The Miami Heat gave up quite a haul in the trade that brought Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to South Beach. The response has thus been that Miami lacks the depth to support the two-time MVP, as they lost a number of talented players.
For as much as the Heat gave up, they've actually built a depth chart with no fewer than seven players who are proven in their respective roles.
The Heat parted with a mountain of talented players in the Antetokounmpo deal. Tyler Herro is a former All-Star and Sixth Man of the Year. Jaime Jaquez Jr. finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting in 2025-26. Kel'el Ware is already a nightly double-double threat at 22 years of age. Kasparas Jakučionis shot 42.3 percent from beyond the arc as a rookie.
Herro is the oldest player in that group at 26 years of age, which thus implies that there was untapped potential that Miami ultimately opted against exploring. Giving all of those players up is thus tough to stomach.
For as true as that may be, Miami losing a long list of players doesn't inherently mean that they have no one to replace them with. The Heat had logjams at several positions already, and even as they've been fairly quiet during free agency, they've built a strong rotation.
With a true No. 1 finally leading the charge, the Heat have enough depth to at least be strong at the top of their rotation—and they still have the resources to add more talent.
Heat have at least seven quality players who are ready to contribute
Miami's starting lineup currently projects to feature Pelle Larsson and Davion Mitchell in the backcourt, Andrew Wiggins at the 3, and Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo at the interior positions. Behind them will be Tim Hardaway Jr. and Portis—both of whom have been Sixth Man of the Year finalists in one of the past two seasons.
There are question marks in terms of shooting and shot creation, but there's also promise to be found in 6'10" playmaker Nikola Jovic and proven shooter Simone Fontecchio.
Furthermore, all four of Hardaway, Mitchell, Portis, and Wiggins shot at least 39.5 percent from beyond the arc this past season. On the other end of the floor, Mitchell ranked in the 98th percentile in perimeter isolation defense, Wiggins finished in the 96th percentile, and Larsson placed in the 94th percentile, per Basketball Index.
Compounded by the fact that Adebayo and Antetokounmpo are elite interior defenders, there's quite a combination of shooting and defense already.
It's also worth noting that the Heat have considerable financial resources to build out their rotation even further. With $8,979,000 from the taxpayer mid-level exception, a $5,616,000 traded player exception, and $5,477,000 from the bi-annual exception, Miami could realistically add three quality pieces to their roster by the end of the summer or during the season.
Miami is by no means a perfect team, but with no fewer than seven players who are proven to excel in their roles, they've become painfully underrated.
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