Ricky Hopes to Win Fans Over

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MIAMI &mdash; Sometime in the next month, after Dwyane Wade returns from knee and shoulder surgeries, Ricky Davis will move to the position that in recent years has been occupied by the most booed athlete in South Florida.</p>

From Jamal Mashburn to Eddie Jones to Antoine Walker, small forward has been blamed for many of the ills that have afflicted the Heat for the past 10 years.</p>

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"I really don't know why," coach Pat Riley said.</p>

In tonight's season and home opener against Detroit, Davis will start at shooting guard. But when Wade returns, Davis, a dynamic 6-foot-7 swingman who has averaged 16.5 points in the past six seasons, assumes the troubled mantle.</p>

Davis, who came to Miami in last week's trade with Minnesota, is expected to play a big role on an injury-prone team with title aspirations. But even playing alongside Wade and Shaquille O'Neal, some question whether Davis will have an impact.</p>

"It depends on how many games Shaq is going to play because right now you have a major question mark regarding Dwyane Wade," said Hall of Fame coach and ESPN analyst Hubie Brown. "Those two things take top priority with me when you evaluate Miami."</p>

Small forward has long been viewed as a weak link for the Heat. It was true when Mashburn started alongside center Alonzo Mourning and guard Tim Hardaway in the late '90s. It was true when Jones started with O'Neal and Wade in the 2004-05 season. And to some extent it was true with Walker, who was really a power forward, the past two seasons.</p>

Wade believes those players didn't deserve the criticism. He said the small forward position, in the Heat's system, is misunderstood by fans. Rather than being a pure scoring spot, the small forward has few plays run for him, instead scrapping for points off rebounds and drive-and-kick-out passes.</p>

"The position in the Miami Heat offense, besides the years maybe when Caron (Butler) was here, is never the prime position in our offense," Wade said.</p>

Miami hasn't been stable at small forward since Butler went to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2004 as part of the O'Neal trade. Since, the spot has been manned largely by six players - Walker, Jones, Dorell Wright, Jason Kapono, James Posey and Shandon Anderson. All but Wright are gone.</p>

In the same span, the Heat's other four starting positions have had someone in place for at least two consecutive seasons.</p>

Probably the best-case scenario for Miami is if Davis produces in the manner of a former Heat rival, ex-New York Knicks swingman Latrell Sprewell. For a three-year stretch starting in 1998, Sprewell averaged 19.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.0 steals per game for the Knicks.</p>

Longtime Heat fans still have nightmares of Sprewell slashing through the Miami defense or pulling up for long jump shots.</p>

Davis is aiming higher.</p>

"I think I can shoot a little better than Sprewell and get to the basket as well as Sprewell," he said.</p>

Davis said he could be better described as a "powerful Scottie Pippen."</p>

Either way, a lot is riding on Davis' acquisition. That was evident by the number of Heat front-office personnel, from owner Micky Arison on down, beaming proudly on the sideline as Davis went through his first practice Saturday.</p>

Davis has plenty of sneakers to fill. Kapono led the league in three-point percentage last season and Posey and Jones were reliable defenders as well as good three-point shooters.</p>

"You can't lose as much as they lost and not replace it with valid NBA scoring," said ESPN analyst and ex-coach Jeff Van Gundy.</p>

But, Van Gundy added, "I do like Ricky Davis."</div></p>

Source: Palm Beach Post</p>

Ricky always delivers some of the best quotes. LMFAO.</p>
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