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Miami Heat: 2016 Offseason Grades

By Gerald Bourguet

Mar 22, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the fourth quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Heat defeated the Pelicans 113-99. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 22, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the fourth quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Heat defeated the Pelicans 113-99. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Miami Heat expected to look radically different after the 2016 offseason, but their summer went off the rails quickly. Here are their complete offseason grades.

Miami Heat
Mar 22, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the fourth quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Heat defeated the Pelicans 113-99. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

Heading into the 2016 NBA offseason, something had to give for the Miami Heat. With a plethora of free agents and nowhere near enough cap space to go around — even in a record-breaking summer where almost every team had enough cap room to make a max offer — Pat Riley had some decisions to make.

Coming off a seven-game defeat in the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Heat were at an impasse. Chris Bosh‘s questionable health loomed over the team like a dark cloud, fogging up what was once a bright future centered around a Goran Dragic–Dwyane Wade–Luol Deng-Bosh-Hassan Whiteside core.

But with Bosh’s health status uncertain, and Wade, Deng and Whiteside all hitting free agency this summer (not to mention Joe Johnson, Tyler Johnson, Gerald Green and Amar’e Stoudemire as well), the Heat faced their biggest challenge yet in remaining an Eastern Conference powerhouse, starting with trying to woo Kevin Durant and retool overnight.

Though Riley managed to preserve future flexibility and some of his team’s younger players this summer, by and large, the 2016 offseason will be remembered as one of the biggest failures of his career. Here’s how it all went wrong for the Miami Heat with their complete offseason grades.

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