a day a free agent who visited the Miami Heat opted to sign elsewhere, the top free agent in this offseason's class offered high praise for the Heat's chances going forward.
Shortly after Phoenix Suns free-agent guard Marcus Thornton opted to take a veteran-minimum contract from the Houston Rockets rather than await an offer from the Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James said the makeover of his former team could change the hierarchy in the Eastern Conference."They're going to be a contender," James said Sunday of the Heat on Bleacher Report Radio.
James, whose free agency was resolved this past week, took note of what the Heat have done since finishing ninth in the East and missing the playoffs this past season. He pointed to moves such as the drafting of Justise Winslow, the free-agency additions of Amare Stoudemire and Gerald Green, the re-signing of Goran Dragic and Dwyane Wade, and the return to health of former teammate Chris Bosh, who was lost at midseason with blood clots on his lung.
"I think Miami is doing some great things," James said. "They drafted the kid out of Duke, Justise. I think he's going to be a really good player. They've added some big pieces. They signed Amare, I saw that. And Gerald Green is a big piece, I think, as well, coming from Phoenix.
"And the re-signing of Dragic, and C-B coming back, one of my good friends, he's coming back off of injury, and by getting D-Wade back, they're going to be a contender."
After the Atlanta Hawks beat out the Cavaliers for the top seed in the East only to lose forward DeMarre Carroll to the Toronto Raptors in free agency, James said he expects a reshuffled mix in the East.
"You have the teams that were here kind of last year," James said. "You have us, Chicago and Atlanta. And, also, not letting me forget Boston, too, because they're coming back and they added a good piece in David Lee, too. And also Washington.
"So so many teams can be there. So many teams got better. Some teams that were good last year will probably fall off because they lost some integral pieces of their team. But you see every since year, teams come, teams go."
James left the Heat a year ago to the date Saturday in free agency. Now he sees the East again undergoing a transformation. He pointed in particular to questions regarding the Indiana Pacers, with the losses of Roy Hibbert and David West, and the Brooklyn Nets, who discarded guard Deron Williams with a buyout.
"The landscape continues to change every year," he said. "You see that."
While that landscape was being overhauled, James was on vacation with Wade, New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul and their spouses.
While that landscape was being overhauled, James was on vacation with Wade, New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul and their spouses.
Initially spotted at Atlantis in the Bahamas, James said much of their vacation was well out of sight of tourists.
"We were on vacation far away," he said. "Everyone says we were in the Bahamas, but we were like seven miles away from Atlantis. We took a boat out, got far, far away from the madness."
Wade agreed to his one-year, $20 million contract while on that trip, formally signing the agreement this past Thursday.
The Heat then added Green and Stoudemire, before holding off on a formal offer to Thornton, whose instant offense and 3-point range had been enticing. Thornton visited with the Heat on Friday.
Counting Green and Stoudemire, the Heat currently have 13 players under guaranteed contract for 2015-16. Center Hassan Whiteside has a partially guaranteed deal that certainly will become guaranteed, essentially making that number 14. In addition, Heat second-round pick Josh Richardson, who has been the team's most consistent contributor during summer league, has yet to be signed.
Teams may carry up to 20 players during the offseason, but no more than a maximum of 15 during the regular season.
iwinderman@tribpub.com. Follow him at twitter.com/iraheatbeat or facebook.com/ira.winderman
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