Ilgauskas Centres on Miami
The stars have come out to play for Miami, with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh lighting up the American Airlines Arena. And the star signings aren’t over, as Zydrunas Ilgauskas is reportedly looking to re-join his close friend and former Cavaliers teammate James in Miami.
It is said that the Heat had the hots for Ilgauskas for some time now, and has been one of a handful of veteran centres Miami has pursued in recent days.
Ilgauskas, or simply “Z” as he is called in Cleveland, is a solid 7 ft 3 in center with solid big man numbers. The Lithuanian native was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 20th pick of the 1996 NBA Draft. However, his career was marred by injuries, thus limiting his playing time with the Cavaliers. Despite the injuries, Ilgauskas still managed to put in a steady 17.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in 2002-03.
The Lithuanian also saw action during the NBA All-Star Weekend, and essentially added firepower to the team that once featured LeBron James.
But the centre rarely figured during the 2010 NBA Playoffs marked the first time in Ilgauskas' career in which he was not a significant part of the Cavaliers' rotation. In fact, the Lithuanian Ilgauskas saw only 69 minutes of floor time in the entire postseason, resulting in averages of 1.7 PPG and 1.6 RPG, far below his career playoff production.
After being eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals, Ilgauskas was said to be at odds with the Cavaliers. For a moment, his future remained unclear.
Enter the Heat.
team president Pat Riley and owner Micky Arison are optimistic that they could bring out the best in Ilgauskas, and is looking to land the Lithuanian’s services early this week. The entry of Ilgauskas will fill up the space in the middle, and will be flanked by superstars James, Wade, Bosh, and possibly Andre Miller.
The Heat has been making a lot of noise during this edition of the free agency period, and is confident that they can complete other deals that will bring in free agent swingman Mike Miller and also bring back power forward Udonis Haslem.
Haslem has been kind of a hot item in recent weeks, since it is being reported that the player as received offers from at least three teams, including a three-year, $20 million deal from New Jersey. But he would prefer to return to the Heat, where he has spent all seven of his NBA seasons and was a starter on Miami's 2006 title team.
``I'm really excited for the organization, whether I'm back or not,'' said Haslem, who probably would have to take a significant pay cut from the $7 million he earned last season in Miami should he return. ``I would love to be a part of the organization as long as I possibly can. But it has to be a good situation. It has to work for both sides.''
In order to make room for Haslem, Wade agreed to a slight pay cut, showing that the Heat is dead serious in building the team as a solid contender.
``We're here to win championships,'' said Wade. ``We're not here to sell jerseys. We're not here to pump up ratings. So we've got a long way to go to get to that point. We've got a lot of building to do. We've got a roster to fill.''
The word on the street is that Ilgauskas, Haslem, and Miller, will be completing their respective talks with the Heat this week.
And observers feel that the lure of playing alongside one of the strongest trios in the NBA in James, Wade, and Bosh will be too much to pass up.
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