A Miami Heat insider reported today that there is a pending trade on the table involving the Heat’s one year lease on Shawn Marion and the Clippers’ Chris Kaman. Whether or not this is true, I think it is the clear direction the Heat need to take. Name recognition and fantasy value aside, I like where the Heat are thinking on this one. It is clear that the Shawn Marion that currently wears the Heat logo on his jersey is not the same Shawn Marion that donned the PHX logo on his jersey less than a year ago.

Certain teams cater to certain players abilities. On the Suns, who just so happen to have one of the best point guards the league has ever seen, Marion was a very valuable, though not essential piece of the puzzle. This is quite obvious when you take the Suns current 6-2 record and run into the playoffs last season into consideration. With Steve Nash looking to create shots for others rather than himself, Marion thrived. However, on a team where the offense revolves around Dwyane Wade creating shots for himself, Marion’s offensive shortcomings become more apparent.

Marion is a small forward who cannot create his own shot, and if in fact a shot is available, from the outside he’s not exactly a sniper. Yes his rebounds, steals, and blocks are valuable, but how many of those come from the absence of a legitimate NBA center? Those stats look good on the box score, but I don’t think Marion translated directly to a W in the standing.

It is rare that an NBA squad takes a championship without a true center. The Chicago Bulls come to mind as the exception, but I could have played center on that team. Last year the Celtics won without a “franchise” center. At the same time, having Kendrick Perkins and Kevin Garnett guarding your basket is a very enviable situation. So, taking the 6-time champion Bulls and the Big 3 Celtics out of the equation, every champion in the last 24 years has had a Hall of Fame Big Man. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the Lakers, Bill Laimbeer for the Pistons, Hakeem Olajuwon for the Rockets, Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish for the Celtics, Tim Duncan and David Robinson for the Spurs, and Shaquille O’Neal for the Lakers and Heat. Even Alonzo Mourning makes an argument for Hall of Fame consideration. In 2004 the Pistons did it without certifiable Hall of Famers Rasheed Wallace and Ben Wallace, though two all-stars ain’t a bad hand. At the same time, they beat the most dysfunctional team I’ve ever seen. I know I’m young but the Lakers team comprised of Shaq, Kobe, Gary Payton, Karl Malone, etc. etc., doesn’t get swept by anyone unless there’s some serious irreconcilable differences going on.

Anyway, you get the point. In today’s NBA one could argue that you need one, preferably two very good big men, or the combination of Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen to win an NBA crown.  Yes, there are many different ways to provide quality entertainment in the NBA without a solid big, but to reach the ultimate goal, you need a giant. Every team searches for the next big man. How else could you explain the contracts that belong to Kwame Brown, Eddy Curry, Joe Smith, Darko Milicic, and countless other busts.  To take a quote from our buddy Josh Winegar, “Bigs come with a premium.” The road to NBA glory goes through Big Men.

In recent memory, the Suns, Warriors, Mavericks, and others have provided some of the most entertaining basketball I’ve ever seen. If the goal was to make a ton of money and get huge tv ratings, then mission accomplished. However, if their goal was to win a championship, as I suspect it was, then those teams have fallen short. I really can’t imagine Steve Nash waking up in the morning and thinking to himself “Man, I really hope a lot of people tune into TNT tonight.”

We all know Marion was just a rental. Shaq had to go. Anyone who watched him lumber up and down the court the past two to three years knows he’s not the force he used to be. Marion wasn’t and isn’t going to solve the Heat’s problems. Besides, for the amount of money he wants, I’ll take my chances with Dorrell Wright, or James Jones. They need a center.If there is a team out there willing to give up a competent big for the entertainment Marion provides, then I for one am getting on that train.