Miami Heat: Players who should or shouldn’t consider playing overseas – NBA Feature (Part 3)
Jamaal Magloire:
Jamaal Magloire has been affiliated with the Heat since 2008. The 33 year old centre has the shape and size that can help him in dealing the opposing threats, but Jamaal lacks those skills that could have put him in the list of
the top centres of the league.
Mangloire’s career average is not impressive at all with only 7.5 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Adding salt to the injury was his preceding season’s performance and that makes him totally ineligible to play overseas. In the
last season, he played 18 games with an average of 1.9 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
The Canadian national was mostly utilized as an enforcer during the garbage time and Erik Spoelstra never made a rotation that gave the burly centre enough minutes on the court. Considering the current scenario, Magloire is lucky
that he is still with the Heat and if they got rid of him, it would be difficult for him to find a place on any roster in the entire league. So playing abroad is not an option for the big man.
Dexter Pittman:
The 23 year old Dexter Pittman, who plays as a centre, entered the league in 2010 as a raw talent. He was picked up 32nd overall from the draft by the Miami Heat. So far Dexter had spent most his time after the draft
with the D-League team Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Pittman has that height (six foot eleven) and corpse (308 pounds) to be a top centre, all he need is experience at the professional level. He has played just two games from Miami. He need more opportunities in order to evolve as
a good centre, so the best option for him is to find a deal across the border during this work stoppage.
The overseas league will definitely help him increase his range. Moreover, the advantage Pittman has over the rest of the centres coming to the league is that they all are mostly shooting oriented, while Pittman can make an immediate
mark with his wide frame.
At the college level Dexter had represented Texas Longhorns for four seasons before declaring for the draft. He had a decent run with the Longhorns, in the last two seasons with Texas. Pittman was able to improve his stats drastically,
averaging more than 10 points per game.
James Jones:
The 30 year old small forward of the Miami Heat played 81 games for the franchise in the last season and scored at an average of 5.9 points and two rebounds per game, while playing on nearly19.1 minutes on average.
According to some National Basketball Association analysts, Jones was not utilized well by the Heat last season. He possesses a great accuracy especially in three-point shooting and he could have been the answer to the outside
shooting problems that the Heat faced deep into the playoffs. Analysts believe that if the Heat would have given him a chance in the NBA Finals he definitely would have made the difference with his long range shooting.
After relying on Jones for the entire season, the Heat gave him just 12 games to play in the postseason and perhaps citing those reasons, the small forward has announced himself as a free agent. He has the potential to be a game
changer and with more minutes on the court, he can really turn out to be a juggernaut in the international arena.
If you see the playing minutes of Jones they just simply justify his scoring stats and I believe that just on the basis of three-point shooting the six foot eight forward can go abroad. However, stamina and athleticism have been
the facets in which James has struggled in the last few years and he needs to overcome this flaw, if he is to bag a lucrative deal.
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