- LeBron claims he didn't plan on this all along, but then what was up with that rumor that they all planned this back in 2008 at the Olympics? Bill Simmons thinks it was all planned and they strung us all along. I tend to agree.
- Who's the main playmaker on that team? Who has the ball? Who takes the last shot? I'm really interested to take a look at the advanced stats for that team next year, and of course, it's a problem that every coach would love to have.
- Now the interesting thing to look at is how do the numbers work? Does LeBron or Bosh come to Miami in a sign and trade so that they all have maxes? If so, what happens to Beasley? He's become somewhat of an albatross that no one wants. Alternatively, there's been talk of them all taking pay cuts. Less of a big deal than you might think since Florida has no state income tax. Also, there have been reports that Miami has already offered Mike Miller a deal around the mid-level exception. If the big 3 take paycuts, Beasley stays and Miller comes, that's already a huge upgrade from the expected 9 minimum contract guys expected to be on the roster.
- There kind of seems to be two extreme reactions. One is that they're going to win five straight championships because of their massive star power. The second is that they won't win anything because of their massive lack of talent behind the big 3. Both have grains of truth. Obviously this union of two superstars and an All-Star is a big deal. On the other hand, they potentially may only have 4 NBA players surrounded by the equivalent of 9 second round picks. Now they won't dominate five in a row. Clearly, it's so difficult to win in the NBA, much less repeat. There are still many good teams out there who will put up a fight and beat them, especially early on before they fully mesh and accumulate talent. However, they won't be scrubs either. Too much talent and they can probably have a rotation where one of their stars is on the floor at all times. They can probably get a couple veterans on the cheap (a la 08 Celtics with Leon Powe and PJ Brown), pick up more talent that gets waived during the season, and use their exceptions next free agency. Make no mistake, this team will be a force to be reckoned with for years but not an unstoppable juggernaut. So much depends on what happens next, who they add, how they play together and how the coaching is.
- It's going to be unbelievably weird to see LeBron in a Heat uniform next year. So freakin weird.
- In other news, now that LeBron has not come to the New York Knicks, PF David Lee is going to the Golden State Warriors in a sign and trade with a package including Anthony Randolph, Ronny Turiaf, and Kelenna Azubuike heading east.
- With that news, I sort of like where the Knicks are going. Donnie Walsh is finally almost done cleaning up the mess Isaiah Thomas created. They have a legit scoring option in Amare and now have some young pieces. It's not as bleak as it may seem. They're still going to suck next year though.
- Back to LeBronland, if they do win multiple titles, I don't think it should be held against them. It's perfectly clear that you need help to win titles. Players always look at who they'll be playing with when they sign with new teams. Of course this is a bit of an extreme situation, but overall, not much different than usual.
- However, people will point out things like Jordan/Pippen, Kobe/Shaq, Magic/Kareem to say that the rings would not be diminished at all. I also disagree with this. In my opinion, it's much different to stay with a team and have guys brought in and a team built up than it is to purposely go out and team up with other big stars in one spot to try to win.
- And as a third point, people will say the Big 3 in Boston did the same thing. To an extent this is true, however, all of them were older, ringless and pretty much desperate for a shot at a title. LeBron and Bosh don't have that same desire that comes from playing in the league for so long without winning. Also, they were pretty that the relative unknowns Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins turned out to be an elite point guard and a solid defensive force, respectively.
- Are fans in Cleveland rioting and/or burning things yet? And are Knicks fans rushing the Boys and Girls Club in Greenwich, CT to get at LeBron?
- The Heat desperately need a defensive center. Chris Bosh is nothing special inside (he played on an absolutely atrocious team last year, advanced metrics put him on the same level as Amare freaking Stoudemire) so they're going to need help. Unfortunately for them, they won't have much money to do it with. Maybe Shaq returns to South Beach for a reunion? That would be a sight.
- LeBron said he wanted to wear #6. Mario Chalmers, one of the only Heat players left on the roster, currently wears #6. Of course he'll give it up, but it's just amusing.
- This team is going to be a beast to play as in NBA 2k11 and NBA Elite 11. Not going to lie, I am very excited.
- For next year, this feels like a team that's going to be a regular season beast that will fade in the playoffs, where depth really matters. These guys will probably play monster minutes. That being said, the watch for the first team to beat the Big 3 will be fun.
- And at the end of the day, this is something pretty much unlike what we've seen. How can you not be excited to see how these guys are going to play together? It might be maddening now, but on the court it will be electrifying.
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