That ritual goes back to at least last year’s playoffs. Before each game a different player would be chosen in the center of a circle of the others to “lead us”. One game that I saw with my own eyes it was “Lead us, Cody”, Cody Zeller. Even Spo laughed. Of course I am a “Heat” fan. Of course, in the moment, at the moment tonight, in those two+ hours, I will want “my” team, the one I have fanatically followed for longer than my first-born has been alive, to win. 

But however. I do believe wholeheartedly that last season’s miraculous run to the Finals set the franchise back, that it was fool’s gold that forestalled a desperately needed roster overhaul. Management did try to add another star, Damian Lillard. I was for that trade, which would have stripped the roster. I’m glad now that the trade didn’t happen. 

I now think Jimmy Butler has to go, that to trade Jovic and 3J and Tyler and draft picks would be to trade our new core, to hollow the roster out and leave a shell of Jimmy, Bam, and [insert third star]. 

LeBron James has been mentioned again. I have said for the last ten years that Pat Riley does not want LeBron back, even if LeBron wanted to come back (and all of the indications are to the contrary), and would not take LeBron back even if he could LeBron on a minimum salary. I was glad to read and to hear this:

"That's not going to happen. After what happened back then, Pat Riley is not going to him."-Tim Hardaway today on something called “The Carton Show.”

Kevin Durant has been mentioned again as he has every off-season for ten years it seems. KD will be 36 in September, Jimmy will be 35. Both have lengthy injury histories. The answer, I believe, is to trade, if it possible, the mid-‘30’s, oft-injured, fabulously salaried star we have, not add another.