With the Miami Heat having so far failed to fill their superstar void, it's tempting to suggest they should be in full-throttle pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo, long seen as the apple of the organization's eye. And that's triply true under the current circumstances with Miami losing track of its winning ways and facing existential questions about its collection of puzzle pieces.
The problem with such an aggressive approach, though, is it requires a level of cooperation that the Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly unwilling to extend. For all of the trade winds swirling around Antetokounmpo, "the Bucks have told teams they are looking to add to their roster in hopes of fortifying their struggling team," per The Athletic's Eric Nehm.
And in a weird, roundabout way, Milwaukee's reluctance actually works to Miami's benefit. Because while the Heat might have trouble winning a bidding war for Antetokounmpo now, their trade budget should increase over the offseason.
Miami can make a better offer for Antetokounmpo this summer.
Since the Heat are out a future first (lottery-protected in 2027 and unprotected in 2028) due to the disastrous Terry Rozier trade, getting to this offseason won't really help their draft-pick collection. Maybe their current first lands higher than expected, but even then, they couldn't trade the selection until after making it due to the Stepien Rule.
What is possible, though, is Miami potentially adding picks at the deadline (since selling now seems like an option at least worth considering) and therefore having more than two future firsts available. Not to mention, it should be clear of the uncertainty surrounding the Rozier situation, which, in a perfect world, would result in the team being awarded a 2027 compensatory pick (but don't hold your breath on that one).
The Heat should have more financial flexibility by then, too. Even if Andrew Wiggins picks up his $30.2 million player option for next season, per Spotrac, they're still set to have several sizable salaries come off the books, like Rozier ($26.6 million), Norman Powell ($20.5 million) and Simone Fontecchio ($8.3 million).
Beyond that, this longer runway offers essentially all of Miami's young players the chance to improve their trade value. Imagine the value Kel'el Ware would hold if he suddenly solved his inconsistency problem. Or if Nikola Jovic snapped out of his season-long funk. Or if first-round pick Kasparas Jakucionis hits the ground running upon being fully unleashed. Or even if Jaime Jaquez Jr. silences any remaining skeptics by sustaining his strong play to date.
Those all look like possible trade sweeteners for the time being, but perhaps an eye-opening second half would turn them into primary trade chips. That'd be a big deal.
Milwaukee seemingly isn't answering calls at the moment, but one would figure there are summer conversations to be had. And if those talks happen to involve Miami, things could look a lot more favorable to the Heat than they do right now.