2023 Heat Season Thread - Let me dream edition

[_GH0ST_]

The championship is winnable, but there is no other example of what the Miami Heat have accomplished this season. It was incredible to make it to The Finals from Play Inn and to eliminate 2 giant teams on the way. Most Heat fans, myself included, wanted to be eliminated from the Bulls and picked from the lottary, but look how far we've come. Thank you Heat. Glad i'm a fan of Heat.

[MettaWorldPanda]

If only we could please somehow convince OKC to absorb Duncan's contract with their cap space and send Jovic there for our 2025FRP back giving us all our picks back to trade.

Hell even if it was giving OKC Jovic and our 2023FRP to get our 2025 back I'd probably do that. Would then at least unlock the ability to trade 4FRPs if need be.

That way we have 2024/2025/2026/2027/2028/2029/2030 available to trade.

As it currently stands the Heat can only trade 2023, 2028, and 2030. 2025 is locked up in top 14 pick protection that if not conveyed turns into a non protected pick in 2026. Our only raw low salary trade asset is Jovic but OKC would probably only lift protections for him in trade which we are not going to do. If protections are lifted we can trade 2024, 2026, 2028, and 2030. I think we look to deal the 18th pick for a 2nd rd pick this year and a protected first in 2025.

[greg4012]

So basically that means if we want to trade our 2030 FRP then we will need to either let;

Gabe/Yurt walk and keep Max/Highsmith
Max/Yurt/Highsmith walk and keep Gabe.

None of those guys matter. All are readily replaceable.

Our problem is that we need to dump a lot more salary, and the guys we want to dump are guys that no one is going to want on their current deals. Lowry and Dipo on their expiring deals would only be attractive to teams looking to dump worse/longer term contracts. And even with Duncan showing signs of life, nobody is going to take him in with $57 mil/3 years left on his deal.

We've boxed ourselves in pretty good.

Rumblings I’ve read from Wizards fans shows them actively interested in expiring deals

[twix2500]

We must find a way to get bigger

Yes, didn't want to say much. But for Spo to not work Yurt back into the rotation. Spo had over 4 months to get Yurt back in basketball shape.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

Before he got hurt, I thought, man this was a chance to develop Bam into a PF and have Yurt in the middle and a Center that can shoot the 3.
Unfortunately, this is another role player. He's a very soft defender, in my view. Unless he develops an NBA center attitude, I doubt he can make a serious contribution.

Yurt being able to play next to Bam was always the dream. But at the very least Heat needed Yurt to be a valuable backup relief for Bam. To give opponents another look to worry about.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

[AirP.]

If only we could please somehow convince OKC to absorb Duncan's contract with their cap space and send Jovic there for our 2025FRP back giving us all our picks back to trade.

Hell even if it was giving OKC Jovic and our 2023FRP to get our 2025 back I'd probably do that. Would then at least unlock the ability to trade 4FRPs if need be.

That way we have 2024/2025/2026/2027/2028/2029/2030 available to trade.

As it currently stands the Heat can only trade 2023, 2028, and 2030. 2025 is locked up in top 14 pick protection that if not conveyed turns into a non protected pick in 2026. Our only raw low salary trade asset is Jovic but OKC would probably only lift protections for him in trade which we are not going to do. If protections are lifted we can trade 2024, 2026, 2028, and 2030. I think we look to deal the 18th pick for a 2nd rd pick this year and a protected first in 2025.

Robinson has 3 years left, he would vastly hinder OKC's build like he's doing with Miami. They won 40 games this year and getting Chet back from missing his rookie year will be big for them, OKC isn't looking to eat up cap space with bad contracts for low draft picks anymore.

Either Robinson is used as a filler to bring back another bigger contract or he's in Miami probably 2 more years, maybe when he's expiring, he can be moved. I'd prepare to see a lot more of Robinson the next couple of years.

[AirP.]

So... will Miami prioritize finding a real PF in the offseason or is it once again last on the list? Jovic probably won't be ready next year, Bam didn't become a starter until the 2nd half of his 2nd season, so to expect Jovic to fill that spot is naive. Herro didn't become a starter until his 4th season. Miami needs to find someone who can start for the next 1-3 years until Jovic is ready (if he ever becomes a legit starter in the NBA).

My guess, Highsmith or Love (resigned) will be starting at while Jovic gets experience off the bench since he's added muscle to handle the position better. Who knows, maybe someone will exchange an overpaid big for Robinson?

[greg4012]

So... will Miami prioritize finding a real PF in the offseason or is it once again last on the list? Jovic probably won't be ready next year, Bam didn't become a starter until the 2nd half of his 2nd season, so to expect Jovic to fill that spot is naive. Herro didn't become a starter until his 4th season. Miami needs to find someone who can start for the next 1-3 years until Jovic is ready (if he ever becomes a legit starter in the NBA).

My guess, Highsmith or Love (resigned) will be starting at while Jovic gets experience off the bench since he's added muscle to handle the position better. Who knows, maybe someone will exchange an overpaid big for Robinson?

I think given how the trade market for players is seemingly unfolding, task 1 will be to add an upgraded scoring punch (presumably swapping Herro + Lowry + other assets). Right now, I don't see many avenues for that to be in the form of a PF--if it can be, that would be great.

So let's say Miami makes a big move to add a scoring guard. In that case, I fully expect the PF rotation to be some combination of the following:

- Kevin Love: hopefully returning on a vet min and spending the offseason getting in "Heat shape"

- Nikola Jovic: he was held out of a lot of the year with back spasms (growing pains?), but he's clearly been working to add weight and get in NBA shape. This offseason is huge for Jovic. He took in a ton this season. We need him to be fully committed to becoming the bulked up (he looks over 230 pounds right now and is absolutely still filling out that frame) PF sniper that will fit this roster. He's going to play in summer league and he needs to get plenty of minutes in the rotation this season to get up to speed. Kevin Love mentorship should serve him well.

- Jae Crowder: he fizzled out with a minimal role in MIL, so hopefully we can reunite on a vet min deal. I'm not surprised he didn't work in MIL as Bud's scheme wasn't a good fit for him. At this point in his career, he best contributes as a mobile PF, not as an oversized SF. I think he still has more to offer in a scheme that fits him. Spo always tends to get the most out of this archetype relative to the rest of the NBA.

- Haywood Highsmith: his defense is ready. We need him to continue to develop as a reliable spot shooter and get reps to ensure he can have a smart floor game. He can learn some things from Crowder. Highsmith should serve as forward depth at both spots.

The 2 vets are 1-year fillers and mentors. We can preserve them through a depth rotation. The hope is that PF by committee can work for this season, while the younger guys continue to bake. If Jovic can become a capable starting level PF after next season, it really helps with the cap bind that Miami will likely be facing.

[MettaWorldPanda]

Spurs have 3 1st round picks in 2025 and might be willing to give up one the lesser of the picks in order to move back into the 1st round this year. With French wings Rupert or Wemby teammate Coulibaly as possibilities for them wanting to move up. Spurs have the Hawks picks and the Bulls 2025 top 10 protected

[AirP.]

Spoiler:

So... will Miami prioritize finding a real PF in the offseason or is it once again last on the list? Jovic probably won't be ready next year, Bam didn't become a starter until the 2nd half of his 2nd season, so to expect Jovic to fill that spot is naive. Herro didn't become a starter until his 4th season. Miami needs to find someone who can start for the next 1-3 years until Jovic is ready (if he ever becomes a legit starter in the NBA).

My guess, Highsmith or Love (resigned) will be starting at while Jovic gets experience off the bench since he's added muscle to handle the position better. Who knows, maybe someone will exchange an overpaid big for Robinson?

Spoiler:

I think given how the trade market for players is seemingly unfolding, task 1 will be to add an upgraded scoring punch (presumably swapping Herro + Lowry + other assets). Right now, I don't see many avenues for that to be in the form of a PF--if it can be, that would be great.

So let's say Miami makes a big move to add a scoring guard. In that case, I fully expect the PF rotation to be some combination of the following:

- Kevin Love: hopefully returning on a vet min and spending the offseason getting in "Heat shape"

- Nikola Jovic: he was held out of a lot of the year with back spasms (growing pains?), but he's clearly been working to add weight and get in NBA shape. This offseason is huge for Jovic. He took in a ton this season. We need him to be fully committed to becoming the bulked up (he looks over 230 pounds right now and is absolutely still filling out that frame) PF sniper that will fit this roster. He's going to play in summer league and he needs to get plenty of minutes in the rotation this season to get up to speed. Kevin Love mentorship should serve him well.

- Jae Crowder: he fizzled out with a minimal role in MIL, so hopefully we can reunite on a vet min deal. I'm not surprised he didn't work in MIL as Bud's scheme wasn't a good fit for him. At this point in his career, he best contributes as a mobile PF, not as an oversized SF. I think he still has more to offer in a scheme that fits him. Spo always tends to get the most out of this archetype relative to the rest of the NBA.

- Haywood Highsmith: his defense is ready. We need him to continue to develop as a reliable spot shooter and get reps to ensure he can have a smart floor game. He can learn some things from Crowder. Highsmith should serve as forward depth at both spots.

The 2 vets are 1-year fillers and mentors. We can preserve them through a depth rotation. The hope is that PF by committee can work for this season, while the younger guys continue to bake. If Jovic can become a capable starting level PF after next season, it really helps with the cap bind that Miami will likely be facing.

So... you too expect Miami to once again put it as the lowest priority to building this team. This just blows my mind with this FO that putting the PF position on such a low priority (or no priority) when you're already playing with an undersized center.

Who knows, maybe Yurtseven (resign cheaply) is the guy they want to put next to Bam for a short 2-3 year span and not using him at all since he came back will make other teams weary of offering him a contract.

I just don't get all these bad signings year after year, either having overpaid role-players or having to move assets to get rid of the bad contracts all while you have an undersized center and are giving the other position to help Bam on the inside very little priority in building the team.

Let's put this roster construction in the light, for the finals Miami had 2 guys starting who signed multiyear minimum deals and a PF who couldn't even get in the rotation in Cleveland... that's what was starting in the finals for Miami. I will give you one of the 3 wouldn't have started had Herro not gotten hurt and Oladipo could have really helped off the bench but neither had size to help Bam. MIAMI STARTED 3 PLAYERS IN THE FINALS WHO COST AROUND 7 MILLION DOLLARS... COMBINED WITH NONE OF THEM ON A ROOKIE DEAL. That's crazy to me unless nearly half your roster is injured.

Had Miami not extended Bam a year earlier (keeping his low cap hold) than they did, they would have been able to sign Lowry outright vs a sign and trade and kept Precious who could have helped greatly with the boards last year and this year, this also would have required Miami not to opt into Dragic's 20 mil a year team option which they moved anyways.

[greg4012]

Spoiler:

So... will Miami prioritize finding a real PF in the offseason or is it once again last on the list? Jovic probably won't be ready next year, Bam didn't become a starter until the 2nd half of his 2nd season, so to expect Jovic to fill that spot is naive. Herro didn't become a starter until his 4th season. Miami needs to find someone who can start for the next 1-3 years until Jovic is ready (if he ever becomes a legit starter in the NBA).

My guess, Highsmith or Love (resigned) will be starting at while Jovic gets experience off the bench since he's added muscle to handle the position better. Who knows, maybe someone will exchange an overpaid big for Robinson?

Spoiler:

I think given how the trade market for players is seemingly unfolding, task 1 will be to add an upgraded scoring punch (presumably swapping Herro + Lowry + other assets). Right now, I don't see many avenues for that to be in the form of a PF--if it can be, that would be great.

So let's say Miami makes a big move to add a scoring guard. In that case, I fully expect the PF rotation to be some combination of the following:

- Kevin Love: hopefully returning on a vet min and spending the offseason getting in "Heat shape"

- Nikola Jovic: he was held out of a lot of the year with back spasms (growing pains?), but he's clearly been working to add weight and get in NBA shape. This offseason is huge for Jovic. He took in a ton this season. We need him to be fully committed to becoming the bulked up (he looks over 230 pounds right now and is absolutely still filling out that frame) PF sniper that will fit this roster. He's going to play in summer league and he needs to get plenty of minutes in the rotation this season to get up to speed. Kevin Love mentorship should serve him well.

- Jae Crowder: he fizzled out with a minimal role in MIL, so hopefully we can reunite on a vet min deal. I'm not surprised he didn't work in MIL as Bud's scheme wasn't a good fit for him. At this point in his career, he best contributes as a mobile PF, not as an oversized SF. I think he still has more to offer in a scheme that fits him. Spo always tends to get the most out of this archetype relative to the rest of the NBA.

- Haywood Highsmith: his defense is ready. We need him to continue to develop as a reliable spot shooter and get reps to ensure he can have a smart floor game. He can learn some things from Crowder. Highsmith should serve as forward depth at both spots.

The 2 vets are 1-year fillers and mentors. We can preserve them through a depth rotation. The hope is that PF by committee can work for this season, while the younger guys continue to bake. If Jovic can become a capable starting level PF after next season, it really helps with the cap bind that Miami will likely be facing.

So... you too expect Miami to once again put it as the lowest priority to building this team. This just blows my mind with this FO that putting the PF position on such a low priority (or no priority) when you're already playing with an undersized center.

Who knows, maybe Yurtseven (resign cheaply) is the guy they want to put next to Bam for a short 2-3 year span and not using him at all since he came back will make other teams weary of offering him a contract.

I just don't get all these bad signings year after year, either having overpaid role-players or having to move assets to get rid of the bad contracts all while you have an undersized center and are giving the other position to help Bam on the inside very little priority in building the team.

Let's put this roster construction in the light, for the finals Miami had 2 guys starting who signed multiyear minimum deals and a PF who couldn't even get in the rotation in Cleveland... that's what was starting in the finals for Miami. I will give you one of the 3 wouldn't have started had Herro not gotten hurt and Oladipo could have really helped off the bench but neither had size to help Bam. MIAMI STARTED 3 PLAYERS IN THE FINALS WHO COST AROUND 7 MILLION DOLLARS... COMBINED WITH NONE OF THEM ON A ROOKIE DEAL. That's crazy to me unless nearly half your roster is injured.

Had Miami not extended Bam a year earlier than they did (since they were giving him the max anyways), they would have been able to sign Lowry outright vs a sign and trade and kept Precious who could have helped greatly with the boards last year and this year, this also would have required Miami not to opt into Dragic's 20 mil a year team option which they moved anyways.

Caps or no caps--the options are limited. I think you're overheating right now. Precious wouldn't be the difference in any capacity. I'm very encouraged by how Miami is positioned right now.

Miami has access to trade multiple picks. Herro is no longer impossible to make the math work in a trade because his extension kicks in (2 years of 20 ppg scoring and quality volume shooting helps). And most importantly, Lowry is now an expiring deal and he pumped up his value as a player relative to a year ago.

[AirP.]

Spoiler:

So... you too expect Miami to once again put it as the lowest priority to building this team. This just blows my mind with this FO that putting the PF position on such a low priority (or no priority) when you're already playing with an undersized center.

Who knows, maybe Yurtseven (resign cheaply) is the guy they want to put next to Bam for a short 2-3 year span and not using him at all since he came back will make other teams weary of offering him a contract.

I just don't get all these bad signings year after year, either having overpaid role-players or having to move assets to get rid of the bad contracts all while you have an undersized center and are giving the other position to help Bam on the inside very little priority in building the team.

Let's put this roster construction in the light, for the finals Miami had 2 guys starting who signed multiyear minimum deals and a PF who couldn't even get in the rotation in Cleveland... that's what was starting in the finals for Miami. I will give you one of the 3 wouldn't have started had Herro not gotten hurt and Oladipo could have really helped off the bench but neither had size to help Bam. MIAMI STARTED 3 PLAYERS IN THE FINALS WHO COST AROUND 7 MILLION DOLLARS... COMBINED WITH NONE OF THEM ON A ROOKIE DEAL. That's crazy to me unless nearly half your roster is injured.

Had Miami not extended Bam a year earlier than they did (since they were giving him the max anyways), they would have been able to sign Lowry outright vs a sign and trade and kept Precious who could have helped greatly with the boards last year and this year, this also would have required Miami not to opt into Dragic's 20 mil a year team option which they moved anyways.

Caps or no caps--the options are limited. I think you're overheating right now. Precious wouldn't be the difference in any capacity. I'm very encouraged by how Miami is positioned right now.

Miami has access to trade multiple picks. Herro is no longer impossible to make the math work in a trade because his extension kicks in (2 years of 20 ppg scoring and quality volume shooting helps). And most importantly, Lowry is now an expiring deal and he pumped up his value as a player relative to a year ago.

Yes, Precious would have helped this Miami roster with his size, strength which equates to rebounding and not getting backed under the basket by Gordon for easy scores. At the very least he would have been utilized over Zeller and probably would allowed Bam to play less minutes keeping him fresher all game.

The math wasn't impossible with Herro to trade this last season but was limited to be certain packages for high priced players but I'm not so sure this FO is wanting to move him. Although Beal isn't a guy I particularly like, he would be a great upgrade over Herro, still would need to hide him on defense.

I'm mostly overheated by Butler's effort for 3/4 of the game(s) which at the end of the game he showed he could have been giving more effort, that wasn't an injury thing, that was just about effort which this being the finals I thought he would power through like so many times in his career, he did not, he looked like he went back to playing like he did pre All-Star break, not post all-star break. The effort just wasn't there. His effort has mostly been bad ever since game 3 of the ECF when Miami blew out the Celtics, I think it changed his mindset.

[eddieheatfan]

Watch on YouTube

the media is tearing apart the heat right now

[greg4012]

Spoiler:

So... you too expect Miami to once again put it as the lowest priority to building this team. This just blows my mind with this FO that putting the PF position on such a low priority (or no priority) when you're already playing with an undersized center.

Who knows, maybe Yurtseven (resign cheaply) is the guy they want to put next to Bam for a short 2-3 year span and not using him at all since he came back will make other teams weary of offering him a contract.

I just don't get all these bad signings year after year, either having overpaid role-players or having to move assets to get rid of the bad contracts all while you have an undersized center and are giving the other position to help Bam on the inside very little priority in building the team.

Let's put this roster construction in the light, for the finals Miami had 2 guys starting who signed multiyear minimum deals and a PF who couldn't even get in the rotation in Cleveland... that's what was starting in the finals for Miami. I will give you one of the 3 wouldn't have started had Herro not gotten hurt and Oladipo could have really helped off the bench but neither had size to help Bam. MIAMI STARTED 3 PLAYERS IN THE FINALS WHO COST AROUND 7 MILLION DOLLARS... COMBINED WITH NONE OF THEM ON A ROOKIE DEAL. That's crazy to me unless nearly half your roster is injured.

Had Miami not extended Bam a year earlier than they did (since they were giving him the max anyways), they would have been able to sign Lowry outright vs a sign and trade and kept Precious who could have helped greatly with the boards last year and this year, this also would have required Miami not to opt into Dragic's 20 mil a year team option which they moved anyways.

Caps or no caps--the options are limited. I think you're overheating right now. Precious wouldn't be the difference in any capacity. I'm very encouraged by how Miami is positioned right now.

Miami has access to trade multiple picks. Herro is no longer impossible to make the math work in a trade because his extension kicks in (2 years of 20 ppg scoring and quality volume shooting helps). And most importantly, Lowry is now an expiring deal and he pumped up his value as a player relative to a year ago.

Yes, Precious would have helped this Miami roster with his size, strength which equates to rebounding and not getting backed under the basket by Gordon for easy scores. At the very least he would have been utilized over Zeller and probably would allowed Bam to play less minutes keeping him fresher all game.

The math wasn't impossible with Herro to trade this last season but was limited to be certain packages for high priced players but I'm not so sure this FO is wanting to move him. Although Beal isn't a guy I particularly like, he would be a great upgrade over Herro, still would need to hide him on defense.

I personally don't think Precious would've warranted quality minutes in a finals setting. I know there was a brief stretch post-trade where some were lamenting losing Precious because he hit a couple 3s last season but he's REALLY not a shooter. He needs to be WIDE open to even attempt a 3 and still is well below average when he shoots. 60% ft shooter for his career. More turnovers than assists for his career.

Dude is absolutely not the difference for us in winning the finals.

[greg4012]

Watch on YouTube

the media is tearing apart the heat right now

They need to fill the airwaves. It's low hanging fruit. Who cares?

[MettaWorldPanda]

Continue discussion in offseason thread