Will this be a season Spoelstra puts his stamp on Heat?

Is this Erik Spoelstra’s year? The year he really has to prove himself? The year he doesn’t have to placate a superstar? The year he runs his offense the way he wants, up and down the court, with speed and ball movement? No more iso-ball? -- Yunasi, Miami Beach.

First, Erik Spoelstra doesn't have to prove himself to anyone. He has coached championship rosters to championships, developmental rosters to the playoffs, and last season's mixed bag to a No. 4 playoff seed and within one game of the Eastern Conference finals. But I do believe this could be the first time that Spoelstra will have the opportunity to truly put his stamp on a team. When he arrived, he still was working in the shadows of Pat Riley. After those two seasons, it was about setting up what essentially stood as LeBron James' team. From there it was two seasons of being unable to finish what he had started with Chris Bosh. This season, you could see something close to what Brad Stevens has produced with the Celtics, or even what Terry Stotts produced last season with the Trail Blazers. In both of those situations, the pressure was down but the possibilities were pronounced. I do agreed that we might get a truer read on Erik Spoelstra this season than we have previously.

Are we to sit back and wait for 2017 like we did waiting on 2016? There is no guarantee that Pat Riley will get his proverbial whale. -- Prince, Byram, Miss.

But that's who he is and what he does. The question this time is whether he will have a harpoon, and that harpoon would be Chris Bosh's cap space, if Chris is unable or prevented from a return from his blood clots. There will be far less drama next summer when Pat Riley enters to negotiate with free agents. I don't think you change who you are because one free agent decided to move to the team that just set the all-time record for regular-season victories.