Luol Deng a good fit for Miami Heat
After losing LeBron James to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Miami Heat agreed to a two-year deal with former Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers’ forward Luol Deng.
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Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders believes Deng is a good fit for the Heat.
"While Miami enjoyed their rental of LeBron James for four years, his return to Cleveland this summer brings the HEAT crashing back to reality. Even though Luol Deng is about as good a replacement at small forward as Miami could have found in free agency, they’re no longer in the conversation for the Finals, despite returning a pretty similar team (minus LeBron) as the one that got there a year ago. They could still ultimately end up with homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs this year, but it will be more difficult than it has been in the recent past. Don’t count them out, but don’t necessarily count them in, either."
Deng is obviously no James but if the Heat limit his minutes, at least somewhat (which is something the Chicago Bulls never did), he could be a very effective replacement.
Deng averaged 16.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 43.1% from the field, 30.2% from three and 79.1% from the charity stripe. Over the course of his 10-year career, Deng has averaged 16.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 45.7% from the field, 32.9% from beyond the arc and 77.3% from the free throw line.
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