miamiherald:Beyond Riley, there are a handful of players whose futures with the team remain in doubt. Gary Payton said he will return, but Mourning has yet to make a decision. James Posey is expected to become a free agent, though he would like to re-sign to a long-term contract with the Heat.
Dwyane Wade, who completed his third season with the Heat, said he is normally against changing teammates, and this year is no different.
''Once you play with guys and you get to know guys and you get to know their families, you get to love guys,'' Wade said. ``You never want to lose teammates, especially now that we've won a championship and we've been through a lot together. We want everybody back, of course. We'll see what happens.''
O'Neal won three straight championships with the Lakers from 2000-03 and each of those three teams had fairly significant changes each year. So he expects next year's Heat team to feature some new parts.
''We'd like to come back and get one more run at it, but all the other teams are reloading for us, so we also have to reload, too,'' O'Neal said. ``I'm sure people will make decisions based on what's best for them.''
Riley made significant changes last offseason when he added Antoine Walker, Jason Williams, James Posey and Payton to a team that reached the Eastern Conference finals. While he's not expected to make nearly as many modifications to this team, Riley already has proved he will adjust when needed.
I don't see them repeating. They will probably go far but I know that it won't be like it was. Pistons & the Spurs will redeem thesmelves. Cavs are on the rise and so are the Bulls. Competition will be a lot harder and with Shaq getting older and losing steam, Wade may have to put up Kobe-like numbers to keep the team in place.
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