Now that the details of the Miami Heat's pursuit of Kevin Durant have become public, it's pretty evident they were never serious about trading for him. With KD out of the picture, the future of the Heat hasn't been any clearer over the past couple of seasons than it is right now.
Shortly after the KD trade to Houston was confirmed, it was reported that Miami was never willing to offer more than one first-round pick and that their final offer included Andrew Wiggins, Terry Rozier, Haywood Highsmith, Jaime Jaquez Jr., and the 20th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. In short, it was not a competitive offer.
On Twitter, Suns reporter John Gambadoro was direct in what few other reporters have had the boldness to say - it's the idea that the Heat never really attempted to trade for KD. They were just saving face with this offer and "being interested."
Yes basically the Miami offer was junk. No Ware. No Jovic. Only one draft pick and players they nor the Suns wanted. Garbage. Miami was never really serious. They just pretend to be to appease their fan base. https://t.co/C6LQtETK8i
— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) June 23, 2025
The fact that Miami was not willing to include Nikola Jovic or Kel'el Ware tells the fan base all they need to know about not only how serious the team was about trading for KD, but also gives a clearer indication of what lies ahead for the franchise.
The Heat have quietly picked a path forward
Whether they're willing to admit it or not, it does appear as if the Heat's front office has quietly picked a path forward. By keeping their promising young prospects off the trade block, Miami is clearly embracing a bit of a youth movement. If nothing else, they did make it a priority to keep their young core intact and, perhaps more importantly, their better assets off the block.
That tells me they could be preparing a bigger move for a player that fits their timeline better than KD. Sure, there would've been real excitement around the possible acquisition of KD. However, that window would've been extremely small, and sacrificing the amount and level of assets it was going to take to acquire KD could've done more harm than good in the long run.
The aftermath of their pursuit of KD does suggest that the Heat may be eyeing a bigger move in 2026, when they'll find themselves in a better salary cap situation and with more trade-eligible draft capital. The fan base has been clamoring for the Heat to stop playing both sides and to pick a path forward.
That's exactly what they may have already done, even if many don't seem to realize it just yet. The plan for the Heat appears to revolve around looking forward to 2026. What they do over the course of the remainder of the offseason should - and probably will - reinforce that idea.