Miami Heat Rumors: Kevin Durant situation has evolved into ‘study of leverage’

The Miami Heat haven’t been able to strike a deal on the NBA trade market. With most rumors and reporting centered around Kevin Durant, the Miami Heat were one of his two top preferred teams at the onset of the whole fiasco.

With Durant reiterating his request, while the Nets and their ownership, seemingly, stood firm behind the coach and GM, two entities Durant would like to reportedly see gone if he is to return, things have come to an interesting place.

Well, sort of. There is a lot of interest and then there is none.

With the fact that every single day presents a new chance for something to happen, for some domino to fall, or for some chain reaction to initiate, as there are sure to be a myriad of teams in a deal if it occurs, there is also the reality to keep in mind that this isn’t a simple deal to get done.

Kevin Durant is, arguably, the best player in the league and at the top side of a long-term deal. The Brooklyn Nets want to get proper value for the caliber of player he is and the commitment that his deal is supposed to be mean to his team—with the operative word being “supposed” in light of the actual situation.

The Miami Heat are, sort of, in a pinch. Wanting KD but having to wait it out, they must also consider being competitive this year among leverage games.

That all leads here and to why there is “no interest” at the same time while there is tons of it.

It’s a classic stalemate. But, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst explained it a lot better on Monday.

While the entirety of what Windhorst said above is relevant and important, the last half of what was said sticks out more than anything. Here is the specific part of the quote in question.

"And I think what we have here is really a study of leverage. First off, the Nets do not have leverage in trade talks with other teams. They are not giving them the offers that they want. They see no reason to increase them.And so, they’re not making any progress there. And Kevin Durant, clearly, does not have leverage with the Brooklyn Nets. He is asking for things—”get me traded, fire the coach, fire the GM”. He is being told no. So, when you have denied leverage, you have a stalemate.So here we are in mid-August. We may be here at the end of August. We may be here in mid-September."

As he insinuated in his final remarks of the above clip, it could be a while before Kevin Durant is actually moved, if he is at all. With that, the Miami Heat, assuredly like many other teams hoping for a shot at KD, must keep the fact in mind that they must do all they can to be competitive in the coming season regardless of it Durant is in the cards or not.

We shall see how that goes, as it would seem as if the Miami Heat still have a bit of work to do on that front.