Do Miami Heat have to worry about Tyrese Maxey 2.0 in draft?
Q: Tyrese Maxey was the 21st pick of the 2020 NBA draft. The Heat selected Precious Achiuwa one pick earlier at No. 20. It’s hindsight. It’s playing the result. It also hurts to think what could have been. – Bernardo, Fort Lauderdale.
A: But 19 other teams also passed on Tyrese Maxey, as well as the Heat. With the draft, the what-if game is one that swings both ways. What if the Pistons didn’t select Darko Milicic at No. 2 in 2003 and Dwyane Wade didn’t therefore fall to the Heat at No. 5? What if Bam Adebayo didn’t fall to the Heat at No. 14 in 2017 because the likes of Josh Jackson and Frank Ntilikina didn’t go earlier? What if Jaime Jaquez Jr. didn’t fall to the Heat at No. 18 last year? At the time of the 2020 draft, the Heat were coming off a trip to the NBA Finals, Tyler Herro had just sizzled in the Eastern Conference finals against the Celtics, and the Heat needed to replace Jae Crowder because of free agency. The pick made sense at the moment, and, for his part, Precious Achiuwa has carved out a credible NBA career. So lament various Heat picks over the years (Harold Miner would be a reasonable place to start), but it’s not as if 2020 was a blatant botch.
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Q: Assuming Jimmy Butler will be traded, what would be an acceptable return? – Brian.
A: That is a significant assumption, considering the stakes and risks. When the season ended, it was with the thought that Jimmy Butler got hurt at the worst possible time, would return to make things right, and the Heat again could emerge competitive. Then the subject of an extension changed the discourse, including Pat Riley’s postseason comments. So first we have to gauge how much a maximum extension means to Jimmy, and how much adding a single extra year to that contract means to the Heat. But if push does come to shove, it would mean a reset for the Heat. And resets in today’s NBA mean a wheelbarrow loaded with draft picks in return.
Q: In this new punitive NBA cap justice system, can a championship aspiring team afford to have three max-contract players surrounded by vet minimums and youngish players? Are the Heat better off making trades for equitable talent/contracts that are better fits instead? – Sol, Hialeah.
A: But here’s the deal: When the Heat re-signed Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson, and then dealt for Terry Rozier, the thought was those would be the salaries/players to augment Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. At the moment, the Heat do not have three max-level salaries, no matter the thought on the payscale of Robinson, Herro and Rozier. So it’s just as much about having the right supporting salaries. Are Robinson, Herro and Rozier the right supporting salaries? That is what the Heat must decide.
