Shannon Brown opted to become a free agent prior to the start of the lockout, deciding to test the open market rather than returning for another season with the Los Angeles Lakers for a salary that would have paid him just slightly less than $2.5 million this season. The combo guard has received interest from the Miami Heat, among others this offseason, but there's no surefire landing spot for him just yet.
Brown's an exceptional dunker, has range beyond NBA range and has seemed to improve each of his seasons in the NBA after spending an early portion of his career in the NBA Development League. That said, though, his numbers don't exactly scream that he's worth a big payday ... something SB Nation's Tom Ziller noted in his post looking at the top NBA free agents.
46. Shannon Brown: Brown is a shooting guard with a career True Shooting percent of .510, a career three-point percentage of 33.7 percent and fewer than three free throw attempts per 36 minutes. Other than that he's fantastic.
Brown is often listed as point guard, but that isn't the case as he has subpar handles and doesn't often look to create for others -- and even when he tries to create for himself, it sometimes results in his getting stuck in a bad position. That said, his strengths are certainly suited for him to be a solid role player in the right situation. According to his agent, Mark Bartelstein, the Heat might just be that right situation.
"We've talked about him with Pat (Riley)," Bartelstein said of Shannon Brown, who was LeBron James' teammate in Cleveland from 2006 to 2008. "They're looking for wings. Teaming with LeBron and Dwyane (Wade) would be incredible. (Shannon Brown) is very athletic. They (the Heat) like him."
If Brown were in a lineup featuring D-Wade and LeBron, there's no doubt his deficiencies could be hidden. The same can be said for most players, however, making this an interesting predicament for the 6-foot-4 shooting guard and all of his potential suitors.
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