The recent announcement of the retirement of Alonzo Mourning is another problem to Pat Riley and the Miami Heat.. The team that won the title just two seasons ago are in rapid decline with the worst record in the NBA's  Eastern Division (8-31).   

Everything started with the injury that Dwayne Wade suffered in the past year. He missed a great part of the season and came back months later when the team had lost its winning dynamic, and it was too late to lead the Heat far in the play-offs. Put that together with an older Shaquille O´Neal and the bad run can  be  explained. It was expected that the team would come back to the top this year with a healthy Wade and a rested O´Neal. However the current record is much worse than last season.

The reduction of the roster skills since the 2006 season can explain some of the bad results. Four important players left the franchise during this time: Gary Payton (never reached the top in Miami but was incredibly experienced), James Posey (a good team player able to make points, grab rebounds and shoot from the long distance; averages 7 ppg and 4.2 rpg this season to Boston), Antoine Walker (one of the best forwards in the league contributing with 9.4 ppg and 3.8 rpg to Minnesota) and Jason Kapono (a big and strong forward with a good 3-point shooting, 50% this season, which is averaging 8.6 points and 1.7 rebounds to  Toronto).

'The Heat suffer a lot against tall and strong teams that close on ONeal, cutting the Heat's most effective offensive resource'


These players have been replaced by young and inexperienced guys. Daequan Cook is the bright one but he is not yet ready to contribute at a level expected. With a decrease in outside shooting in the weight of the offense, the team lives on the moves by O´Neal or Udonis Haslem and the attacks to the rim by Wade, coming from the arc.

The Heat suffer a lot against tall and strong teams that close on O´Neal, cutting the Heat's most effective offensive resource. As the roster lacks long range shooting, they are just able to face teams that are weak on the paint.

The guard line is also week. The retirement of Payton left Jason Williams as the captain on board. Williams is a very talented player who still needs to mature despite his age, and he still hasn't mastered the art of  being a calming influence on court when it is required.Also there is no-one on the bench is able to give him good quality minutes on the bench.

I guess Mourning's retirement has been more than a punishing blow to the Heat's hopes of any kind of success this season.