Stoking the fire: the HEAT is the latest team to tinker with success by adding talent--and more egos--to an already gifted squad.(NBA)

To some, Pat Riley has lost his senses. Why, with a team that was less than 2 minutes from last season's NBA Finals, would the Heat president dramatically overhaul his roster?

To Riley, it was a matter of reconnecting with his past.

"When I coached the Lakers, every single year there were at least two or three new players coming into the team, usually one that was a core addition, whether it was (Bob) McAdoo or Maurice Lucas or Mychal Thompson," Riley says. "Change is usually a big part of a team getting over the hump."

So despite last season's jump to the top of the Eastern Conference, Riley said "supersize me" with a roster already anchored by center Shaquille O'Neal and guard Dwyane Wade.

In: Antoine Walker, Gary Payton, Jason Williams, James Posey, Jason Kapono, first-round pick Wayne Simien and rookie free agent Matt Walsh.

Out: Eddie Jones, Damon Jones, Keyon Dooling, Rasual Butler, Qyntel Woods, Christian Laettner, Steve Smith and Wang Zhi-Zhi.

The upgrade in talent is undeniable. Walker, Payton, Williams and Posey have been starters for years, and each brings a special talent to the Heat. Yet questions persist. The doubters see a team with too many players and not enough shots to go around. They wonder what will happen if Walker, for example, has a stretch in which he doesn't get what he considers his fair share of touches.