The Miami Heat trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo is no longer just a pipe dream hope. Now that ESPN's Shams Charania has reported that the Milwaukee Bucks are listening to offers for the superstar forward, the Heat has to be considered "in the mix" for Giannis.
Whether Miami can make an appealing enough offer before the February 5 NBA Trade Deadline remains to be seen, but the idea that the Heat could trade for Giannis is no longer just wishful thinking.
The first big shoe before a Giannis trade has seemingly dropped. Per Shams, Giannis has made it clear to Milwaukee that he desires a new home. The real bombshell reporting is the fact that the Bucks may finally be listening to offers.
The Heat are on the clock for Giannis
That's the shift that the Heat, and many other potential suitors, were waiting for.
Miami now has that. Now they're on the clock. They have roughly a week (before the trade deadline) to build out an offer that the Bucks would have to consider. If not, the Heat will risk losing Giannis to another bidding team at the deadline, or must be prepared for an even deeper pool of competition during the offseason.
Either way, this is all the Heat wanted - a chance. They seemingly have that now.
The two favorites for Giannis
The good news is that if there are any "early favorites" for Giannis, the Heat are one of them. The other team is the New York Knicks. Aside from another flurry of teams that are expected to be interested in trading for Giannis, the Heat and Knicks have consistently been named as two landing spots that would naturally appeal to him.
Whether or not that will matter in the end remains to be seen. However, the overwhelming belief is that the Heat will factor into this Giannis revelation one way or another.
The bottom line is that the Heat's time to strike has arrived.
From all indications, the Heat has been building toward this moment. Even if that hasn't been obviously apparent for the average fan, this front office is not surprised by any of this news.
In many ways, they've been waiting for this to happen. And the argument can be made that the Heat's front office has been relaying this belief by some of their recent moves - or lack thereof.
The Giannis dream is real. It's here. Can the Heat take advantage? That's the burning question that will dictate the future success of this franchise.