At this current juncture, it appears that Giannis Antetokounmpo will not be a member of the Milwaukee Bucks come draft night. And if he is moved, there’s a chance that he’s on the Miami Heat, almost certainly stripping them of their No. 13 overall selection. Miami would still be making a pick — but for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Until that moment comes — if it does — we will be operating with the assumption that it keeps its pick. The Heat will own two picks — No. 13 and No. 41 — in the 2026 NBA Draft, which is exactly one month away. What should they be prioritizing? Here are three specific archetypes.
A two-way wing (with size):
I could write this entire thing with one common denominator: Size. The Heat need to get bigger on all fronts, especially in their wing room.
Small guards (or wings) who are ball-dominant that play just one end of the floor are becoming obsolete in today’s NBA, as evidenced by Trae Young, James Harden, Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson all getting moved for a bag of peanuts over the last year. The list extends far beyond those four.
For the Heat, specifically, Erik Spoelstra typically likes to lean small for more dynamism. That meant that Andrew Wiggins, Simone Fontecchio and, at times, Myron Gardner played the 4. At the very least, Miami needs more size — two-way size — at those positions.
Players who potentially fit that mold: Yaxel Lendeborg, Morez Johnson Jr., Joshua Jefferson, Trevon Brazile
A two-way guard who can drive offense:
The Heat is lacking a primary engine offensively. Miami drafted Kasparas Jakucionis last June. But he’s not a primary engine — he’s an elite table setter capable of organizing an offense.
Davion Mitchell doesn’t quite fit the former either. Miami needs a primary engine to help ease the burden off Bam Adebayo and Co. This is an elite point guard class — especially for two-way guards who can make those around them better. If the Heat can nab one of those players at 13 (they won’t at 41), they’ll be in great shape moving forward.
Players who can potentially fit that mold: Mikel Brown Jr., Kingston Flemings, Brayden Burries, Labaron Philon
A versatile, high-energy backup big:
It’s no secret that Miami needs another big man behind Adebayo and Kel’el Ware. That hole has existed for nearly a full calendar year and it has still yet to be addressed. A versatile big alongside both Adebayo and Ware — one with dribble/pass/shoot capabilities that can help anchor a back-line in the second unit — should be a priority.
The caveat, however, is that the big man depth in this class is thinning out fairly quickly. The Heat need a high-energy big off the bench, point blank. We’ll see who all stays ahead of the May 27 early entrant deadline, but it may be best for the Heat to wait until free agency begins before exploring this option.
Players who can potentially fit that mold: Chris Cenac Jr., Morez Johnson Jr., Aday Mara, Zuby Ejiofor, Maliq Brown
Which players do you think the Miami Heat should prioritize ahead of the 2026 NBA Draft? Let us know in the comments below!
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Yes, we posters have been all over these ideas, have been saying the same for all of last year. The frustration of not having addressed any of these needs already has been rising. Hopefully we won’t be waiting much longer.
If Miami trades for Giannis, Kahwi or some other ss, the team’s needs will remain for at least three of the following four types of players outlined in the article:
If players such as Ware, Herro, Jaquez, plus Jakucionis, Mitchell or Larsson are included in the trade, some of the preceding needs will be exacerbated. Furthermore, there will be no first round draft pick(s) available to select or trade for higher end players to fill those needs.
With the exception of the position the new ss plays, (e.g. PF if Giannis or SF if Kahwi), Miami will be weaker in the other areas of need than it was in 2025-2026. In essence, the Heat will be taking one step forward and taking two steps back.
2026-2027 should be treated as a gap year to allow Miami to dispose of salaries, acquire and consolidate assets, draft new players for positions of need and develop young players. 2027-2028 should be the year Miami makes its move(s) to acquire a ss (or two) and upgrade its rotation. The free agent class of 2027 will be very deep.
The concept of hurting our team while helping it is a big factor against the whale hunt. The harsh truth is we aren’t ready to get a superstar, not by trade.
Philon at #13 if Dallas doesn’t pick him at #9. Seems like someone who is falling not due to talent but due to being a sophomore in a guard heavy draft
#13 is a good pick, I think Milwaukee would value it highly. #10 and #13 in this draft would set them up to turn the page on Giannis era/start over.
Milwaukee according to the odds is still around 20-25% to keep Giannis going into next season, after he filed a grievance with the league this year over playing time, after Shams has been saying his preference is not to sign an extension there, after the owner said the situation will be resolved by the draft. It makes no sense why that number is 20-25%, those odds should be redistributed to Miami, Boston, etc
I would love to get Philon,Brayden, yaxel, one of them are sure to drop. I would still be happy with morez,carr,or steinbach. I would love to get giannis tbh, but not if it cost too much, and gut the depth. I would rather trade for kawhi, Mitchell, or Kyrie.
Kahwi and Mitchell would still be costly. Kyrie not so much. I too like Miami’s draft choices (both first and second rounds).
Sure but they will be cheaper then giannis, especially kawhi, since he’s 34, and injury prone .
Herro, Jovic, Smith, 2026 pick and 2029 pick? Kyrie maybe 1 pick.
I would do that in heartbeat, if it happens like that, we would still have ware,Jaquez,pelle, and jaku.
I admit I’m not a big fan of that trade. Kyrie at 28, maybe. At 34, coming off a major injury, not having played for 14 months, no. I may be crazy, but I think the #13 pick would be as good as he is now, if not better, and 10-15 years younger.
Miami has to decide if it is going to commit to re-tooling/rebuilding or maintaining mediocrity. Y’all know my preference.
Except that the Bucks said all those things before. My gut feeling is that the odds of Giannis staying should be higher. And, no one else is even close to as big an upgrade, even if they cost less.
The possible exception would be an Irving, who the costs would be minimal, but that puts us in the direction of going for broke using the older players, which may be unwise as it further puts off the inevitable need to retool.
That’s why, if we want a whale, it brings me around to a player everyone else seems to not like, Ja. I’d take the gamble on him, and try to not give up much to get him.
Bucks have never said they were open to trading Giannis until last month or so, when Edens said if Giannis doesn’t extend he’ll be traded, then Haslam said a decision will happen by the draft. Their GM Horst always maintained the only goal was to build around Giannis, but now is saying the Bucks are following two paths, one where Giannis is on the team and one where he isn’t.
So their public statements have changed. And the underlying contract situation of Giannis being in the last year of his contract with Milwaukee and a free agent in 2026-27 is the same.