MIAMI (AP) — Rashard Lewis has already thought plenty about what it could mean to share the court with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Ray Allen. In short, he knows defenses could be a bit confounded.
Lewis and Allen signed their free-agent deals with the NBA champion Miami Heat on Wednesday, with talk immediately turning to how the new faces – both 3-point threats – could extend opponents who might find themselves focusing defensively on James, Wade and Bosh.
“You've got to double-team LeBron. You have to double-team Dwyane Wade. You've got to double-team Chris Bosh. And then you think they're going to leave Ray Allen open?” Lewis said, flanked by Heat President Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra at his introductory news conference. “They've got to leave somebody open.”
A few moments later, Lewis posed with Riley and Spoelstra, holding his new No. 9 jersey in Miami colors.
Allen will make just over $3 million this season. He comes to Miami after five seasons with the Boston Celtics, who offered the NBA's all-time 3-point leader nearly twice as much money as the Heat were permitted to spend.
Lewis will earn about $1.35 million from the Heat, plus another $13.7 million after getting a buyout from the New Orleans Hornets earlier this offseason. Allen has one championship from his time in Boston. Lewis played for a title with Orlando, falling short in the finals. And the lure of that elusive ring is what brought him to Miami.
Photo: Rashard Lewis
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