Veteran NBA forward Luol Deng served as an exceptional all-around player for the Chicago Bulls for nine years before spending part of last season with the Cleveland Cavaliers . Now he has moved on to a more promising situation as a free agent in pursuit of his first Larry O'Brien Trophy, signing with the Miami Heat on Sunday.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports broke the news of an agreement:
Brian Windhorst of ESPN weighed in on Deng's deal in Miami:
It seemed to be a foregone conclusion that Deng wouldn't stay with a Cleveland franchise that had the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. The Cavs had reportedly put Deng on the trade block around the deadline, per Windhorst, suspecting he would not return to the team.
That turned out to be precisely the case. Although he denied saying such things, Deng reportedly vented his frustration about how much of a mess his new team was, per a February report by Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News.
"The stuff going on in practice would never be tolerated by the coaching staff or the front office back in Chicago. It’s a mess," Deng reportedly said to a close friend.
As for what the open market held, Tim MacMahon and Marc Stein reported for ESPNDallas.com that the Dallas Mavericks were interested in adding Deng to add even more experience to their seasoned roster.
Just about any team would covet Deng, so the Heat are fortunate to have acquired him. He boasts supreme versatility as an able scorer when necessary, a savvy distributor, a strong rebounder and lockdown defender.
Deng, 29, averaged 16 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per contest last season. He figures to make an instant impact in Miami's rotation as a starter at the 3 position. The term "glue guy" is often used to describe a veteran that can do a little bit of everything, and Deng fits that description—only he's also a two-time All-Star.
Miami was reeling after losing LeBron James in free agency, but with Deng it has resolved at least one part of the puzzle as it moves on without the league's biggest star. Given how team-oriented Deng is and how much he wants to win, this is a situation with extreme, mutual positives. Although he didn't mesh well in Cleveland last year, that should be pinned on the inept offenses coach Mike Brown presided over during both of his tenures with the Cavs.
It will be fascinating to see what Deng can do—still in his prime—with an unprecedented, synergistic supporting cast surrounding him. His skill set can complement any team, but given the right circumstances, he can carry a team defensively or hit clutch shots in crunch time. If and when he's called upon to do that for Miami, Deng can be counted on to come through.
from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1oTqhux
via IFTTT July 13, 2014 at 11:34AM
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