DRAFT PICKS

Michael Beasley, F, 6-8, Kansas State -- The second overall pick is a superb talent, possibly the most talented player in the draft. He should make a big contribution.

Mario Chalmers, G, 6-1, Kansas -- Nice player acquired in draft-night trade with Minnesota. He should contend for minutes at backup point guard. Not likely to enter the season as the starter, but a solid addition.

BIGGEST NEEDS
Miami has to get a point guard and a center. And more specifically at center, Miami needs someone who can rebound and defend the rim. Most likely the Heat has to go the free agent route at both positions. But there are trade possibilities with F Shawn Marion, who is in the final year of his $17.8 million contract. Heat president Pat Riley continues to insist Marion will be on the team for training camp, and that Miami will try to negotiate and extension.

FREE AGENT FOCUS
Miami still seeks a starting point guard and starting center. But everything could depend on what the Heat does with F Shawn Marion. He's attractive trade bait to acquire a pair of quality players. But he's also a uniquely talented player who could help Miami tremendously. The problem is there's not much of a future for Marion in Miami because of his desire for a contract extension.

"We made him what we felt was a very good offer," Heat president Pat Riley said, "and we never got an offer back."

Depth seems to be OK for now, although a seasoned veteran or two could be needed. It appears F Dorell Wright and G Chris Quinn will return to provide depth at small forward and point guard. G Marcus Banks also provides depth at point guard, as does rookie G Mario Chalmers.

Miami has to decide if it wants to offer swingman Ricky Davis a contract. He'd add excellent depth, too. G Daequan Cook offers depth at shooting guard, although Davis is the better choice the way the roster stands now.

If Miami finds a starting center it has veteran Mark Blount as a backup, which is good. And if the roster stays in its current form, either Michael Beasley or Udonis Haslem could come off the bench, providing even more depth.

And C Alonzo Mourning is still trying to rehabilitate his serious knee injury.

PLAYER NOTES

--G Dwyane Wade, who missed the last month of the season with a sore knee, returned to the court July 13 for Alonzo Mourning's charity game in Miami. Wade maintains he'll be fully healthy to play on the U.S. Olympic team next month.

--G/F Kasib Powell has quietly put together a nice summer league. Through three games of the five-game event, Powell, last season's D-League MVP, was averaging 15.7 points and 6.3 rebounds while shooting .581 (18-for-31) from the field. Powell had a pair of 10-day contracts with Miami last season and eventually stayed for 11 games, averaging 7.6 points per game.

--F Shawn Marion isn't going anywhere. At least that's what Heat president Pat Riley keeps saying.

"We made him an offer and he elected not to opt out, and I'm glad he did not because we'd be in a pickle," Riley said. "So we're actually going to training camp and hopefully we can work something out with him, but the point is he's a player, he's a big producer and he's going to help us win games.

"We didn't trade for him to not sign him. We're going to have to sit down and talk again. We're going to have to talk and find out how we can make this work."

--F Michael Beasley was knocked around quite a bit in his first three summer league games. What did he learn?

"It's a rough game," he said. "I think I got more bruises and cuts those first three days than in my entire career."

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