Heat projected lineup and rotations heading into 2023-24 season
Miami Heat starting power forward: Caleb Martin
Caleb Martin will forever go down in history as the man who finished one vote shy of winning Eastern Conference Finals MVP in 2023. What an improbable and impressive postseason run it was for Martin, who elevated his status from solid role player for foundational member of Miami’s rotation.
It’s to the point where the Heat are haggling over Martin’s inclusion in potential Damian Lillard trade packages, which would have been unthinkable sixth months ago. Martin began the playoffs coming off the bench behind Kevin Love, but one has to imagine he’s the full-time starter when the new season begins.
Martin’s regular season stats were perfectly fine: 9.6 points and 4.8 rebounds on .464/.356/.805 splits. The storyline of his season was pretty simple: he’s a good role player who can defend a couple positions and hit league-average numbers from beyond the arc. In the conference finals, he averaged 19.3 points and 6.4 rebounds on .602/.489/.875 splits. Absolute insanity, even by the best seven-game stretch standards.
One has to imagine Martin’s numbers will dip back to reality in the new season, but his minutes per game will skyrocket and he will probably get more leeway in Spoelstra’s offense. Martin is still far from a No. 1 star, but he showed potential attacking closeouts and getting into his pull-up jumper in the playoffs. The more dynamism in Miami’s offense, the better.
Primary backup power forward: Kevin Love
The Heat re-signed Kevin Love at the veteran minimum for another run at glory. Love’s first half-season with Miami went about as well as it could’ve. He spent the majority of his time in the starting lineup and the Heat went all the way to the Finals. Love will chase ring No. 2 in the new year.
Love is 34 years old and he’s on a sharp decline. The monstrous offensive star of old is no more. Still, he’s a strong-bodied forward who can bomb 3s, set screens, and make quick decisions as a passer. He one of the best rebounders of his generation and he’s not the complete defensive sieve one might expect at this stage of his career. Love may need to see his minutes reduced compared to last season, but he still figures to crack the lineup.