There's no question in my mind that the Miami Heat are one of the few (realistic) trade destinations for Giannis Antetokounmpo that the rest of the league has to be strongly rooting against. And now that a Giannis trade has become much more plausible, there are many across the league who have to be holding their collective breaths.
Sure, in theory, the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs could be labeled as the two teams that would create nightmares if Giannis were traded there, but I simply don't believe either one of those situations is all that likely.
I can't envision the Thunder breaking up their championship team for Giannis, especially considering they're already the overwhelming favorites to win it all again this season. And the early word is that the Spurs don't have interest in breaking up their young core for Giannis, either.
Plus, I'm not sure Giannis would be 100 percent willing to play side-character next to Victor Wembanyama, but that's an entirely different conversation in itself.
Giannis and the Heat are a scary duo
That's why I place the Heat in a category of themselves. They're probably the one team that has a realistic shot at Giannis (if they could get their draft assets in order), who many would fear because of the excellence of their front office.
The Heat has proven that not only do they have a front office that can get the star player, but also the organizational structure in place to win with said star player.
Even though Jimmy Butler never won a championship in Miami, they did make three Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals. You can be critical of the front office, but those results do speak for themselves.
And let's not forget, many didn't consider Jimmy a true alpha (with established success) until he got to Miami. That's officially when the narrative around him began to shift.
But that won't be an issue for Giannis if he would be traded to Miami.
Giannis is an alpha and has had great success already. The Heat would just be looking to continue to get the most out of him, while establishing a championship-worthy supporting cast around him.
Landing Giannis would be the difficult part. Building the team around him would be an easy task, especially considering Miami has a pretty deep roster already in place. They may not have the star power, but they may already have that championship-worthy supporting cast in place.
Add in a star player (Giannis or not), and this Heat team gets really dangerous.
As the Giannis trade drama begins to crank up, the Heat are certainly one team to keep a close eye on. And, believe it or not, they're one of the few destinations that the rest of the league has to be rooting against coming to fruition.