HEATcast: Will Norris Cole and a Few Free Agents Give the HEAT ‘More than Enough’?

Bloggers from the Miami Heat Index and HeatFreak.com spent two podcasts discussing the HEAT’s trade for Norris Cole; how some of the competitors did in the NBA draft; and which “young, energetic veterans” should be targeted in free agency to give the HEAT “more than enough” to win an NBA title next season.

You can listen to the podcasts right here or three other ways:

• By downloading Part One and Part Two,
• Subscribing to the RSS feed or
• Going to iTunes.

The Cast:

• Mosi Platt from the Miami Heat Index
• Alfredo Arteaga from HeatFreak.com

Part One:
Part One of the podcast began with a discussion of the HEAT’s roster needs and whether any of them were addressed by trading for Norris Cole, the senior point guard from Cleveland State University. Was he the right pick for the HEAT? Where would he fit best in the rotation?

The video below (without audio) illustrates Cole’s ability to play defense and run the pick-and-roll.

Check out the links below for more Cole videos and background information:

• http://blogs.herald.com/miami_heat/2011/06/norris-cole-video.html
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jT_XxYV0RWw
• http://www.nba.com/video/channels/draft/2011/06/24/20110624_draft_review_mia.nba

For more thoughts on the HEAT draft, see the Draft Preview on the Miami Heat Index and Arteaga’s Draft Review at HeatFreak.com.

The podcast continued with an evaluation of the NBA draft for the HEAT’s primary competitors.

This podcast used Win Score, a statistical model created by Professor David Berri from the Wages of Wins Journal, to measure how much a player's box score statistics contributed to their team's efficiency differential and wins. An average college player produced a Win Score of 10.2. More information on these stats can be found at the following links:


Simple Models of Player Performance
Wins Produced vs. Win Score


Southeast Division

• Atlanta Hawks: Keith Benson (13.0 PAWS40)
• Orlando Magic: Justin Harper (10.1 PAWS40), DeAndre Liggins (3.5 PAWS40)
• Charlotte Bobcats: Bismack Biyombo (8.7 PAWS40), Kemba Walker (11.6 PAWS40)
• Washington Wizards: Jan Vesely (6.8 PAWS40), Chris Singleton (9.7 PAWS40), Shelvin Mack (8.6 PAWS40)

Eastern Conference

• Chicago Bulls: Nikola Mirotic (8.5 PAWS40), Jimmy Butler (10.5 PAWS40)
• Boston Celtics: JaJuan Johnson (9.7 PAWS40), E’Twaun Moore (9.7 PAWS40)
• Indiana Pacers: Acquired contract for George Hill (0.099 WP48)
• Philadelphia 76ers: Nikola Vucevic (10.8 PAWS40), Lavoy Allen (8.0 PAWS40)

Western Conference

• Dallas Mavericks: Acquired contract for Rudy Fernandez (0.112 WP48)
• OKC Thunder: Reggie Jackson (12.0 PAWS40)
• LA Lakers: Darius Morris (9.1 PAWS40), Andrew Goudelock (9.3 PAWS40), Ater Majok
• San Antonio Spurs: Kawhi Leonard (13.0 PAWS40), Cory Joseph (7.6 PAWS40), Davis Bertans, Adam Hanga

Part Two:

Part Two of the podcast discussed who the HEAT should target in free agency, whether players should be judged by their tattoos and how long the lockout will delay free agent signings.

This podcast used Wins Produced, a statistical model created by sports economist David Berri from the Wages of Wins Journal, to measure how much a player's box score statistics contributed to their team's efficiency differential and wins. An average player produces 0.100 wins per 48 minutes (WP48), a star player produces +0.200 WP48 and a superstar produces +0.300 WP48. More information on these stats can be found at the following links:


Wins Produced vs. Win Score
What Wins Produced Says and What It Does Not Say


The players listed below were covered during the podcast.

Unrestricted Free Agents

• Kris Humphries: 14.8 wins produced in 2061 minutes (0.344 WP48)
• Samuel Dalembert: 5.6 wins produced in 1938 minutes (0.140 WP48)
• Grant Hill: 4.9 wins produced in 2409 minutes (0.097 WP48)
• Kenyon Martin (and his lips tattoo): 3.4 wins produced in 1233 minutes (0.132 WP48)
• Chris Wilcox: 3.0 wins produced in 995 minutes (0.145 WP48) with 66 dunks (Juwan Howard had no dunks this season)
• Kwame Brown: 1.9 wins produced in 1714 minutes (0.053 WP48)

Restricted Free Agents

• DeAndre Jordan: 6.3 wins produced in 2047 minutes (0.147 WP48)
• Thaddeus Young: 4.8 wins produced in 2135 minutes (0.108 WP48)
• Joey Dorsey: 1.9 wins produced in 522 minutes (0.177 WP48)

This podcast was inspired by E.J. Fischer.