2025 Regular Season Thread Vol. 8

[Lennyzinho]

I have to say unless KD forces his way here, I rather not trade away a sizeable young talent haul for him, even if those guys individually are a handful of spots below KD's level.

KD is going to be 37 next season. He may play till he's 40. But this isn't a 30 year old KD or even 33. Father time will come soon.
I don't think even with KD this is a 'chip team. Rather see them sort of falter this year, keep the 25 pick + GS pick, and just stocking young talent in hope of the next generation of stars may want to come here. Keep that slim hope alive Giannis is a possibility in 27, if not sooner if he wants out.

I feel similar. No to Ware for a short-term rental. Reluctantly willing to part with Jovic and 1 FRP plus expiring salary (and Jaime). However, I do think with KD next season this team can be as complete as any in the NBA.

Herro - Mitchell
Wiggins - Pelle/Burks
KD - Highsmith
Bam - Anderson/Keshad
Ware - Bam

Basically just missing one bench spark player. Kick the tires on oldman guards like Chris Paul, Westbrook, Dinwiddie?

Not mad at taking the shot if the price is right.

That's more or less what I'm thinking, except wiggins would have to go to the suns. They aren't taking rozier Duncan expirings and youth.
I think it'd need to be wiggins plus Duncan or rozier.
Plus a pick and plus JJJ or Jovic ( gotta talk to agent and see what jovic is asking... if it's like 15-20M per you send him to phx - if it's 8-12M you resign him long term)
And then you find a way to get a guy like Bruce Brown in a sign and trade to TOR and send them the other rozier Duncan player phx didn't want along with a 2nd round pick.

Bruce Brown - Davion - Rookie (gsw pick)
Herro - Burks - Bruce Brown
Durant - Jovic - Haywood - Pelle
Bam - Jovic - Slo Mo
Ware - Bam - Love

That roster could make noise and compete imo. Lots of size. And adding durant and Brown to herro really opens up scoring and spacing. And Bruce brown drives to the basket which would be good since no one else really does besides herro. And ofc betting on ware jovic growth and herro not regressing.

TL;DR
Out - Duncan rozier wiggins JJJ/Jovic
In - Bruce Brown, durant, rookie (gsw), dru Smith? Or solid veteran like Burks.

[Vertical Limit]

Unless durant is coming here for free.. im done with that talk.. im not trading assets for a 36 year old star.. we need to think long term.. short term all durant does is puts us in the playoffs.. we arent contending by just adding him on the team

[wadenation305]

I think Spo has been trying to pigeon hole Herro into being a PG for so long that some of us forgot he isn't a PG. He does nto have the handles of one and is actively being not put in the best position to do what he does. His turnover back those claims. He would be much more consistent and better if Spo didn't force the issue/beat a dead horse. Hes def not the number 1 on a championship team. But Spo has been doing really questionable things all this time. Makes no Sense.

[wadenation305]

A lot of talk about a KD trade to Miami in the summer. Would yall do a Wiggins / Robinson/ Ware/ Jovic for KD type move? A big 3 of sorts with Bam/Herro/KD.

I would, can we swap Ware either Jaime and a 1st though?

What talk are you seeing?

It’s different players mentioned here but here’s where I saw the idea.

https://www.si.com/nba/heat/heat-predicted-to-cut-ties-with-andrew-wiggins-in-blockbuster-offseason-trade-for-194-million-superstar-01jm0whjt9dj

If KD was 30 yea. KD at 36 going to 37? no. Especially not Ware. Unless we're talking SGA, Donic, Giannis. Ware is going NoWare.

[wade44]

Love this team but feels like we’re headed for some dark times without leadership or an alpha dog. Is Micky going to keep treading water to satisfy the bottom line or are we going to attempt to find our next franchise guy. Tanking is the only way in todays game and our precious Wade is becoming a distant memory

[dolphinatik]

Spo pigeonholes everyone to play like this player play like that player. Guys are not drop in replacements for other guys. Tried to make previous play like Bam, Winnie play like bron, jjj play like butler and thinks every guard needs a clear out and can finish like Wade. They tried forcing nico to center. No excuse for this shortsightedness this deep into a coaching career. The greats were already great when he got them.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

I would, can we swap Ware either Jaime and a 1st though?

What talk are you seeing?

It’s different players mentioned here but here’s where I saw the idea.

https://www.si.com/nba/heat/heat-predicted-to-cut-ties-with-andrew-wiggins-in-blockbuster-offseason-trade-for-194-million-superstar-01jm0whjt9dj

If KD was 30 yea. KD at 36 going to 37? no. Especially not Ware. Unless we're talking SGA, Donic, Giannis. Ware is going NoWare.

Wares untouchable unless it’s a top 5 player in the league?!

[3ammy3uck3ts]

If anything Spo has catered to Herro too much.

[eddieheatfan]

Love this team but feels like we’re headed for some dark times without leadership or an alpha dog. Is Micky going to keep treading water to satisfy the bottom line or are we going to attempt to find our next franchise guy. Tanking is the only way in todays game and our precious Wade is becoming a distant memory

rethorical question or not i see what you did there

[Flash4thewin]

I don't really mind these losses. We're not doing jack sht until we land another top-12 talent and I knew this when we traded Butler for Wiggins. I'm perfectly okay with the young guys getting burn (Jovic and Ware) while Herro and Bam each average 20+ points. There will be growing pains, the core of this team is very young. Herro is only 25 and he is going to go through stretches where he isn't shooting good, and he's going to have to learn how to break out of these funks - which will happen with time and experience.

We're a team that lost its best player (Jimmy) for a role-player in return. If you removed the best player off 20 other teams in the NBA, they'd be worse than us. There's only a handful of teams that can weather the storm of losing their best player and still being on pace to win 45+ games.

This is my perspective. Young teams that are testing things out and developing talent usually aren't the ones that close out games strong (esp against the true contenders). Looking to hit benchmarks and see signs of growth throughout the season from critical youth pieces.

Unless Miami makes a big trade before then, everyone is auditioning for Miami to invest in them longer term. All of the talk about 2026 is really about that being a pivot point where the books get mostly cleared of bad multi-year deals that have been draining the roster construction (Duncan & Terry primarily).

Niko is extension eligible soon and Miami has team options for him through 2026. Will he earn long-term investment or be traded?

Will Jaime prove his worth for the Heat to extend or will he be shopped for trade?

Wiggins has a player option for the 2027 season for $30M. Considering he is about to turn 30, he has to have his sights set on securing another deal. To do so, he needs to play well. If he does, he will opt out in 2026 and Miami will have a decision to make. If he doesn't opt out, he will be an expiring reasonable contract that can be easily traded.

Tyler is eligible for an extension before the 2026 offseason. Will he earn another long-term investment or be traded?

Bam is really the only piece with true long term investment right now. Miami's posture with him will of course depend on his play, but also how the other domino pieces fall. If Miami has a shot at a star in their prime and make a big move for them (whether 2026 free agency or via trade before), then Bam is very likely with Miami throughout his contract and beyond.

The name of the game from now until the start of the 2026-2027 season is Optionality and Development. If an opportunity arises before the 2026 offseason, then the game may shift sooner. If no worthwhile opportunity presents itself between now and the start of the 2026-2027 offseason then Miami has some tougher decisions to make in terms of what to commit to for the next window of time.

Team building in the NBA is really always 3-5 year windows.

Just with Wiggins alone we are out of the 2026 race, thats not even touching or factoring the draft picks we will be getting this offseason. Thats another 8+ million. Then Mitchell is up to get paid or leave, Jovic is up to get paid, Herro is up for an extension coming off an Allstar. You wont get any value from a Herro trade if he only has one year left on his contract which is the case, so you will need to extend him or get pennies in return. 2026 is honestly just a hope delusion, basically fraud for the uniformed fans. Before we had a tiny tiny tiny window of hope to have a max slot and Hail Mary shot, Fox would sign or Luka would sign, that delusion died a violent death.

[carnageta]

I don't really mind these losses. We're not doing jack sht until we land another top-12 talent and I knew this when we traded Butler for Wiggins. I'm perfectly okay with the young guys getting burn (Jovic and Ware) while Herro and Bam each average 20+ points. There will be growing pains, the core of this team is very young. Herro is only 25 and he is going to go through stretches where he isn't shooting good, and he's going to have to learn how to break out of these funks - which will happen with time and experience.

We're a team that lost its best player (Jimmy) for a role-player in return. If you removed the best player off 20 other teams in the NBA, they'd be worse than us. There's only a handful of teams that can weather the storm of losing their best player and still being on pace to win 45+ games.

This is my perspective. Young teams that are testing things out and developing talent usually aren't the ones that close out games strong (esp against the true contenders). Looking to hit benchmarks and see signs of growth throughout the season from critical youth pieces.

Unless Miami makes a big trade before then, everyone is auditioning for Miami to invest in them longer term. All of the talk about 2026 is really about that being a pivot point where the books get mostly cleared of bad multi-year deals that have been draining the roster construction (Duncan & Terry primarily).

Niko is extension eligible soon and Miami has team options for him through 2026. Will he earn long-term investment or be traded?

Will Jaime prove his worth for the Heat to extend or will he be shopped for trade?

Wiggins has a player option for the 2027 season for $30M. Considering he is about to turn 30, he has to have his sights set on securing another deal. To do so, he needs to play well. If he does, he will opt out in 2026 and Miami will have a decision to make. If he doesn't opt out, he will be an expiring reasonable contract that can be easily traded.

Tyler is eligible for an extension before the 2026 offseason. Will he earn another long-term investment or be traded?

Bam is really the only piece with true long term investment right now. Miami's posture with him will of course depend on his play, but also how the other domino pieces fall. If Miami has a shot at a star in their prime and make a big move for them (whether 2026 free agency or via trade before), then Bam is very likely with Miami throughout his contract and beyond.

The name of the game from now until the start of the 2026-2027 season is Optionality and Development. If an opportunity arises before the 2026 offseason, then the game may shift sooner. If no worthwhile opportunity presents itself between now and the start of the 2026-2027 offseason then Miami has some tougher decisions to make in terms of what to commit to for the next window of time.

Team building in the NBA is really always 3-5 year windows.

Just with Wiggins alone we are out of the 2026 race, thats not even touching or factoring the draft picks we will be getting this offseason. Thats another 8+ million. Then Mitchell is up to get paid or leave, Jovic is up to get paid, Herro is up for an extension coming off an Allstar. You wont get any value from a Herro trade if he only has one year left on his contract which is the case, so you will need to extend him or get pennies in return. 2026 is honestly just a hope delusion, basically fraud for the uniformed fans. Before we had a tiny tiny tiny window of hope to have a max slot and Hail Mary shot, Fox would sign or Luka would sign, that delusion died a violent death.

Nah, not really.

Wiggins will be an expiring in 26', making his contract really easy to move.

Mitchell is up to get paid or leave? Lol who cares, he's a role-player, no different than Gabriel Vincent.

Herro's contract has no bearing on what happens in 26' (he's already under contract for that year and was included as part of the 26' plan before we traded Jimmy).

For Jovic and 1st round picks - yeah we'll have to pay them, but the 1st round picks wouldn't be too difficult to move in a salary dump situation. No one is going to overpay for Jovic, so he's bound to get a reasonable contract.

A lot of the extensions may not even happen until after we see how the 26' free agency plays out.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

FWIW even if Wiggins opted in and we don’t trade him we still have space for a max contract.

[dshearn]

Spo pigeonholes everyone to play like this player play like that player. Guys are not drop in replacements for other guys.

It was not that long ago that the Heat were knocking teams out of the playoffs they had no business beating, combined with starting G league guys that had no business starting in the NBA ...

The consensus was keeping roles simple was a game changer, guys knew what they had to do

[wadenation305]

It’s different players mentioned here but here’s where I saw the idea.

https://www.si.com/nba/heat/heat-predicted-to-cut-ties-with-andrew-wiggins-in-blockbuster-offseason-trade-for-194-million-superstar-01jm0whjt9dj

If KD was 30 yea. KD at 36 going to 37? no. Especially not Ware. Unless we're talking SGA, Donic, Giannis. Ware is going NoWare.

Wares untouchable unless it’s a top 5 player in the league?!

I'm willing to bet on his future. Will he be a top 5 player himself? probably not. But why trade him for a 37 year old player? Are we a shoe in for the finals? I don't think so, I'd rather develop my guys, and suck for a few 2 years if we have to. Mobile 7 ft'ers that can Block shots and hit the 3 don't grow on trees, and the dude isn't even old enough to drink yet. Has shown us more flashes of what he could be the the few minutes he's starting to get than most of our guys have in their rookie years.

I'm ready for a home grown development arch rather that the slick salesman hiring hitmen.


Also I'm not even bothered that we lose, it's expected.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

If KD was 30 yea. KD at 36 going to 37? no. Especially not Ware. Unless we're talking SGA, Donic, Giannis. Ware is going NoWare.

Wares untouchable unless it’s a top 5 player in the league?!

I'm willing to bet on his future. Will he be a top 5 player himself? probably not. But why trade him for a 37 year old player? Are we a shoe in for the finals? I don't think so, I'd rather develop my guys, and suck for a few 2 years if we have to. Mobile 7 ft'ers that can Block shots and hit the 3 don't grow on trees, and the dude isn't even old enough to drink yet. Has shown us more flashes of what he could be the the few minutes he's starting to get than most of our guys have in their rookie years.

I'm ready for a home grown development arch rather that the slick salesman hiring hitmen.


Also I'm not even bothered that we lose, it's expected.

Who’s the worst player or maybe like worst tier of players you would move Ware for? Not arguing it, just curious

[marson]

Focus on development, and if KD comes here, then exclude Ware, Herro, and Bam from the trade discussion.

[Tony15]

Ware has a lot of upside & MIA will have him at value....unless you're getting a Joker/Giannis/Luka type player in return he should be untouchable. There's a reason SA shut down SAC on any Fox deal involving Stephon Castle....and Fox isn't in the tier I'm talking about.

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[MartyConlonJr]

I would have 100% traded Ware for Fox (assuming he signs the extension, and we dont give too much more in capital after).
Bam / Herro / Fox is enough to compete every year for the next 6-7 and fairly complementary.

Though maybe I am too read to accept a competitor that is not exactly a contender and hope for some growth. I'm not sure that team maxes out as a championship winner, but Fox is clutch, so maybe it does.

[3ammy3uck3ts]

I would have 100% traded Ware for Fox (assuming he signs the extension, and we dont give too much more in capital after).
Bam / Herro / Fox is enough to compete every year for the next 6-7 and fairly complementary.

Though maybe I am too read to accept a competitor that is not exactly a contender and hope for some growth. I'm not sure that team maxes out as a championship winner, but Fox is clutch, so maybe it does.

Easily would have

[3ammy3uck3ts]

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