With Giannis Antetokounmpo officially off the block (for now), the Miami Heat has now failed on another superstar pursuit. The NBA Trade Deadline is still a few hours away, and there's reason to believe that the Heat could still make a move or two, but it won't be for a superstar player.
The Heat had been built up as a potential Giannis suitor for weeks, but ultimately, it does seem as if the Milwaukee Bucks were never seriously considering trading their superstar forward.
Officially, the Heat will need to pivot and start exploring their plan B, C, and D for the trade deadline. Of course, that's under the assumption that they have those in place.
How will the Heat pivot away from Giannis?
But, nevertheless, no matter what happens between now and the trade deadline, this will be remembered by Heat fans as the moment the franchise officially whiffed on Giannis.
Could they still be among the offseason suitors for the superstar forward? Sure. However, with the expectation that there's going to be a much stronger competition for Giannis during the summer, it did seem to feel as if this was their best shot to lure him to Miami.
What's next for Miami? Well, it's tough to say. First, it's important to wait and see how the rest of the trade deadline falls. But if the Heat stand pat (no pun intended), there will certainly be some big questions that this front office will need to answer.
The fan base has been sold on "what hunting," or "star chasing." And for a long time, the fans did carry the water for the front office. But "star chasing" isn't what it used to be in the NBA. And even though the front office may not admit it yet, they continue to implement old strategies that don't seem to work anymore.
Free agency is relatively dead, and star players are now acquired via trade. The front office never adjusted to that trend.
If you're the Heat, the big problem with that is that this front office doesn't value first-round draft capital as it should. And because of that, it's been difficult for them to successfully lure any stars away on the trade market.
It's a big reason why they faltered on Damian Lillard, Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell, and now Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The status quo can't continue for the Heat. It's time to adjust. It's the moment to pivot. Not just on the court, but also in the front office.
The Heat can still pride themselves on "star chasing" if they want, but they need to go about it the proper way. And maybe that does change, but if it is, there's no question it has to start now. Just before this year's trade deadline.
They need more assets. They need more draft capital. They need more ammo. Go and get it. Unfortunately, the only way they can accomplish that is by operating in almost the complete opposite fashion as they've been doing for the past few decades.
And, especially with the way things have gone of late, it's hard to have any type of faith that the Heat's front office will do that.