It’s hard to believe, but Mario Chalmers is playing in his eighth season with the Miami Heat.
It has been over seven years since the Heat acquired the point guard through trade during the 2008 NBA Draft. Despite up-and-down play for most of his career in Miami, Chalmers has been a key role player and a starter on four teams that went to the NBA Finals, two of which were fortunate enough to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of the season.
While Chalmers has never been considered an indispensable player, the 2015-16 season probably represents the most likely year in which ‘Rio could realistically be traded from the Heat.
With the team due to be penalized at the end of the season due to luxury tax fines, shedding the 29-year-old point guard’s $4.3 million salary would ease Miami’s tax fines toward the end of the year.
Though that may be true, the Heat should not trade Chalmers in 2015-16. Here are five reasons why the Heat should keep ‘Rio through the end of the season:
1. Excellent Health
One of the most underrated aspects of Chalmers’ game is the fact that he’s always healthy.
Say what you will about the lack of consistency in his play, but one thing that is consistent about the point guard is his durability. In a non-shortened NBA season, Chalmers has never played any less than 73 games in a campaign.
During the Heat’s 2014-15 season in which just about every player suffered some sort of injury, Chalmers was the healthiest member, appearing in 80 games.
Due to the fact that the team has many veterans, any one of them could go down at any minute. That alone increases ‘Rio’s value to the franchise.
Next: Veteran Savvy
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