Heat Aiming to Add Another Star This Offseason

June 13, 2023

It was a magical run to the Finals for the Heat — as just the second No. 8 seed ever to reach the NBA’s biggest stage.

And even the first, the 1999 Knicks, did it during a 50-game season shortened by a lockout in 1999.

Along with that, this year’s Heat will forever be known as The First Team to Reach the Finals from The Play-in Tournament.

So, what’s next?

Well, it appears Miami will go searching for another star to pair alongside wing Jimmy Butler. And the idea isn’t that far-fetched, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN.

“They have draft picks at their disposal,” Windhorst said on The Hoop Collective podcast, via RealGM. “And they potentially have tradeable contracts and I think they’re going to go hunting for a star. I don’t know if they’ll get one. I don’t know if it will break their way. … I’m not going to sit here and tell you who it is because I’ll get aggregated. But there are players they are keeping an eye on and they have the ability to do it, especially if the players says ‘Send me to Miami.'”

Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard is among those who have been linked to the Heat — though there’s no sense that Portland will look to move him. Lillard has not requested a trade.

But others certainly almost always have Miami on their wish list. For instance, Suns forward Kevin Durant had a strong interest in the Heat before the Nets traded him to Phoenix in February.

As for today, the Heat do have the assets to make something happen. And it appears they will try.

After all, team president Pat Riley is always looking to make a run, to add immediate help. The Heat refuse to tank and don’t really seem to care all that much about draft picks.

“They have a little window here before the second (tax) apron kicks in where they may be able to spend a little bit of money,” Windhorst said. “They have some draft picks they can trade. After the draft, they get access to their 2030 pick. They have the 18th pick in this draft, not that that’s super interesting. I don’t think they can beat all comers on a star trade, but if a player says ‘Send me to Miami’ in the next two weeks, they’re not in the worst position.”