Erik Spoelstra won't be taking the Eastern Conference's top roster into the 2025-26 NBA season. The way national pundits see it, the Miami Heat are nowhere close to that distinction. Admittedly, the franchise hasn't helped itself with mixed messaging about its motivation, as some moves lead you to believe the Heat sees this as a gap year, while others indicate the group is ready to go for it.
In a strange way, this might be how Miami prefers it. External expectations are effectively nonexistent, but you can bet internal beliefs are, as per usual, through the Kaseya Center roof.
It's the kind of campaign in which the Heat could surprise anyone, but only if Spoelstra is able to maximize every inch of his roster. While that happens to be a specialty of his, it's still a bit of a hoops highwire act, and one specific misstep—not finding enough floor time for rookie first-rounder Kasparas Jakučionis—could send the entire team tumbling.
The Heat need playmaking, and he's one of their best bets to provide it.
Miami quietly checked a lot of boxes in an opportunistic offseason, but playmaking remains a giant question mark. Last season went awry because the Heat lacked on-court connectivity. That's what created all of the initial excitement around the Jakučionis selection, which felt like a robbery in real-time but seemed less obviously so when he struggled at the start of summer league.
Remember, though, the Heat didn't take him so they could dominate the summer circuit. The goal is for him to bring the big-league roster together, and he's the kind of on-court quarterback who could do exactly that.
"He understands the game really well," Heat assistant general manager Adam Simon told reporters. "He is a true leader and someone who can get a team organized."
The Heat needs this kind of organization. It's why they once sacrificed a first-round pick to get Terry Rozier, a lopsided deal that continues to haunt them. It's why they brought back stretch-run star Davion Mitchell, just in case he's on the cusp of a full-fledged breakout. It's why they've perpetually looked to up the playmaking of Tyler Herro, since he'd be infinitely harder to defend as a scorer if he were anywhere near as sharp a shot-creator for others.
And it's ultimately why they landed on Jakučionis, who was popularly mocked inside the lottery but didn't come off the actual draft board until the No. 20 pick. He is an advanced floor-leader who can make every pass from every angle. He also happens to be a 19-year-old who figures to encounter steep learning curves with everything from his decision-making and shot selection to his defense and consistency.
Fast-forwarding his development would be ideal, but that's not an option available to anyone who lives outside of the Click universe. (Yes, that is a reference to a nearly 20-year-old movie, but we all get it, right?) The up-and-downs will be unavoidable with the rookie point guard, a point that summer league effectively hammered home.
The Heat can't run from these mistakes, though. Spoelstra might seek out more stability, but the best long-term effect is allowing Jakučionis to live through and ultimately learn from these mistakes. Because if he proves to be a fast learner, then he could strengthen this club's biggest weakness and give it a real chance to shock the hoops world again.