Getty Kevin Durant drives against Jimmy Butler during a game between the Brooklyn Nets and the Miami Heat.
Perhaps more than any decision-maker in the NBA, Miami Heat president Pat Riley has shown a knack for landing big-time stars (and seeing big-time results for his efforts). So, even before the Heat fell short in the East Finals against the Celtics, there were rumblings about his next home-run swing.
Two weeks into the Association’s proverbial hot stove period, though, the Godfather has yet to make a headline-grabbing move. But that’s not to say that the Heat haven’t figured prominently in trade chatter.
In the wake of Kevin Durant‘s jaw-dropping request to be traded from the Nets, Miami was namechecked as one of the franchises at the top of his wish list. And why not? The Heat are built to win now with a low-key superstar in Jimmy Butler, one of the game’s best pivots in Bam Adebayo, an elite coach in Erik Spoelstra and a cornucopia of high-level role players.
Whether or not Riley can actually offer something the Nets would legitimately consider taking for KD while still retaining enough support to compete for a chip is hard to say. In any case, Bleacher Report‘s Zach Buckley has a trade idea that would accomplish just that.
Nets Receive Multiple Assets in Proposed Deal
For his latest offseason feature, which included hypothetical swaps for every one of the league’s 30 teams, Buckley pitched the following trade bringing Durant to South Beach:
- Miami Heat receive F Kevin Durant
- Brooklyn Nets receive G Tyler Herro, G/F Duncan Robinson, G/F Max Strus, F Nikola Jovic and three future first-round picks
Clearly, this is a deal that Riley and Co. would do any day of the week. By keeping Butler, Adebayo, Kyle Lowry and most of their rotational pieces from last year’s No. 1-seeded squad (Herro is the only major loss), the Heat would instantly move to the very top of the title contender’s list.
And, really, it’s not a bad deal for Brooklyn, either.
His playoff woes notwithstanding, Herro is one of the game’s ultimate microwave scorers; a bona fide No. 1 in the second unit with the potential to be a first or second option overall on a playoff-level team. Meanwhile, Robinson is a nice trade piece, Strus is a super useful player and you’re getting basically four first-rounders with the just-drafted Jovic being included in the deal.
That said, even this kind of package may not be enough. The Jazz just set one heck of a market by getting three starter-level ballers, some intriguing prospects, three unprotected firsts, a lightly protected first and a pick swap for Rudy Gobert.
It’s hard to envision KD going for anything less, and while Herro may be better than any of the actual players in the Gobert deal, Miami’s asset package here is several rungs below what Minny sent out.
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Woj: Heat Likely Need Another Team to Get Something Done
As ESPN’s league insider Adrian Wojnarowski sees it, the Heat simply may not have enough steam to get something done for KD themselves. Rather, he believes that they would require the help of additional parties to actually get something done.
“I think a lot of the teams who have the most interest in Kevin Durant — like the Miami Heat, the Phoenix Suns, especially those two teams who I’m told are preferred destinations for Kevin Durant — said they need third and perhaps even a fourth team help to put deals together for Durant,” Woj said on NBA Today.
“So, certainly, that creates complicated scenarios. Those kinds of deals do not come together quickly.”
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