Heat's focus on NBA Finals, not futures of Big 3

For the Heat, it's all about June.

July can wait.

Four years ago, when LeBron James uttered that now-infamous phrase -- "not two, not three, not four, not five . . . " -- about how many championships he hoped to win with the Heat, it almost immediately was turned into a punch line. With the Heat in the NBA Finals for a fourth consecutive season, it rings prophetic in some ways now.

How the Heat fares in its NBA Finals rematch with the Spurs could dictate what happens in July, when James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade can become free agents.

A looming offseason of decisions has been a taboo subject for the Heat "Big 3" this season, and Wade insisted yesterday in Miami that the stars have not said a word to each other about what may or may not happen.

"I'm not lying," Wade said.

Still, as long as Miami keeps winning, it seems logical that the "Big 3" will stay together.

"I want to come back. That's OK to say, I think," Bosh said after the Heat finished its first workout in preparation for Game 1 Thursday night in San Antonio. "I can't speak for anything else and I don't want to take away from the subject at hand, but I like it here. It's Miami. Enough said."

Regardless of the outcome of this series, there will be changes to the Heat. Shane Battier is retiring, Ray Allen may think about doing the same, and Mario Chalmers, James Jones and Rashard Lewis are notable free-agents-in-waiting.

It's not just the "Big 3" who aren't thinking too far ahead yet. Allen said no one in the locker room is looking past this series -- especially with Tim Duncan saying his Spurs will get it done this year after falling short against the Heat last season. But as James noted, each team has its own motivation.

Winning a third straight title could make some of those stay-or-go decisions pretty simple. And Wade believes Miami's legacy has been secured.

"Whenever it's all said and done, the legacy of this team, it's going to be a great team," Wade said. "It's going to go down in history as an unbelievable team not only in South Florida but in NBA history."

It's easy to see why so much attention is paid to how long this team can stay together.

Bosh, Wade and James made it very clear in September that they would not let the summer of 2014 turn into the circus they experienced in the summer of 2010, when all three became free agents and decided to bring their talents together.

Entering the season, James said his teammates "understand where I stand" regarding the future. And yesterday, James said he wasn't going to let himself be distracted by thinking about what impact the result of this NBA Finals will have on the legacy the Heat has created during the last four seasons.

"No, because I live in the moment," James said. "It's almost the same with my individual accomplishments. I never really understand them. The only time I'll be able to appreciate it is when I'm done playing the game. I'm in the moment. I don't even think about it."

Noah tops all-'D' team. The Bulls' Joakim Noah and the Pacers' Paul George received the most votes on this year's NBA all-defensive team. Noah, the defensive player of the year, was the only player to receive more than 100 first-team votes and earn more than 200 points for the team. Noah received 105 of 123 possible votes and George had 65. The rest of the first team includes the Clippers' Chris Paul, the Thunder's Serge Ibaka and the Warriors' Andre Iguodala. -- AP