It's been publicly reported that the Miami Heat are embracing somewhat of a youth movement heading into the 2025-26 NBA season, but that doesn't mean they aren't open to other potential moves before the end of the summer. If the recent reporting is accurate, the Heat may be quietly working to land flashy power forward John Collins.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, the Heat are working on multiple fronts as the offseason continues to unwind. Collins has been one player the team has been linked to recently. Whether the Heat will end up strongly pursuing such a deal remains to be seen, but they've at least explored some interest in what a deal could look like.
While it may not seem like a good move for the Heat to acquire Collins, it may be worth the flier at this point in his career. Still at just 27 years old, Collins is one of the more unique talents at the position. Even though he may not have reached his full potential through the first few years of his career with the Atlanta Hawks and Utah Jazz, there's a reason to believe the Heat could like their chances at making him a next reclamation project.
The Heat is clearing buying their time
There are many names across the league that the Heat have been linked to through the first week of the NBA offseason. It's no surprise that the Heat has been rumored to have interest in the likes of DeMar DeRozan, Collins, Damian Lillard, and even Jonathan Kuminga. How interested the Heat are in each of those players remains to be seen. But there's certainly at least some smoke.
At this point, it does feel as if the Heat are just buying their time for the right deal. And, in the process, they have no issues in exploring many potential possibilities. Again, there's no guarantee the Heat would be highly interested in any of these deals, but if the right low-risk, high-reward opportunity does present itself, those are the types of moves that we generally see the Heat jump on.
Whether or not that's a smart philosophy is an entirely different question. But it's what has historically worked for the team, no matter how frustrating it may be for the fan base.
From everything that has been reported over the last few days, there's a good chance Miami stands pat for the remainder of the offseason. In theory, they don't necessarily have to make a move. Their roster currently stands at 15 players.
However, at the same time, it shouldn't be all that surprising if there is another shoe to drop before we get to the dog days of August. Maybe it will involve Collins, or another one of these names they've been linked to.