The Miami Heat have been one of the league’s biggest winners this offseason.
Coming off four-straight play-in appearances, they have had a busy summer, headlined by acquiring superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Since then, they drafted Ryan Conwell in the second round, re-signed Simone Fontecchio to the veteran minimum, extended Andrew Wiggins (who was entering the last year of his contract) and added Tim Hardaway Jr. at the onset of free agency. The moves were minimal.
Over the last few weeks, Miami has been awaiting LeBron James’ decision, before he chose Philadelphia on Friday. Acquiring Antetokounmpo was the big ticket — adding the NBA’s all-time leading scorer to the mix would have just been a cherry on top.
Alas, while the Heat’s summer has been successful from an immediate ceiling-raising perspective, their most underrated move of the offseason was one they didn’t make.
Heat’s most overlooked move was retaining Pelle Larsson:
In the several weeks leading up to the Antetokounmpo blockbuster, which sent Kel’el Ware, Tyler Herro, Kasparas Jakucionis, Jaime Jaquez Jr. plus draft capital back to Milwaukee, many speculated what their package would have been.
Herro, Ware and Jaquez felt like three guarantees. But many pontificated whether or not the Heat were eventually going to include at least one of Jakucionis, Larsson, Nikola Jovic or Davion Mitchell for the two-time MVP.
Evidently, Jakucionis, their No. 20 draft choice last summer, was the sacrificial lamb. They almost dealt Mitchell in his place, but Jakucionis was the more valuable long-term asset.
But keeping the former second-round pick was still quite important.
Larsson broke out with extra opportunity in his sophomore NBA season, averaging 11.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists on 49.6 percent shooting and 60.5 percent true shooting. The 6-foot-5 guard improved his finishing and ballhandling while being one of the Heat’s best connective passers and point-of-attack defenders.
As I’ve belabored in the past, Larsson is a winning basketball player to a T. His indicators from college (and last year) indicate his best 3-point shooting days are ahead of him. And if that area of his game continues to improve, he’ll be a more important piece to incorporate alongside Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo.
His skillset resembles that of a glue guy on a championship-caliber team — not a rebuilding team that just traded its franchise icon. Miami will have an upcoming decision with his expiring salary, but that is a dilemma that can be dealt with then, not now.
***
To check out our other content, click here.
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Twitter/X here!
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Instagram here!
Check out Hot Hot Hoops on Facebook here!
Subscribe to our YouTube channel here!
- A way-too-early look at Heat’s potential rotation for 2026-27
- Weighing the pros and cons for Heat to trade Nikola Jovic for Klay Thompson
- Miami Heat: 4 numbers to note from 2026-27 schedule release
- 7 games Heat fans should circle on 2026-27 calendar
- Should the Heat explore bringing back this newly available ‘3 and D’ player?
I must say I am proud of the HHH community. I think Alien alluded to this as well. I’ve seen comments in so many places, like Portland fans, media heads etc, that suggest that Heat fans are furious about LeBron going to the Sixers. I don’t know if I’ve seen a hint of that here. As Michael said to Sonny, “it’s not personal, it’s business.”
I m not furious, I m happy.
For the rest of posters here I think some were excited about that possibility, but majority not really, therefore that decision wasn’t a big disappointment.
Butlers behavior and Lilards trade caused much more bad blood around here.
im not furious its just sports dont get down or up for sports.we win yah we lose boo.i would have loved he’d signed here.its dissapointing but theres 3 vets out there id be happy to have.u cant go into season b/c of dav pelle dru hardway jr.thats a bottom 10 bc.f/c set for greek years maybe a backup big but that bc needs work.need 2gs and backup big goldins got no bend in his knees
As usual, Mr Negative strikes again. No way would a Mitchell Pelle backcourt be bottom ten. First, it’d make a great defensive backcourt that would already put it no less than middle of the field. If both have improved offensively, it would be solid. You are aware that DeRozan is not known for his defense or 3 point shooting, right? He would be best off the bench. NO available backcourt player would give us both offense and defense.
both single digit scorers dav and pelle get scored on all the time.all the good teams have better bcs name one that doesnt homer
its a weakness homer .dd is upgrade over pelle homer.
Try checking the facts for once. He did not get scored on “all the time” as you ridiculously put it. You complained constantly about the defense of Duncan and Herro, and now you want to put an equally bad defender in that spot. Ha!
Wrong and wrong Mr fake fan. Mitchell is one of the best defenders of guards. And Pelle averaged 11.4, not single digits. Mitchell was close at 9.3. That’s about 21 points. That would mean the starters would average about 83 points. The bench likely will add 30-40 points. With one of the best starting defenses in the league, that should get you a lot of wins.
no homer im a fan just call it like i see it.davs good on poa defender but once hes taken down low they just shoot right over him.lackof size does him in alot.hes an average player can u win a chip with dav at the point?id like that position upgraded for me hes more of a backup type pg.u cant avergae single digits for your career and be considered a starter.not gonna happen on an hfl team maybe an rc team .i need him at at least 13pts a game.when we play philly or ny maxey and brunson gonna have at least 25.thats negative 15 pts at pg position.hard to make that up versus the good teams.there good at every position were not.the loss of norm was big.he wanted to be here but paid as usual overpaid for jovic and wiggins.
So when Mitchell averages 13 points this season, you will admit you were wrong again? I’ll be here waiting. And you don’t have to compare position to position. It is a team game. If our team, with a great defense, holds the opposition to less points than we score, we win.
You seem to use the term homer like it’s a bad thing. I will wear that name as a badge of honor compared to the Mr. Negative, fair weather, bandwagon jumping, fake fan you are.
Wiggins and Jovic for KD? What have we got to lose?
houston gm on drugs?wiggins and anybody else maybe.jovic is ours hope he improves.
Larsson’s game combines athleticism, feel for the game, and work ethic/intangibles, an uncommon combination like Butler and Bam. He can be the third star this roster lacks, not expected but that is his ceiling. Probably most in media are unfamiliar with his game, based on how they talk about Miami trading all their depth.
KCP goes to Sixers. Just what they really need – another guard. Wha? Maybe they could send us Philon for a future protected pick.
on paper looks like a 65 win team/thats why they play the games
Considering that team’s history, I’m not afraid until they prove me wrong.
ill told u nyk gm was out gming pat last year your response what have the nyk done.this year phily gm kicked butt i dont know how u beat them.pat had a great summer to but lebron brown kcp better than greek port timmy and they didnt lose anybody any good.great gming by phily i got them winning it all.just way i see it homer as of july 28 630am.im a sports fan its in my blood.like the local teams of course but like talking sports
Dude. Weren’t you the one who said Heat + Giannis = Biscayne B?
The reality is Miami was a little late to the party. While the Heat were wallowing in mediocrity for years, most of the rest of the conference was busy rebuilding. Building a contender doesn’t happen overnight. One ss does not a champion make. That’s fools gold.
Yes, that’s exactly what he said. At the time he was in a state of pure bliss. Pat was great, the team was relevant again, and we would be meeting at the victory parade, if not this year, next year. Now, Mr. Negative is regressing sooner than expected. One of the greatest poets of the generation wrote this. I think he had Mr. Negative in mind, since it fits perfectly.
You’ve got a lotta nerve to say you are my friend
When I was down you just stood there grinnin’
You’ve got a lotta nerve to say you got a helping hand to lend
You just want to be on the side that’s winnin’
I like Pelle too. And I agree he is a winning player. I will go farther, I wanted him on the Heat more than Kaspar, and even, just by a little, more than Jaime. Now, Kel’el is a different story. I was also happy we kept Pelle over Ty, but a lot of that was because of Ty’s contract.
But, having said that, I believe Pelle would best be used as a spot starter and solid seventh man. And, most of all, we need to continue to scour the market in an effort to upgrade this years team.
If, big if, Pelle could hit 3 pointers at, say, 37% or better, it will be a great boost for the team and make him more valuable as a starter. If you haven’t gone to the link I posted below, check it out.
I checked out the link you sent. Thanks for putting it up, it was worth a look.
Starting Larsson along with Mitchell, Wiggins, Giannis and Bam would be tough to score against, even Sixers.
I wonder if there is a possibility that Wiggins play the 6th man.
Unlikely. But I can see Pelle starting anyway. Mitchell, Larsson, Wiggins, Giannis, Bam is the best starting 5 imo.
Ok, now who is going to be spacing the floor?
https://youtu.be/MwXKXLXaY30?si=ftxJD27IdYGhSBTU
Good timing. I just looked at this video last night and I agree that he is being undervalued.
Good stuff RC.