2016 Miami Heat

Written by Paul Banks of the Washington Times, David Kay and Peter Christian of the The Sports Bank. Send Paul an e-mail here: paulb05 AT hotmail DOT com.
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Miami Heat (Last Year: 48-34)

2016-17 Projected Depth Chart:

C:

PF: Chris Bosh/Josh McRoberts

SF: Justise Winslow

SG: Josh Richardson/Tyler Johnson

PG: Goran Dragic

NBA Free Agents:

SG-Dwyane Wade (UFA)

C-Hassan Whiteside (UFA)

SF-Luol Deng (UFA)

SG-Joe Johnson (UFA)

SF-Gerald Green (UFA)

PF-Udonis Haslem (UFA)

PG-Beno Udrih (UFA)

PF-Amare Stoudemire (UFA)

SF-Dorell Wright (UFA)

SG-Tyler Johnson (RFA)

2016-17 Team Salary: Approximately $48 million

NBA Offseason Team Needs:

1. Re-sign Wade or Whiteside?: Dwyane Wade proved there is still plenty of gas left in the tank after nearly leading the Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. Both he and Hassan Whiteside were integral pieces to Miami’s success this past season and are unrestricted free agents.

The Heat have a ton of cap space available this summer, but assuming Wade and Whiteside each get new deals worth about $20 million per year – which is realistic and reasonable for each guy -, that would leave Miami with very little wiggle room for the rest of free agency. Maybe Wade takes a hometown discount to allow the Heat to have more flexibility but if not, Whiteside might not return to South Beach. Unless the front office can get awfully creative, it is hard to see both of these guys wearing Heat jerseys next year.

2. Center: Even if Whiteside returns, Miami needs to find some depth up front since the team has a few free agent post players. If Whiteside signs elsewhere, finding a new big man is a must. The Heat did play around with a smaller-look lineup late in the season, but they still need some size inside especially with Chris Bosh’s health and career in question.

3. Veteran Wing: Even with Wade’s likely return, Miami needs to target another veteran wing in free agency since Luol Deng, Joe Johnson and Gerald Green are all free agents. The team did get solid contributions from rookies Justise Winslow and Josh Richardson, and they will be valuable role players next season. However, a veteran wing who is a known scorer will be needed and ideally someone who can shoot the three ball. Johnson was a solid late-season pickup and could be retained at an affordable rate.