Who’s to blame?
Now that we know how the Miami Heat got into this mess, who is to blame for it? Well, it’s not as cut and dry as we’d hope it would be. First, the decision makers all deserve blame – Micky/Nick Arison, Andy Elisburg, Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra.
In one way or another, each of them had a hand in what transpired over the last three summers. None of them will get a pass.
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But one of the biggest disasters over the last few years lie in matching the Tyler Johnson offer sheet, which will pay him nearly $20 million this season and next season. Per reports, you can place that onus on Micky Arison.
The other two large disasters was signing James Johnson and Dion Waiters to four-year deals. It’s hard to pinpoint those two decisions on any one individual, but falling in love with two players that had likely played their best basketball in the NBA was a terrible move.
It’s easy to see that in retrospect, but in the moment I’m sure if sounded like the right move. Still, it will leave this team handcuffed for the next few offseasons.
But the signing of those players have also hurt the development of the team’s young players on the floor, and that falls on Erik Spoelstra. He’s been giving minutes to Tyler Johnson, Hassan Whiteside and James Johnson over players like Josh Richardson, Derrick Jones Jr., Bam Abedayo and Justise Winslow because of their contracts.
That’s one of the biggest reasons why this team has no identity and direction. One night they’re going with the veterans and trying to make a push for the playoffs, the next night they’re trying to go young and willing to take losses for development.
The Miami Heat are stuck. And they have no plan on how to get out. That’s the worst type of stuck in the NBA.