Everybody under the sun knows the Miami Heat are in the market to acquire another superstar. Whether they actually get one remains to be seen.
ESPN’s three-year power rankings suggest that they will.
A panel of The Worldwide Leader’s NBA insiders recently ranked teams relative to their three-year outlook. They took into account five factors: the quality of players, cap flexibility, draft-pick equity, market appeal, and front office capability. The Heat landed in 14th place, sandwiched between the Boston Celtics (No. 13), and Indiana Pacers (No. 15).
That is unspectacular at face value. As currently constructed, though, Miami has a case to be lower. Yet, as ESPN’s salary-cap guru Bobby Marks notes, the Heat “project to have spending power in the 2026 and 2027 offseasons.”
This is telltale—in a “blockbuster trade is on the horizon” sort of way.
The Heat’s future isn’t tied to the current roster
The Heat’s roster-building resources do a bulk of the heavy lifting in these rankings. They finish inside the top 10 of cap flexibility (10), market appeal (fifth), and front-office capability (third). Neither their players (18th) nor draft-pick stash (19th) sniffs the top 15.
This is grounds to bury Miami within the three-year hierarchy. It failed to acquire a name bigger than Norman Powell this past offseason, and is seemingly waiting around for Giannis Antetokounmpo to reach the chopping block, which we know won’t happen until next summer at the absolute earliest.
That effectively nukes the Heat’s standing for one of the three years ESPN put under the microscope. They have a pathway to proving doubters wrong, but will be hard-pressed to flirt with title contention.
For all of the valuable depth in place, Miami is inundated with question marks and placeholders. Bam Adebayo and Dru Smith are the only players under guaranteed contract beyond the 2026-27 season, and the team doesn’t have a burgeoning superstar on its roster,—unless you have irrational expectations for Kel’el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis, or Pelle Larsson. And even if one of them hits that threshold, they are early enough into their careers that we can’t assume it’ll happen this season, or even next.
ESPN clearly values Miami’s immediate flexibility
The Heat can dredge up over $30 million in cap space next summer, depending on the outcome of Andrew Wiggins’ player option. This spending power can skyrocket to $90-plus million in 2027.
Yet, by that point, two of the three years under ESPN’s spotlight will be in the rear view.
Sticking Miami in the top half of these rankings makes little sense if you believe the search for a star will take another two seasons. This points to the Heat making a splash no later than next summer, either in free agency or on the trade market.
If recent reports are any indication, the big move will come via trade. Miami seems more willing to add money to its cap sheet beyond this season. That is risky to some extent. Mostly, it’s just in line with reality.
Stars are not swapping teams in free agency anymore. Signing extensions or asking for trades is the new normal. The Heat know this. They’re seemingly planning for it. And if ESPN’s reasoning proves accurate, they’re going to act on it—soon.