one thing: keeping Lebron in Clevland. Lebron also needs to focus on one thing: playin' 100% in every game he plays, especially during the playoffs. Why would you have to be told to get excited for a playoff game man? If he wants to lead by example that he better give a better example or I honestly don't know if he'll ever win a championship. I suppose the Cav's can get another good coach though. I hear that Byron Scott is on the market, oh what a shock, another coach of the year winner who got fired. Hmm...