Miami's Empty Bench Made Worse With James Jones and Jamaal Magloire Injuries

Miami has myriad concerns but only three real problems heading into 2008-09: the point guard position, fitting the team's three starter quality forwards together, and perimeter depth. The Heat remains damned on the PG tip until Mario Chalmers has an epiphany or the trade market ratchets up, and I count myself again the horde which finds the Shawn Marion-Michael Beasley-Udonis Haslem triumvirate more interesting than problematic. But depth ... with only James Jones, Dorell Wright, Daequan Cook and Yakhouba Diawara available behind Dwyane Wade and Marion at the swing positions. That's a little good but a whole lotta bad, at least on offense.

Now Jones is out at least three months after ripping a tendon in his wrist. That ensures Wright or Diawara will get some minutes; in the event of an injury or a Marion trade that doesn't send a quality wing back, this ensures substantial burn for both those guys as well as Cook, who appears to sit on the fringes of the NBA (which is where Diawara rightfully exists). Mention was made during the summer that Shaun Livingston could play some two-guard or small forward, but no one will say when he'll be ready for real NBA action.

Another blow to the bench brigade: Jamaal Magloire will be out until December at the earliest with a broken hand. As Erik Spoelstra resists Forwardpalooza, Mark Blount will be the starting center. Magloire's a zombie, but he's better than Joel Anthony and potentially better than Blount. Alonzo Mourning is working out in some secluded bunker or something, but he doesn't figure to get live until at least January.

This is all to say that Miami could be the shocker we all dream of, but it could also be a really bad team with nothing past Wade and a good forward rotation.