6 free agents the Miami Heat can replace Dion Waiters with

Tim Hardaway Jr.

Next up is Atlanta Hawks 2-guard Tim Hardaway Jr. It may have taken him a while, but the 25-year-old is finally finding his place in the NBA.

Hardaway is currently setting a career-high in every single major statistical category. And since the calendar flipped to 2017, his play has reached an even higher plateau. In that span, he’s averaging 17.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists, while shooting 47.5 percent from the floor and 39.8 percent from three.

Athleticism, size, ability to hit threes, Hardaway has everything you’d want in a modern NBA shooting guard.

Not to mention he has major ties to South Florida. We all know who Hardaway’s father was — only the best point guard in franchise history. The younger Hardaway grew up in Miami and enjoyed a great career at Palmetto High School before taking his talents up north to play for the Michigan Wolverines.

Hardaway has never outright said this, but I imagine playing for the Heat would feel like a childhood dream come true for him.

There’s one major problem with this whole scenario though; like Pope, the current Hawk is set to become a restricted free agent this summer. Meaning Miami would have to break the bank and give him a contract Atlanta would scoff at. If not, the Hawks will likely choose to match any offer the Heat would make.

Tough to see it happening, but it’s not impossible, I suppose.