NBA Trades: Crafty mock deal sees the Heat salvage their summer with help from Spurs

NBA Trades: Would the Miami Heat agree to the deal?

In the mock deal, the Heat would land a player with serious upside. Johnson's offensive potential is reliant on his 3-point shooting, which comes and goes. In 2021–22, Johnson drilled almost 40% of his 5.3 3-point attempts per game. He also averaged 20.8 points in the second half of that year and was a big part of why the Spurs made the play-in tournament.

He looked even better during the first 15 games of the 2022-23 season; he shot 42% from deep on nearly six attempts per game. Ironically, he finished below league average that season and last season, hitting only 34.6% of his threes. If his shooting can stabilize, then he could be a real threat with him being a fearless driver who bulldozes his way to the rim.

That has earned him the nickname "Big Body" for throwing his weight around. Better shooting and more discipline could get him back to his peak offensive play and the Heat have been known to take undervalued players and mold them into key contributors. Losing Robinson's shooting would hurt them but Johnson's upside is intriguing on the Heat.

As for the pick, The Heat might be a lottery team in 2026, with Butler either having aged out of stardom or playing elsewhere. Trading a top-10 protected pick first may allow them to keep that pick while still picking up a possible top-5 second-round pick from the Spurs via the Bulls. The Heat might think twice about giving up a first for a non-star but it's a deal that they should jump on if it were proposed.