Miami Heat training camp is right around the corner, as the NBA offseason is just days away from conclusion. With the preseason set to be here before you know it, Pat Riley and the Miami Heat have seemingly made all of their moves, all but saying that they plan on running it back at this point.
With respect to a couple of young guys from Summer League and the drafting of Nikola Jovic, there were really zero new additions made in free agency. They did manage to re-sign Dewayne Dedmon and Victor Oladipo though, which is positive.
It really is amazing that they were able to retain Oladipo in the manner that they did. Everyone thought that he was assuredly gone, but he’s back and will have an increased role this upcoming season.
However, that is where the positives end.
Since the Donovan Mitchell trade happened, the thought behind this piece was put into suspended animation, as the Heat wouldn’t have let their offseason end like that. Surely, a power forward addition was around the corner, correct?
Surely, there would be another avenue for the front office to get Jimmy Butler some help. Right?
Miami Heat: Offseason Movement Still Leaves Much To Wonder About
Wrong. All wrong.
Let’s put this on the board too. There is absolutely no reason this team should be running it back.
This isn’t to say that they should have blown up the roster or made a move just to make it, but seriously, zero free agents? Then, no trades?
The Kevin Durant situation is one thing Riley can get a pass for because it seemed as if Brooklyn was never taking Durant’s request seriously. They knew they had the leverage and also knew that he was going nowhere.
That is one thing but the Donovan Mitchell scenario seems different.
When a star becomes available, you move mountains that can’t be moved.
You do what it takes to get that guy on your roster. You do what you can and if the answer is “no”, you regroup and try again until you get the answer “yes”.
Even if you can’t get “yes”, you go down swinging. The Heat never, seemingly, even stepped up to the batter’s box.
Miami showed little to no interest in Mitchell, who is a clear upgrade from Tyler Herro, and exactly what this team needs. He’s a shot maker to help out Jimmy Butler and a playmaker to feed Bam Adebayo.
Even if you have to send an enormous amount of picks and a couple of players, you do it. He’s tight with both Butler and Adebayo, making it a perfect fit—among everything else mentioned.
Miami Heat: Not Landing Anybody Is One Thing, But Not Trying Hard Is Another
To not get him is one thing, but to not even try is laughable. In what world is this roster too good for Donovan Mitchell?
Jimmy just turned 33 and isn’t getting any younger. Herro is a great regular season player but has yet to see any resemblance of that in the playoffs.
Donovan’s playoff numbers speak for themselves. This wasn’t meant to throw anyone under the bus, but this team needs a guy like Mitchell.
Ok, so you were never taken seriously for Durant and thought you were too good for Mitchell. So, at least Miami is trading for a four, right?
As stated earlier, training camp is right around the corner and it appears that 6’5″ Caleb Martin will be the starting power forward for the Heat this season. Is an explanation even needed for what the issue is here?
Caleb Martin is not the defender that P.J. Tucker is, isn’t the shooter that Jae Crowder is, and isn’t the size that Kelly Olynyk is. It’s just not like any other scenario they’ve had over the last few years.
Martin cannot be the starting guy this season on a permanent basis. It would take too much of a toll on him, while, perhaps, impacting the team negatively along the way.
Look around the East, the Milwaukee Bucks are healthy, the Brooklyn Nets reloaded quietly, and the Boston Celtics are still going to be good despite the suspension of Ime Udoka. Heck, even the Cleveland Cavaliers, on paper, are super dynamic.
Meanwhile, Miami is banking on internal growth with no new additions. It’s frustrating to watch the East get so much better while Miami stands still and screams “We were one shot away!”
To throw salt on the wound, the guy they wouldn’t trade for Mitchell hasn’t even been offered the rookie scale max extension that he rightfully deserves. This is the easiest decision of the entire offseason and they can’t seem to even get that done.
The urgency is lackadaisical, the effort is flat-out laughable, and the worries grow. So, it leads you to ask, what are we doing here Mr.Riley?