This offseason will be a pivotal one for the Miami Heat, coming off arguably their worst since 2007-08, a 15-win campaign. They finished with their worst record since 2014-15 at 37-45 in a season mired by drama and inconsistency.
A direction must be chosen and changes must be made. One of the most popular directions is star-hunting, something that Pat Riley and the Heat front office are all too familiar with. The worst-kept secret in the NBA is that Phoenix Suns superstar Kevin Durant will likely be on the move this summer, with the Heat being in the mix of possible suitors.
Every player at a price, and while the Heat may be at the mix for the 15-time All-Star, they don’t plan to offer all of their tradable firsts for him, according to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson.
“The sense here is that while the Heat might again pursue Phoenix’s Kevin Durant, Miami isn’t going to offer all of its first-round inventory for a 36-year-old with one year left on his contract,” Jackson’s report read Friday.
Durant, 36, averaged 26.6 points on 52.7 percent shooting–including 43.0 percent from 3-point range on six triple tries–in addition to 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists across 62 games. While Durant does have a lower-body injury history, he has appeared in 68.5 percent of his available games since the start of 2020-21, including in 83.5 percent of his team’s available games over the last two seasons.
Miami can offer up to three first-round picks (plus swaps) this summer, beginning with their 20th overall pick (via GSW) in next month’s draft. They can also offer their 2030 and 2032 first-round picks, but the latter won’t be unlocked until after draft night, which is when the trade would be finalized.
Durant is entering the last year of his current contract at $54.71 million; Miami can’t offer more salary in any trade to acquire Durant since the Suns are above the second apron (and would be after any trade with the Heat). He is also eligible for a two-year extension north of $120 million, which would not begin until 2026-27, his age-38 season.
Do you think the Heat should trade all three of their available first-round picks for Durant? If not, what do you think they should trade? Let us know in the comments!
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HEAT makes a big mistake selling their future for a broken down often hurt rental. Riley should forget it. The league is moving to speed and Durant is old, really old in basketball sense. Riley is also old and lost. Bet he retire now.
Shouldn’t offer any of them. This should be a team in rebuild mode, not a team chasing 37 year old, injury prone stars.
If Durant with Booker and Beal can’t make the playoffs, what is Durant plus whatever remains of the Heat roster after trading for him going to do?
If Pat, Micky and Andy make this kind of move, it’s because they have no respect for Heat fans. It’ll be done to drive ticket sales for a season or two of bad basketball.
The rebuild should have started last year, but it seems to me, it’s the only option they have now. They weren’t good enough to be in the playoffs, and the fact that a team down 0-2, set a NBA record for largest differential in a series against the Heat, proves that.
This is not a team that you subtract Herro and add Durant and win a title. This is a team you subtract Herro or Bam, add Durant and you are in the same 30-35 win range, or if he gets hurt, worse off.
Giving up Bam or Herro for Durant wouldn’t make any sense at all. Any Durant trade would be about adding him as a #1 offensive option alongside those two. As far as taking away from the Heat roster, any trade for Durant would have to involve Wiggins, Rozier (expiring contract), and Robinson (expiring contract) for it to make sense. So shouldn’t really gut the roster.
Trading away Robinson *is* gutting the roster!