It's been a pretty solid offseason for the Miami Heat. It's difficult to be upset about any of the moves Miami made or held back in making this summer, but there is one big decision that could end up changing the entire narrative of their last few months - and their future.
Of course, it revolves around the team's most polarizing player, Tyler Herro.
Herro becomes contract extension eligible on October 1, in just a few weeks. Herro and the Heat will have until October 20 to agree to a contract extension. If one isn't agreed upon by then, they'll have to wait until next summer to revisit that possibility.
Make no mistake, one way or another, whatever the Heat decides to ultimately do with Herro over the next few weeks will have a huge impact on how this offseason will be remembered - and will certainly also have a huge hand in how this team is able to operate heading into the future.
While it's impossible to predict what exactly will end up happening with Herro, one thing is for certain: none of this is simple or straightforward by any means.
The Heat must think critically about a Herro extension
In a vacuum, there's a strong reason to believe that Herro has done enough to warrant a big contract extension. He's improved each of the last few seasons for the Heat, making the developmental growth from being a sixth man to a starter. He even made the leap to an All-Star guard this past season, posting career highs in points, assists, and field goal percentage.
Still, just because Herro has done everything in his power to earn a contract extension, it's not that simple for the Heat.
Miami just can't give Herro a contract extension without understanding the financial implications of it all. And the bottom line is that if the Heat were to give Herro anything close to the max extension he's eligible for, it would cripple the team into mediocrity.
Herro is eligible for a three-year, $150 million max extension. Whether he deserves that much or not is an interesting conversation to have. However, it's difficult to envision how the Heat can afford anything more than giving Herro a slight raise from the contract he's on now.
Herro is currently making $31 million this season and is slated for a slight raise ($33 million) next year, if he doesn't opt out of the final year of his contract. For the Heat to be completely comfortable with an extension now, you'd imagine it'd have to top out at roughly $35 million per year.
Anything higher than that, and the Heat would be in a pretty bad spot, especially considering they're already paying Bam Adebyo max money. Of course, the problem is, Herro is probably not going to see eye-to-eye with the Heat on that assessment.
For better or worse, this offseason for the Heat can be made or broken by how the Heat handles this crucial decision. To be perfectly honest, I'm not exactly sure how this will all unfold over the next few weeks. But the importance of it is not lost despite what the Heat has already done this summer.