Could Veteran Wing Be The Miami Heat's X-Factor This Season?

The preseason is underway for the Miami Heat after a blockbuster offseason. All eyes around the league are focused on the Heat's shiny new acquisition, Giannis Antetokounmpo. Due to his addition, along with a plethora of other veterans coming in, the Heat are projected to finish the season among the best teams in the Eastern Conference. After the huge offseason, everyone is rightfully expecting Antetokounmpo to be the main x-factor this team has needed for years opposite Bam Adebayo. However, there is a recent acquisition who is being overlooked at the moment and could be one of the team's x-factors is everything goes according to plan.

Tim Hardaway Jr. could be one of the x-factors for the Heat this season. Miami added him at the beginning of the offseason after acquiring both Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to help replace the perimeter shooting that left this offseason. The Heat ranked at No. 11 in team three-point percentage last year. However, Norman Powell shot 38 percent from three-point range and left for the Chicago Bulls in free agency while Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware and Kasparas Jakucionis all shot north of 37 percent and were dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks in the blockbuster deal.

Alongside Hardaway Jr., Miami also brought in four-time NBA champion Klay Thompson in August to help improve the shooting. However, in recent seasons, Thompson's numbers have been slowly declining as he gets older. The Heat also retained forward Simone Fontecchio, who served as a solid spark plug off the bench last season and was a good perimeter shooter.

Despite those two other names taking action away from Hardaway Jr., he could be an integral piece of the rotation. The veteran has quietly been one of the most consistent three-point shooters in the NBA over the last couple of seasons. He spent this past season with the Nuggets on a one-year, minimum salary contract. At 34 years old, Hardaway still has at least another season or two to give. He shot a career-high 40.7 percent from beyond the arc for Denver and now can hopefully do the same for a Heat unit that needs strong perimeter shooting.

Hardaway Jr. has been a part of many different rosters throughout his career but brings playoff experience from his recent tenure with the Dallas Mavericks. The Heat are one of the early contenders in the Eastern Conference and having a veteran like Hardaway Jr., who can produce from three-point range, could be game-changing.