Workouts with certain prospects seem to indicate Miami Heat will find a way to jump into the second round.
Some people are so powerful with their words that past mandates seem to stick no matter how much they denounce them.
For example, Pat Riley backtracking on his whale-hunting manifesto of the past few free agencies. How about the sudden silence about acquiring another first round pick after the Miami Heat turned an 11-30 record around?
For all intents and purposes, fans would have good reason to only acknowledge the team president’s original statements. The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson told us as much. Just with a twist:
"“The Heat summoned Baylor 6-10 power forward Johnathan Motley, Indiana 6-10 center Thomas Bryant, and UCLA 6-10 power forward/center Ike Anigbogu.As we reported here Wednesday, the Heat also had California 6-10 power forward Ivan Rabb in for a workout.Aside from Rabb, none of the other three are projected to go as high as the Heat’s pick at No. 14, Miami’s only selection in the June 22 draft. But it’s possible the Heat could trade for a second-round pick if it becomes particularly enamored with a player that’s still available after the first round.”"
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As this month’s NBA Draft approaches, mock drafts have tied the Heat to everyone from injured prospects with potential (Harry Giles and OG Anunoby), to stretch-4’s (Zach Collins, T.J. Leaf and Ivan Rabb), to 3-point shooters (Terrance Ferguson, Justin Jackson and Luke Kennard). However, bringing in players expected to drop into the second round could by a sign of something more than just due diligence.
So what could the plan be?
It is not likely that Miami would trade completely out of the first round–having an immediate need for help and no top-30 prospects on the way next year. It is also unlikely that the Heat, with around $37 million of anticipated money to spend this summer, want to pay another first-round pick.
The compromise becomes finding the right way to add a cheap prospect to a roster that could be over the salary cap after Riley’s free agency push. But the Heat have options.
The luxury of not having to guarantee Wayne Ellington’s $6 million contract until the end of July’s moratorium signing period would allow Riley to use him in a draft day deal to acquire a pick between the range of 31-60. Such a move could be dangerous, though, as Ellington’s 38 percent 3-point shooting would be hard to replace.
The second option would be to move the oft-injured Josh McRoberts. The problem is teams have done nothing but refuse to trade for him. Plus the Heat may be better off holding out to see if they need to waive him using the stretch provision to free up an extra $4 million for free agent signings.
Such a scenario would not hinder the Heat from buying into the round either. Their $3.1 million in trade money, (to be used by June 30), would easily allow them to make it happen.
Next: Six players the Heat can draft at No. 14
The Heat organization never does anything without a purpose, so you can expect them to find some way to make their quiet workouts count.