The Miami Heat being far from contender status in the Eastern Conference could be one of the biggest reasons why their Giannis Antetokounmpo dream may already be dead before the offseason even arrives.
At least in part, you'd have to imagine that Giannis playing for a championship contender is going to be high on his list of requests this summer. Miami is one of the teams that can't genuinely sell him on that with how their roster is currently constructed.
As Marc Stein notes, if Giannis were to leave Milwaukee, it would be for a contender. That leaves the Heat in a vulnerable spot. Right now, even though Miami has played better out of the NBA All-Star break, this team is far from a contender.
While the Heat may feel as if they could cobble together an attractive trade offer for Milwaukee, Giannis may be turned off by the idea of embracing a move to Miami because of how much their roster would be considered a work in progress.
It's this idea that the Heat are not that much better than the Bucks currently are in the East standings. Making the move from Milwaukee to Miami, from a basketball perspective, may not be that big of an upgrade in Giannis' eyes. And that could be a huge problem for the Heat's chances at Giannis.
The Heat feel they could build a contender quickly
But that won't deter the Heat. If there's anything we've learned from this front office, it's the idea that they won't let much stand in the way of their goal. When the Miami arrives, they will pursue Giannis - and strongly.
Despite the fact that they may not have a "ready to win" roster in place, it won't bring any pause to their plans. It may make the degree of difficulty more challenging, but the Heat have been waiting for their chance to trade for Giannis for years. They're not about to stop all of a sudden.
But whether they'll be able to strike a deal remains to be seen, and it should be considered a huge question mark.
Knowing the way the Heat operates (and thinks), they more than likely believe that if they were able to acquire Giannis that they could figure out a path toward building a winner around him. And, to be quite honest, it's difficult to doubt this front office.
They've done it so often in the past that you almost have to trust them.
When the Heat has a superstar player, they win championships. They figure out how. They make the roster and supporting casts work.
Still, that will be a huge sell to Giannis. And there's no guarantee they'll be able to pull it off.
If Giannis does get traded this summer, the Heat will probably be a team he's willing to get traded to. But, especially considering that they're not a contender right now, they probably aren't atop his list of destinations. And that will only make the Heat's path toward pulling off a deal that much more difficult.
The Heat may want Giannis but he may not want the Heat.