Background and career
James Mikely Mantell Posey Jr. (born January 13, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player who currently serves as an assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played the small forward position for the Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, New Orleans Hornets, and Indiana Pacers. Posey won NBA championships as a member of the 2006 Miami Heat and the 2008 Boston Celtics, and as an assistant coach for the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers.
After attending High School in Twinsburg, Ohio, Posey came to Xavier University in the 1995–96 season, but under Prop 48 rules, was ineligible, so sat out his freshman year. Posey ranks 16th on Xavier's all-time scoring list with 1,455 points and 10th on Xavier's all-time rebounding list with 801. Posey led XU in rebounding in each of his three seasons as a Musketeer. Posey earned a long list of honors while at Xavier, including the 1998 Atlantic 10 Championship "Most Outstanding Player" Award in helping XU win its first-ever A-10 Tournament Championship. Posey earned the A-10's "Sixth Man Award" twice and was named 1999 A-10 First Team and 1999 A-10 Defensive Player of the Year. He did all of that while not being a consistent starter in the Xavier lineup, almost always coming off the bench and Posey became well sought after from several sports agents such as Bill Duffy, Andy Miller, Craig McKenzie and Mark Bartelstein. With their permission Posey allowed his interviews to be held in front of the media of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Posey was selected out of Xavier University by the Denver Nuggets with the 18th pick of the 1999 NBA draft. His rookie season, Posey averaged 8.2 points and 3.9 rebounds per game en route to being named to the all-rookie second team. On December 22, 2001, Posey scored a then career-high 33 points during a 105–101 loss to the Golden State Warriors. In total, Posey played a little over three seasons with the team.
Posey was sent to the Houston Rockets in a three-team deal also involving the Philadelphia 76ers on December 18, 2002.
After finishing the season with the Rockets, Posey signed with the Memphis Grizzlies as a free agent in the 2003 off-season. On March 29, 2004, Posey scored a career-high 38 points, including making a three-point shot to force a second overtime, during a 136–133 win against the Atlanta Hawks.
On August 2, 2005, Posey was involved in the largest trade in NBA history, which involved 13 players and five different teams. Through this trade, the Miami Heat acquired point guard Jason Williams, forward Antoine Walker, shooting guard Andre Emmett, and the draft rights to Roberto Dueñas. The Memphis Grizzlies received shooting guard Eddie Jones, and point guard Raül López. Boston, who dealt Walker to the Heat, received a package that included Qyntel Woods, the draft rights to Albert Miralles, two second-round draft picks, and cash. The Boston Celtics also picked up Curtis Borchardt. Utah was able to acquire center Greg Ostertag, and the New Orleans Hornets acquired small forward Rasual Butler and shooting guard Kirk Snyder. Posey averaged 7.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in 2005–06. After that somewhat disappointing regular season with Miami, Posey performed much better in the playoffs than expected. He had been a starter during the regular season, but head coach Pat Riley made the change of having Posey come off the bench for the playoffs. As the Heat's sixth man, Posey was able to average 11.8 points per game on 48.8% shooting against Miami's first-round opponent, the Chicago Bulls. Against Miami's second-round opponent, the New Jersey Nets, Posey was forced to prioritize defense, particularly guarding Vince Carter or Richard Jefferson. Although Posey's scoring dropped, his defense was said to have been the key to the Heat's advancement into the conference finals. Posey again had to focus on defense against Miami's third-round opponent, the Detroit Pistons, particularly guarding Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, and even sometimes Chauncey Billups or Rasheed Wallace. Posey's defense was able to take the pressure off of Miami's scorers like Dwyane Wade, Jason Williams and Antoine Walker so that they could focus on their strengths on the offensive end. In the 2006 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, Posey was a key factor on both ends of the court. Defensively, he, along with Udonis Haslem, provided tough defense on Mavericks All-Star Dirk Nowitzki. He also guarded Josh Howard, who had caused problems for Miami when Antoine Walker was guarding him. On the offensive end, Posey played a huge role in knocking down shots with Miami's All-Stars, Wade and Shaquille O'Neal, being double-teamed by Dallas often. In Game 4 of the Finals, Posey was impressive in Miami's blowout, scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. In Game 6, Posey hit a huge shot to give Miami an 87–81 advantage with four minutes remaining; Miami would win the game 95–92 to clinch the championship. Posey averaged 7.3 points and 6 rebounds in the Finals. On July 1, 2006, Posey exercised his $6.4 million contract option, opting not to become a free agent. He only played in 4 playoff games in the 2006–07 season, as the Heat were eliminated in the first round.
