Season preview: Miami Heat

SI.com will analyze each of the NBA's 30 teams as regular-season tip-off approaches. For a complete list of team-by-team breakdowns, click here. The information in the "Go figure" category below is provided by Roland Beech of 82games.com.

• Last season: 15-67

• Notable additions: Michael Beasley (R), James Jones (FA), Yakhouba Diawara (FA), Mario Chalmers (R), Shaun Livingston (FA)

• Notable losses: Ricky Davis (signed with Clippers), Jason Williams (signed with Clippers before retiring), Alonzo Mourning (unsigned)

• Coach: Erik Spoelstra (first season as NBA head coach)

1. Dwyane Wade is healthy. The Converse commercials that featured Wade "falling down seven times and getting up eight" were meant to be hyperbolic, but they weren't far from the truth. Wade's attacking style has taken a toll on his body. He played only 51 games in each of the last two seasons while battling knee and shoulder injuries. But Wade looked completely recovered in the Olympics and should be helped by some new looks in the Miami offense. Spoelstra diversified the offense during training camp and said he hopes to limit the number of "home-run sets" called specifically for Wade.

2. Michael Beasley can fill it up. Beasley, a fluid scorer with a polished inside-out game, is the most NBA-ready rookie out there -- at least at the offensive end. The Heat desperately need that production after ranking last in the league in points (91.4) and 25th in shooting (44.3 percent) last season. Like most rookies, however, Beasley has to improve defensively. "He's going to have to get with it on that side of the ball because we could use his offense," Spoelstra, who has been using Beasley off the bench in the preseason, told reporters recently.

3. Shawn Marion has a lot to play for. How many times have we seen it: When a player is in a contract year, he somehow finds a way to elevate his play. Marion has had no problem piling up gaudy statistics as a second or third banana; he did it in Phoenix for 8½ seasons. But with his last significant contract looming next summer, the 30-year-old Marion will be especially motivated.

1. Who's the point guard? Will it be Chris Quinn? Rookie Mario Chalmers? Marcus Banks? What about Livingston? The Heat have a gaping hole in the backcourt and absolutely no idea how to fill it. Livingston, who hasn't played since February 2007 due to a knee injury, was signed earlier this month in hopes that he can stabilize the position once he is healthy. But until that happens, Miami is probably going to have to play Wade at the point for significant minutes or be stuck with a floor leader who would have trouble just making most teams.

2. Who's the center?Mark Blount and Joel Anthony are better served as backups and Jamaal Magloire proved last season that he was a shell of a former All-Star even before he broke his hand last week. Power forward Udonis Haslem likely will see see extended minutes at center (with Beasley alongside him at power forward), leaving the Heat vulnerable to bigger and more skilled lineups.

3. Spoelstra will need time to grow. Everyone in the Heat organization knew Spoelstra was the coach-in-waiting; in the previous two seasons, he was a dominant voice in practice and had Pat Riley's ear when it came to game strategy. But like every other rookie coach, the 37-year-old Spoelstra will experience growing pains. Spoelstra is an excellent basketball mind, and his decision to try to make the Heat a more up-tempo team is a smart one, but there will undoubtedly be bumps along the way.

Livingston's progress. If healthy, Livingston is far and away the most skilled playmaker on the Heat roster. But it might be wishful thinking to believe he will be a factor this season.

The Heat last season shot a league-worst 31.4 percent in clutch time (five-point game in the last five minutes of regulation or overtime).

Wade, Marion and Beasley should put up big numbers, but with no help behind them, the Heat will lose early and often. If the team goes south quickly, look for Miami to try to trade Marion for either a point guard or a center who could join a Wade-Beasley-Haslem lineup.