The Miami Heat were left looking for a Crowder replacement all year long… until they nabbed Trevor Ariza.
While Crowder would have been a joy to have back, so this isn’t that, he didn’t come back to Miami. That’s the key for why they can’t afford to let Ariza go.
All season long and up until they landed him, they needed an Ariza-Crowder Type to go along with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. They were burned by that once, letting Crowder go but understandable from a salary-perspective, but they can’t let it happen again.
The same stands for Dedmon. Even last season, they could have stood to have another big or at least, play the ones they had a little more down the stretch (Kelly Olynyk didn’t play enough in the Finals, where he could have helped against the Lakers’ size) but this season, it became just that much more clear.
They were being manhandled in the paint and especially in the Bam-less minutes before the “Ded Man” arrived. These are the reasons why they should both be retained, unless the numbers just become flat-out bonkers, which really shouldn’t happen.
The fact of the matter is this. When they didn’t have guys like Ariza and Dedmon in tow, they were looking for them.
Though there are still improvements that can and should be made, they have helped, massively. That’s why the Miami Heat should deeply look into keeping them both around, at least for one more season after this one.