Honorable Mentions
Before we get started, I wanted to talk about a few different guys who didn’t quite make the cut. I consider these players secondary targets for Riley and GM Andy Elisburg.
For example, Clippers shooting guard J.J. Redick would fill a hole for the Heat. He’s a career 41 percent three-point shooter, currently averaging 16 points per game. His effective field goal percentage is a healthy 57 percent. Redick’s fit with Miami is an obvious one, as the team desperately lacks shooting.
Toronto’s Patrick Patterson is another player who could pique Miami’s interest. Patterson is a stretch-four with some playoff experience. For his career, he’s a 37 percent three-point shooter, which suites Hassan Whiteside’s talents perfectly. He also doesn’t need to see a lot of the ball to be effective. Patterson knows his role and plays it very well.
If Riley were to prefer a stretch-four who’s been a little more productive throughout his career, he could go after Ersan Ilyasova instead. Ilyasova is still just 29, and has been more than solid for Philadelphia. He’s scoring 15 points per game, while making 37 percent of his threes. Though he’s a worse defender than Patterson, you could mask that by playing him next to Whiteside for long stretches. His pickup wouldn’t be the leading story on SportsCenter, but could be a sneaky good one.
There are more free agent possibilities that I didn’t get to mention, because either the fit wasn’t right, or the suggestion was too ludicrous. Kevin Durant didn’t turn down the Heat last offseason to join them after a year of tanking. Stephen Curry is (probably) not leaving Golden State. Jrue Holiday is really good, but so is Goran Dragic. And Dwyane Wade… eh, I’ll hold off on discounting a potential Wade return. For now, at least.