The Miami Heat are just one win away from the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, but their miracle run has done nothing to quell their thirst for talent. In fact, as ESPN’s Brian Windhorst explained on The Hoop Collective this week, it’s likely that the Heat will be more aggressive than ever this summer to build a true title-contending team.
Apparently, the Heat are expected to be among the potential landing spots for superstar point guard Damian Lillard if he asks out of Portland this offseason.
“I think the Heat are on the cusp of looking for another star maneuver,” Windhorst said. “I would put them on the list for Dame Lillard if Dame ends up getting traded. If he goes to market, I think the Heat are on that list. I don’t know if they have enough. A lot of their offer would be built around Tyler Herro, who’s just injured. But I suspect, I don’t know for sure, just to be clear, I don’t know for sure that they would offer him, but I would suspect that that would be the type of thing, that and draft picks.”
The Miami Heat are one of the most glamorous franchises in the league and for good reason. Besides the luxuries of residing in a city like Miami, the team can offer a history of success and a reputation that is widely respected and highly regarded across the association. Year after year, they are always looking for ways to get better, and team President Pat Riley always has them in the mix.
With Himmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, the Heat already have a solid, star-studded core. With Lillard, however, they could finally have enough to finish the job and bring home another title.
A Lillard Trade Package Starts With Tyler Herro
With the Heat on the cusp of moving on, it makes sense that they’d want to preserve the Butler/Adebayo duo. But the Heat could offload a guy like Tyler Herro instead, who has been labeled as untouchable in trade talks so far.
“I feel like I’m in the same conversation as those guys, the young guys coming up in the league who can be All-Stars, superstars one day,” Herro said. “Luka [Doncic], Trae [Young], Ja [Morant], those guys like that. I feel like my name should be in that category, too.”
Obviously, Tyler has been ruled out for this series against the Bucks after breaking his hand in Game 1. Somehow, the Heat have stayed alive despite his absence, but it remains to be seen how far they can go.
But no matter what happens, you can bet that Riley and the front office are already thinking about the summer and what they can do to give Jimmy Butler the best chance at winning.
