Could Dorell Wright's Balls Keep Him On The Heat's Court?

Not too long ago, I wrote about Dorell Wright's knuckle-headed decision to drive his Bentley around South Beach with a suspended license. Turns out he wasn't stupid, he was drunk, though some might fail to see a difference.

Now, in the same month that Wright was suspended two games for these actions, several sexually explicit photos have been broadcast to the Twitter universe by a vindictive groupie.

At least now millions of basketball ball fans will understand why a guy who is 6'9" is referred to as the team's "small forward."

All joking aside, if driving while intoxicated is dumb, "sexting" a groupie a photograph that contains both a celebrity's face and penis is even dumber.

What all of this means for Dorell Wright's future is unclear, especially considering he is a free agent after this season. At least one very respected local journalist, Ira Winderman, now thinks that Wright has blown any shot at receiving a long term deal from the Heat.

Not too long ago, many would have argued that the Heat had no shot at re-signing Dorell Wright anyways. If the Heat is able to sign Amar'e Stoudemire or Chris Bosh this offseason, as planned, then the team will have almost no remaining cap space to sign free agents.

In all likelihood, the Heat will use its mid-level exception (approximately $5-6 mill) to re-sign team captain Udonis Haslem, starting center Jermaine O'Neal, or a veteran point guard such as Luke Ridnour. Thus, the Heat will have to fill its void at small forward with a player willing to accept a veteran's minimum contract (approximately $2-3 mill).

At some point this season, Dorell Wright's play finally won him the trust of teammates and coaches and earned him steady minutes as a versatile guard/forward. Given his steady improvement, Dorell attracted a lot of interest at the February trade deadline from teams like Memphis.

I had little doubt, prior to March, that a team such as Memphis would offer Dorell a contract starting at around $4-5 million, making his return to the Heat a virtual impossibility.

The past four weeks, however, have done so much damage to Dorell's stock that he just might be pricing himself into the Heat's offseason plans. The fact that he is D Wade's closest friend on the team will only increase the odds that this possibility becomes a reality.