Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Drafting Bol at 13 might be a big risk
An intriguing dilemma would await the Heat if Bol Bol is available
MIAMI — The thought when it comes to second-generation Heat is perhaps one day Zaire Wade dons the uniform that his father made iconic.
Or, of the jerseys already hanging from the rafters at AmericanAirlines Arena, possibly it is a Tim Hardaway Jr. trade that gives the Heat their first taste of father-son lineage.
It almost already happened, with Anthony Mason Jr. spending time in Heat training camp before being limited in his time with the organization to the Heat’s G League affiliate.
And now comes the June 20 NBA draft at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, where Bol Bol stands among the most intriguing possibilities for the Miami Heat with the No. 13 pick.
Because before Dwyane Wade, Tim Hardaway or Anthony Mason donned Heat jerseys, Manute Bol, all 7 feet 7 of him, played eight games for the Heat in 1993-94 under Kevin Loughery.
Like his father, Bol, a 19-year-old freshman out of Oregon, stands as a unique NBA
alternative, in his case a 7-21⁄2 big man who is just as comfortable on the perimeter or in transition as at the rim.
In many ways, he also stands as the most distinctive option among first-round prospects,
weighing in at last week’s NBA Draft Combine at 208, after being listed by the Ducks at 235.
Yes, 7-21⁄2 and 208 pounds — 12 pounds fewer than 6-4 Wade, 57 fewer than Hassan Whiteside, 111⁄2 pounds lighter than last season’s average NBA player, 82 lighter than Philadelphia 76ers center Boban Marjanovic.
And it’s not as if there will be much basis for inspection, with Bol still recovering from a foot injury that ended his college career after nine games, still weeks away from court work, bypassing the skill or conditioning testing at the combine.
And yet it is the confluence of those factors that even has the Heat in the mix.
“Bol Bol has a really high upside with a guy who obviously has incredible length,” ESPN draft insider Mike Schmitz said last week. “He moves well, he can shoot threes, he can block shots and he can handle the ball. So that’s a really unique combination.
“He’s had some injuries, and he’s not the most durable guy. He needs to improve his motor, no question. I think that’s the only reason why he’s even considered in Miami’s range because, if it’s based on sheer talent alone, he’s probably a topfive pick.”
There simply are not many players with 7-foot-7 wingspans who can shoot 3-pointers at a high percentage and run the floor like a wing. But there also are not many 7-2 1⁄2, 208-pound players with 7.1% body fat, one of the highest percentages among those tested in Chicago.
“My biggest question with him is just his durability with that high center of gravity and thin frame,” Schmitz said, “and how is he going to be able to make it through an 82-game season?”
The Heat have interest, just as they did in Manute Bol in 1993, just as Washington did with his late father with the No. 31 pick in the 1985 draft.
Former Nets executive Bobby Marks, who now works for ESPN, said there would have to be patience in many respects, including with Bol’s foot injury.
“From a skill set, I agree,” he said of Schmitz’s evaluation. “I think there is a lot of reward there based on the ability to stretch the floor, his length.
“We haven’t seen a player like that with his length before.”
With the Heat loaded with big men, it could come down to how unique and how valuable they find Bol, if he even is still available at No. 13. Already on the roster are Whiteside (pending his option decision), Bam Adebayo and Kelly Olynyk, who already provides the Heat with a stretch-shooting 7-footer.
A pairing with Adebayo could give the Heat a particularly intriguing young power pairing, when considering Adebayo’s playmaking and ballhandling.
Or it could leave the Heat with the latest in the lithe lineage of Thon Maker, stick-figure big men too slight to provide impact.
It is a possibility full of twists.
“I’m fairly certain he’s not doing team workouts or anything like that, but I think that he’s going to be back for the season,” Schmitz said.
And if he is the pick at No. 13, it would mean a son following in the footsteps of a father for the first time in the Heat’s 32 seasons, Bol Bol with a “Manute” tattoo on the inside of his right forearm.