Ranking the Miami Heat’s Best Lineups from 2012-2013

Jun 1, 2013; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra walks on the court during the first half in game six of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 NBA Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Small ball or position-less basketball is the mantra of the Miami Heat and head coach Erik Spoelstra is known to tinker with quite a few different lineups as the experiments continues.

LeBron James allows Spoelstra to play with many lineups, and Pat Riley has built a deep bench that allows for even more flexibility with guys like Shane Battier and Ray Allen.

First, let’s take a look at the starters.

Starting Lineup

PG: Mario Chalmers

SG: Dwyane Wade

SF: LeBron James

PF: Udonis Haslem

C: Chris Bosh

This was, by far, the most used lineup last season for the Heat. While Bosh is listed at center here, Haslem tends to play more of the center role defending the paint and Bosh floats around in more of a Nowitzkian sort of way.

The integrity of this lineup can be maintained when subbing in Chris Andersen for defensive purposes.

The Heat won two NBA titles using its small-ball approach and experimenting with lineups to best exploit match ups with its opponents.

But what lineups were the best during the 2012-2013 season, and what can we expect from Spoelstra next season? Let’s take a look at the top five, and speculate about what is coming next from Spoelstra and Riley.

Note: All stats were recorded using NBA.com’s stats page.