MIAMI — With Monday’s Miami Heat media day at Kaseya Center arrives a sense of renewal, revival, reset.
After four seasons of play-in and then, this past spring, the franchise’s first playoff absence in seven seasons, the sense was something had to change.
Gone are six players from the roster the Heat took into their April 14 play-in loss to the Charlotte Hornets — the last time the Heat took the court.
In their places are new faces, a revitalized outlook and questions decidedly more about playoff seeding than play-in settling.
Left to sort it out is Erik Spoelstra, who, somewhat staggeringly, opens his 19th season as Heat coach.
As the Heat prepares for Tuesday’s start of training camp at Florida Atlantic University, the questions are real, as are the expectations.
Q: What are the expectations?
A: Based on how the Heat took such a veteran bent with the summer’s prime additions — with Giannis Antetokounmpo 31, Klay Thompson 36, Tim Hardaway Jr. 34 and Bobby Portis 31 — it is difficult to cast this season as anything less than win-now.
Factor in Andrew Wiggins at 31 and Bam Adebayo having turned 29 in July, and it’s not as if the Heat can afford to play for tomorrow.
The Heat went to the Eastern Conference finals in Shaquille O’Neal’s first season with the team, to the NBA Finals in the first season of the Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, and the NBA Finals in Jimmy Butler’s first season.
The Heat do now slow play their rebuilds.
Q: So this is it, this roster they’re taking to camp?
A: For now? Yes.
But this is not a front office that structures contracts by whim.
There is a reason there is the flexibility is in place to swap out as many as three standard roster spots within the confines of the hard cap mandated by the machinations of the Antetokounmpo trade.
There also is a reason there are so many tradable contracts in place beyond the mega deals of Antetokounmpo and Adebayo.
Q: For now, how does the lineup shake out?
A: It would be difficult to envision anything other than Antetokounmpo, Adebayo, Wiggins and Davion Mitchell standing as anything other than starters. Part of that is the separation between those players and the second-best options at their respective positions.
Based on spacing needs and the ability to compensate for his defensive shortcomings by surrounding him with four plus-defenders, Thompson would appear the likely choice as the fifth starter.
Q: And the rest of the rotation?
A: From there, figure on a bench unit anchored by Portis, Hardaway and Pelle Larsson.
Beyond those three, it would appear Dru Smith would be the early clubhouse leader for a rotation role, if only because of the lack of a veteran point guard on the roster beyond Mitchell.
Q: So no camp competition?
A: Actually there could be plenty, including a matter of survival for some.
While he holds a standard contract, Nick Richards’ deal does not guarantee until opening night. That puts him in the same make-or-break category as Precious Achiuwa, the fellow veteran big man who held a similar guarantee deadline at last year’s camp and then was cut on the eve of the season.
Then there is Myron Gardner, who stands only with a $500,000 guarantee, the rest of his minimum-scale deal not fully guaranteed until Jan. 10. That will make it possible to sub out his salary slot for a veteran in December.
And when it comes to the two-way players, Vlad Goldin remains in a prove-it state, that his limited mobility can be conquered into a transformation into a viable NBA backup center.
Q: What about positional battles?
A: There should be plenty.
While Thompson as the starting shooting guard appears to make the most sense, cases certainly could be made for Larsson or Hardaway.
When it comes to the power rotation, a revival by Nikola Jovic could create competition for minutes with Portis and possibly leave Richards on the outside – or without a job.
And while Smith has long been a Spoelstra favorite, the scoring of second-round pick Ryan Conwell and the intrigue of undrafted two-way player Tre Donaldson could create intrigue in the backcourt rotation.
Q: Beyond those names, any others with camp intrigue?
A: Then there is the wildcard that is Simone Fontecchio. If he is hitting 3-pointers at a productive rate, he could rate as more than an outsider.
For that matter, considering Basketball Reference recorded Fontecchio as playing in a power role in 76% of his minutes last season, he could be another factor in potentially displacing Richards in the power rotation.
Q: How will the Heat’s hard cap impact all of this?
A: The expectation is the Heat will exit camp with 14 players under standard contract — one shy of the NBA maximum — in order to optimize cap flexibility.
However, there currently is enough room under the team’s hard cap to add a veteran at the minimum at any point. So the roster watch elsewhere could prove intriguing over the next month, and then months to follow.
Q: So the salary structure is locked in?
A: Not when it comes to two-way contracts, which can be subbed out at any point, with such salaries not counting against the cap.
So beyond Goldin’s seemingly tenuous situation, keep in mind that the Heat have the right to convert any of their Exhibit 10 tryout players to two-way deals at any point during the preseason, provided one of the two-way slots is cleared.
In that regard, keep an eye on Exhibit 10 guard Bez Mbeng, who offered quality NBA minutes at the end of last season with the Utah Jazz.
Q: What is the immediate road ahead?
A: When it comes to the preseason, the key dates are Monday’s media day at Kaseya Center, the Tuesday-Friday camp at FAU that is closed to the public, Saturday’s exhibition opener against the Toronto Raptors in Quebec City, the Oct. 6 Red, White & Pink Game intrasquad scrimmage at Kaseya Center, the Oct. 8 home exhibition opener against the New Orleans Pelicans and then the Oct. 19 5 p.m. regular-season deadline.
From there, it’s on to the Oct. 21 regular-season opener against the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves.