All quiet on the Heat front....but for how long?

Well, since being 'used' by Lamar Odom (certainly how it seems, no?), Pat Riley now seems to be in wait and see mode, but the Heat still have some options.  Carlos Boozer is a possibility, which would only work if we trade Udonis Haslem for him.  I'd love to get rid of Dorell Wright's contract, so if this potential trade does go down, it would be a very good thing for the Heat.  But perhaps the public lobbying to join the Heat wasn't the best move for Boozer, as Pat Riley told the Sun Sentinel "I wasn't really comfortable with it,".

Riley also made a pretty bold statement about our point guard situation yesterday.  When asked about some of the veteran guys that the Heat have been linked to during this off-season, Riley had this to say to Ira Winderman:

    "I'm not bringing in anybody to start over Mario Chalmers."

For me, this was an indication of why Tinsley's agent cancelled their meeting that was supposed to take place last weekend.  Nobody is going to take a job with one team as a backup when another will sign them as a starter (*coughLAMARODOMcough*) Winderman asked Riley about the options of signing Jamaal Tinsley or Allen Iverson, and the answers may surprise you.

    Of Tinsley, Riley said, "I like Jamaal. He hasn't played for two years. He's missed a ton of games over the last four years. It's a situation that we're monitoring, talking, and so that's something we're still thinking about, but we haven't made any decisions about it. There's isn't anything pending right now."

    Of Iverson, Riley said, "Allen Iverson is Allen Iverson. He's still a great, great player that's slipping through the cracks here, for whatever reasons. Whoever signs him is probably going to get a very good year out of him."

    So, yes, there is interest, but, at least at this stage, muted interest.

    "Both players, if we brought them in, would be on a one-year contract," Riley said. "We would not obviously be looking long term with either player. And I think they probably know that."

So it appears that the Heat are intent on giving both Iverson and Tinsley the option of 'settling' for playing down here...but nobody is going to cry should we end up with the exact roster that we have today.

And while we're on the subject of Heat point guards, remember Jason Williams?  Of course you do...he only manned the point for our NBA Championship team in 2006.  After sitting out the entire 08-09 season due to 'family reasons', J-dub began his attempted comeback at New York Knicks practice facility on Tuesday.  He's only 33-years old, and after a full year off he should have plenty left in the tank, but left the Knicks court with the feeling that no contract would be offered.  That's fine for J-Will, as he is expected to work out for several teams in the coming days.

From what I am reading, signing Jason Williams wouldn’t be very costly, so why aren’t the Heat looking into bringing him back to come off the bench?  Seems like he would be a great fit as a back up to Chalmers.  He could mentor the youngster and provide a good scoring punch and solid D off the bench.  Granted, he isn’t the greatest defender but it’s certainly a step up from Chris Quinn.  I'd like to at least get some kind of answer as to why the Heat aren’t exploring this as a possibility, or if they indeed are.