Miami Heat: 3 questions from two weeks of free agency

Is Miami’s lack of point guards a problem?

Miami’s most recent free agency move was to withdraw their offer of a second two-way contract to point guard Derrick Walton Jr.

The move was somewhat unsurprising, if only because Walton played minimal minutes in the NBA on his two-way deal last year. Walton played just 16 games last season, largely in a garbage time capacity, save for a couple 20-minute nights.

Without Walton however, Miami has a glaring hole in its roster at point guard. Besides Goran Dragic, Walton was Miami’s only point guard, at least positionally.

The Heat could surely extend a similar offer to one of their summer league or G-League prospects, but Walton’s exclusion speaks more to Miami’s continuing philosophy of positionless basketball.

Last year, Justise Winslow was the Heat’s standout in a backup guard role. His improved on-ball competence allowed flexible lineups – Winslow, Josh Richardson, Kelly Olynyk, Wayne Ellington and Bam Adebayo, the self-proclaimed “Platinum Group” was among Miami’s best groups, posting 21.1 points per 100 possessions – and the continuation of Spoelstra’s coaching mantra.

"“We have to view this team in a different lens,” Spoelstra told ESPN in 2012. “When we try to think conventionally and put guys in certain boxes or positions, it really hamstrings us. Not only in terms of our flow but mentally, too. We developed that term [position-less] just for guys to understand our versatility and how we need to play.”"

Renouncing traditional roles by way of releasing Walton could continue that train of thought. Since 2014, Miami has experimented with running Winslow, James Johnson and Tyler Johnson in primary ball handling roles behind Dragic.

The positional dearth they’ll have without Walton’s rights should only encourage Spoelstra to continue exploring his options.