Miami Heat: 3 questions as the NBA season nears a return to play
The Miami Heat have assembled quite the roster of talent in South Beach. Who will be there and who won’t when its title-winning time though?
Who’s Expendable?
As much as Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo’s performance in the playoffs will determine if and how the Miami Heat add a third All-Star, the team’s performance will determine who’s inessential to the process moving forward.
Most avenues to another All-Star take place via trade. This obviously means the team can’t move forward as constructed. With six players approaching free agency this summer, the Heat are going to have more than a few personnel decisions to make.
When it comes to guys like Beal or Paul, it’s unlikely either the Washington Wizards or Oklahoma City Thunder give either up without a young talent in return. Is it Duncan Robinson, or should his marksman status from deep make him untouchable?
Is it Tyler Herro, or is it too soon to give up on last year’s lottery pick? There’s also Kendrick Nunn, one of the league’s leading Rookie of the Year candidates.
Do the Heat possibly luck out and draw Antetokounmpo to South Beach in free agency next summer? These are all viable, yet brain numbing questions.
It’s a tough hand to be dealt, but Heat fans aren’t sweating too hard as long as those cards sit in the hands of Pat Riley and the Miami front office as constructed. They’ll find a way to shake up this roster without breaking down everything they’ve built.
But first, they’ve got to put everybody through the wringer. It is a business after all.