This year’s NBA Draft is projected to be one of the best in recent history. Unfortunately, the Miami Heat have zero draft picks.
With talents such as Cade Cunningham and Evan Mobley topping big boards, many scouts expect this class of rookies to be special. While the Heat’s pick wouldn’t have been in the lottery, it still would have been nice to have.
The Miami Heat are built to compete for championships right now. They made a run to the Finals in 2020, and will undoubtedly be chasing that same glory for the rest of Jimmy Butler’s tenure in the South Beach.
However, Butler is already 31-years-old. By the time his contract is up in two years, he’ll be 33, and rumor has it he wants another max contract.
As much as he’s improved the culture of the team, Pat Riley will have to seriously consider whether or not to pay him the big bucks again. Paying someone a max contract at that age might be a questionable call.
If the team decides to part ways with Butler, they would still be set up to remain competitive. However, they would likely look to go in a younger direction with Bam Adebayo leading the way.
Picks could become important very fast. If they decide to fully build around Adebayo, they would probably want to add some young players to surround him moving forward.
This means that the draft will come back into play, as the Heat may want to add more promising rookies to the team. With that in mind, why not take a look at what draft picks the Miami Heat actually have control over?