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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2. Veteran Savvy
There are several underrated traits that Chalmers possesses and veteran savvy is one of them.
The University of Kansas product has been a part of Erik Spoelstra’s system since day one, becoming a member of the Heat organization in 2008, the year Spoelstra became head coach of the team.
His familiarity with the system, combined with his experience in big games is hard to find across the NBA. Not only has he appeared in four NBA Finals and won two of them with the Heat, but he has also won a national championship as a member of the Jayhawks in 2008.
With the exception of Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs, you’re not going to find many point guards in the league with that kind of championship experience.
Next: No Value in Return
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3. No Value in Return
Rumors have circulated that the Heat have discussed a possible trade involving ‘Rio with the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies are a veteran-laden team, who hope to finally get over the hump and win a championship in 2015-16. Clearly, their starting point guard Mike Conley is not going anywhere.
The issue is their lack of depth behind Conley. His current backups include Beno Udrih and Russ Smith. In other words, the Grizzlies have a huge hole in regards to their lack of depth at the point guard position.
This is the void Memphis hopes Chalmers can fill. Having said that, what benefit does the Heat receive by jettisoning the eight-year guard?
Yes, we know that Miami wants to benefit from relief in their luxury tax fines at the end of the season. However, in regards to their own quest for a championship this season, how does it benefit the Heat?
The Grizzlies are operating above the NBA salary cap and do not have a large enough trade exception to take on Chalmers’ contract. This means the team would have to give salary in order to receive salary.
That means Memphis will have to trade a player to Miami to receive Chalmers. The options are essentially Vince Carter or Matt Barnes in exchange for ‘Rio.
With Carter having a $4 million cap figure for 2015-16 and Barnes having a $3.5 million one, it would defeat the Heat’s purpose of trading Chalmers—lowering the team’s payroll.
Next: Clutch Gene
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4. Clutch Gene
Some players shrink in the face of pressure, while some players’ play increases when on the game’s biggest stage.
Chalmers is a member of the latter category. He hasn’t been great in every NBA Finals—2014 comes to mind—but he has knocked down some of the biggest shots in both the finals and the NCAA championship game.
It was his three-point shot with 2.1 seconds remaining in regulation in the 2008 NCAA championship game that forced the game into overtime. As a result of his play, he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.
Though it’s forgotten now because the Heat lost, Chalmers knocked down a big three-point shot in Game 2 of the NBA Finals versus the Dallas Mavericks. That three-pointer tied the game at 93-all with 24.5 seconds before Dirk Nowitzki made a driving layup later on to win the game.
With the exception of Dwyane Wade, there isn’t a single offensive option on the Heat that you will trust more than Chalmers if you need one shot to win the game.
Next: Lack of Experience Behind Goran Dragic
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5. Lack of Experience Behind Goran Dragic
There isn’t any experience in regards to the point guards that are behind Goran Dragic.
The three guards on the depth chart behind Dragic are Chalmers, second-year man Tyler Johnson and rookie Josh Richardson. Richardson has played just seven total minutes for the Heat through the first five games of the season.
While Johnson is in his second year, this is his first year as a point guard. During his rookie season last year, the Heat lined him up primarily at shooting guard.
Though Johnson has looked good in a little over 14 minutes per game, he still remains largely a score-first guard.
Chalmers can play both the scoring role and playmaker role depending on what Miami needs out of him on a game-to-game basis.
All things considered, if the Heat want to truly contend for a championship in 2015-16, Chalmers remains the team’s best viable option at backup point guard.
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