The Miami Heat attempted to appease LeBron James tonight by moving up in the draft to select Shabazz Napier of the national champion Connecticut Huskies.
I’ve never been much of a Napier fan. He is a definite shot maker, but at 6’0 flat with not a ton of vertical athleticism, it’s going to be awfully difficult for him to make shots on the NBA level. NBA length is likely going to bother him especially, as he doesn’t really have the excellent lateral agility to get into the paint consistently. Therefore, he’s going to be pretty reliant on shooting jumpers over the outstretched hands of taller guards. This isn’t a great way to make a living. Plus, he’s not particularly good at anything else. He’s not a great defender — although he does have pretty quick hands that force turnovers –he’s not a great passer, and he’s not great at breaking down a defense into the paint. Ultimately, he’s a fairly weak prospect.
In fact, if Saint Joseph’s had simply been able to rebound in the final two minutes of overtime in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Connecticut, I think we’re having an entirely different conversation. If that happens, I think Napier is probably at best considered a 40th overall-level talent.
But here we are. LeBron watched the tournament on television and said that he wanted Shabazz Napier, so the Miami Heat acquiesced to his desire. It’s not a surprise given the fluidity of the situation. The Heat need to do every single thing they plausibly can to keep James, and the price here wasn’t particularly prohibitive. The Heat gave up a late second, another second, and their pick to move up two slots.
It’s not an ideal situation for the team and it’s probably one that colored their judgment. Napier played in a pretty slow system that doesn’t even come close to resembling what Miami does. If the Heat wanted a guard to replace Mario Chalmers (a free agent), they could have taken Russ Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, Nick Johnson, Markel Brown, or Vasilje Micic and it would have made more sense from a personnel standpoint.
Having said that, this will all be worth it if LeBron re-signs when the moratorium ends on July 11th.