AUCH Roundtable: Drafting best All-Miami Heat team from 2000 & beyond
Round 1
Rahmeaun Rahming (@Boneman9000)
I had the pleasure of drafting with the number one overall selection in our fantasy snake style selection process. This gave me an advantage, as every player who has worn a Miami Heat uniform since the year 2000 was available to me. I’ll walk you through my draft board in order of the selections, letting you in on why I targeted each player.
Pick One (1st round, 1st pick): 2012-2013 LeBron James
I know. I know. Dwayne Wade is Mr. Miami.
The greatest player the franchise has ever had, BUT, this is a fantasy draft after all and I want my team to be the best. James’ 2013 season was one for the ages.
He led the franchise to its third championship while shooting a career-best 40.6 percent from the 3-point line. Everyone knows what he brings to the roster everywhere else, so no need to go on.
I’ll leave you with this. LeBron James leads the franchise in win shares since the year 2000.
Not only does he hold first place on this list, but he also holds second, third, and fifth as well. Enough said.
Max Marshall (@maxmarshall136)
My initial reaction to any draft is to always take the most talented player on your draft board. With this exception, if you are in a dire need of a position, then have at it.
During this draft, I took my own advice and even though some of my picks perhaps won’t fit on the court as efficiently as some other combinations would, it’s better to have the most talent on the court and then figure everything else later.
Pick Two (1st round, 2nd pick): 2008-2009 Dwyane Wade
During the draft, it wasn’t a surprise that I selected Wade, although they were surprised that I picked the 08-09 Wade instead of the 2006 Wade. I was definitely going back and forth on the pick, but for me, the 08-09 Wade should have won the MVP award.
It was also, honestly for my money, better than any Kobe Bryant season. Also, Wade was at the peak of his powers during this year.
Tristan Tucker (@TristanHeatNBA)
Pick Three (1st round, 3rd pick): 2014-2015 Chris Bosh
At the third pick, the two best players in Miami Heat history were already off the board. I looked at which positions would be the hardest to fill later in the draft and decided to go ahead with selecting a stretch-five, Chris Bosh.
I decided to go with Bosh’s best scoring season with the Heat and his best 3-point shooting season, 2014-15. Bosh averaged 21.1 points, seven rebounds, and 2.2 assists en route to being named to his 10th All-Star Game. The 6’11” big man shot 38% from deep on nearly four attempts per game, helping to pave the way for many current stretch-bigs in the league.
Kenneth Wilson (@Ksaidwhat)
Pick Four (1st round, 4th pick): 2019-2020 Jimmy Butler
Is there really a need to say much here? The guy has made every team that he has played on extremely better and there has been a significant dropoff on every team that he’s left. Come on people, it isn’t rocket science, it’s the Jimmy Effect.
You also give him extreme credit for these two reasons, he’s led the Miami Heat towards being one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference and the entire NBA, while he is arguably having the best complete season of his career from a performance, overall statistical, and meaningfulness to team’s success standpoint.
Besides, LeBron, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh were all of the board, plus I had the first pick in the next round. That’s why I went with Jimmy here.
Round 2
Kenneth
Pick Five (2nd round, 1st pick): 2004-2005 Shaquille O’Neal
Even in the small ball era of basketball, Shaquille O’Neal would still be dominant. If you don’t think so, then you don’t watch the same game that I do or you simply haven’t seen Shaq’s work.
While this wasn’t the Miami Heat’s first championship year, 2005-06, this was the best version of him that Miami ever saw. He had a better season that year than he did in his final with LA, while his numbers in that first year were considerably higher across the board in every major statistical category than his second year with the Heat.
Small ball, big ball, any ball, Shaq would dominate in the paint and shots at the rim wouldn’t be the easiest to come by either.
Tristan
Pick Six (2nd round, 2nd pick): 2019-2020 Bam Adebayo
With my sixth pick, I had yet another clear choice, as a frontcourt pairing of Bam Adebayo and Bosh would be nightmarish to deal with. This pairing is one that Heat fans have dreamt of for years and could have been something amazing in real life had Bosh not been forced to retire.
The goal with this frontcourt is to have bigs that can distribute the ball well and generate their own offense, meaning I do not have to focus on getting a big name point guard right away.
The combo of Bosh and Adebayo averages 7.3 assists per game combined. The only other frontcourt that comes close to this is Kenneth’s, who average 6.8 assists per game. Adebayo is also a reliable four and strong rebounder, averaging 16.2 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
This version of Adebayo is one of only nine Heat players to be All-Stars. He can thank the way he transformed his game this past season to become one of the most versatile bigs in the league.
Max
Pick Seven (2nd round, 3rd pick): 2014-2015 Hassan Whiteside
The second pick isn’t something I’m proud of but as I said, you pick the best available! Sadly, that was Hassan Whiteside at that moment.
Yes, I know he’s every Miami Heat fan’s least favorite player, but I picked the 2014-15 version of Whiteside. This Version of Whiteside was his most athletic version of himself, which for my team, is the most perfect version of him.
On this team, Whiteside only needs to defend, block shots, rebound, run the floor, and be a lob threat. Only if Whiteside wanted to do this consistently during his time in Miami.
Rahmeaun
Pick Eight (2nd round, 4th pick): 2000-2001 Anthony Mason
Since I picked first overall, I knew that Chris Bosh wouldn’t be available at eight, but I knew I needed shooting in the frontcourt. After racking my brain thinking of who I could put at the power forward position to space the floor, I realized there wasn’t anyone who fit the bill, so I had to get a little creative.
I had to have Anthony Mason with my second selection. Not because he spaced the floor but because he was a dog on defense. He only played one year in Miami, but that happened to coincide with his lone all-star appearance as well.
This gives James an attack dog on the defensive end without taking anything away from behind the arc. Mason attempted a total of zero 3-pointers that season.
If James can win championships with Joel Anthony starting at center, surely Erik Spoelstra could come up with a way to use Anthony Mason without crowding LeBron James. To top things off and since the year 2000, this Anthony Mason season ranks ninth in win shares (above Shaquille O’Neal in ‘04-‘05) and number one in defensive win shares. Good look scoring on this duo.