3 reasons Miami Heat won’t make the 2019 NBA Playoffs
3. Pat Riley decides to tear it down
Perhaps team president Pat Riley takes an honest look at his roster, concludes that it isn’t championship caliber, and decides to get a head start on the Zion Williamson/R.J. Barrett/Nassir Little/Insert College Basketball Stud Here sweepstakes.
As of now, the Heat have an abundance of NBA-ready players in their backcourt. Along with Dragic, the Heat have Josh Richardson, Dwyane Wade, Tyler Johnson, Wayne Ellington, Dion Waiters, Justice Winslow and Rodney McGruder. They also have a cluster at center with Hassan Whiteside, Kelly Olynyk and Bam Adebayo. The best moves Miami can make is to take on expensive contracts along with draft picks and young players.
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Since Dragic’s deal is fair for someone of his skills and is only for two years, I can see plenty of teams that lack All-Star caliber players looking to acquire him. For instance, the Cavaliers, who are trying to stay competitive, may take Dragic and Rodney McGruder for George Hill, Sam Dekker, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 2019 second round pick, and the Heat’s 2020 second round pick. The Heat can buyout Hill’s absurd contract after the season and move forward with Dekker and the two picks.
Despite an underwhelming performance in last season’s playoffs, Whiteside is still an above-average big man. One possible trade scenario is dealing him to the Los Angeles Clippers for Marcin Gortat, Wesley Johnson, and Jerome Robinson. While the only real asset acquired in this hypothetical trade is Robinson, the Heat unload Whitesides’s $25 million and can lose more. These trades are just hypothetical, but any trade that gives the Heat draft picks and/or young players is a good trade if they decide to tank.
Since Pat Riley likely should have started a true rebuild a year ago, it doesn’t seem likely that he will start in the middle of this season. He already screwed Dwyane Wade over two years ago by not paying in 2016, and there’s no way he would tank during his farewell tour…right?
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In all honesty, the Heat are very likely to make the playoffs. As most of their core players begin the primes of their careers and the East is as weak as ever, it’s unlikely that Miami doesn’t finish as a top-eight team in their conference. However, because they lack star power and their best player is on the downside of his career, the Heat are not a 100 percent lock for the postseason either.