The Miami Heat might be feeling confident with what they have right now on their roster, but Pat Riley isn’t ruling out a blockbuster trade for a bona fide star. During an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio, the Heat executive admitted that the team will always pursue superstar players or anybody who has the ability to become one.
Riley was not able to sign a legit superstar or All-Star caliber player this offseason; however, he somehow managed to retain most of the key players – particularly Dion Waiters and James Johnson - from last season’s campaign.
Miami believes they can sustain the momentum they built from the second half of last season with basically the same core.
Still, Riley stressed that he hasn’t abandoned his desire of adding a franchise-changing player when the opportunity arises. “When it comes to ‘one step away,’ where are we in the rebuilding process, we’re going to always chase the most talented players that we can that are superstars, that we feel have the ability to be a superstar, and to really carry a team when a team can’t carry itself,” Riley said on the radio show via Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.
Next year’s crop of free agents features several superstar players such as LeBron James, Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, and DeMarcus Cousins.
Miami can also circle back to Dwyane Wade, who has already expressed his desire to retire with the Heat.
Richardson as a starter?
One particular player on the Heat’s roster who has shown flashes of All-Star potential these past two seasons is Josh Richardson. According to Jackson, in a separate piece, Richardson has a real shot at becoming the Heat’s starter at small forward.
Head coach Erik Spoelstra has been starting Rodney McGruder at the three spot, but Richardson’s strong output in the preseason (18 points vs. Charlotte, 19 points vs. Orlando) could change the team’s starting five before opening night.
Future for Monk
The Charlotte Hornets are one of several Eastern Conference teams that made significant strides during the offseason.
With the arrival of defensive lynchpin Dwight Howard, it is a given that the Hornets will be a better defensive team this season. However, to some NBA scribes rookie shooting guard Malik Monk is the biggest acquisition for Charlotte. In a Sports Illustrated article, an anonymous NBA scout considered Monk as a younger version of perennial Sixth Man of the Year contender Lou Williams and that he will be an instant offense for the Hornets right from the get-go.
“There’s very little chance Malik Monk is going to play point guard in the NBA. He always reminds me of Lou Williams. He’s just a natural, fluid, athletic, under-sized scoring two guard. He’ll be instant offense,” according to Sports Illustrated.
