As the Miami Heat prepare to make another move or two around Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo in free agency, they're set to priortize adding another big guard.
According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, that seems to be the plan for the Heat's front office as they eye their next move in building out a supporting cast around Giannis. That's not nearly as surprising as you'd expect, but it does help narrow down the players that the Heat could be pursuing in the next few days.
Free agents the Heat have expressed interest in
Of the players that have been linked to the Heat, Jackson mentions Bradley Beal, Anfernee Simons, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as potential options. Also added as possibilities were DeMar DeRozan, who has long been linked to the Heat before, and Zach LaVine.
Both DeRozan and LaVine would have to be bought out by the Sacramento Kings first before they'd become an option for the Heat. Nevertheless, this does give Heat fans a greater understanding of what type of move(s) could be on the horizon for the team.
First things first, though, Miami still needs to finalize the Giannis deal. The trade is expected to be announced officially on July 6, when the new league year starts, but there have been some whispers that the Heat could be looking to expand the original agreement in an attempt to gain more financial flexibility.
The Heat could create more financial flexibility
Perhaps to put a truly compelling offer for any of the names listed above.
But that is a lot easier said than done. If Miami goes down that route and is successful in doing so, you'd imagine that they'd probably have to find a third team for a player like Bobby Portis (who was originally set to land in Miami along with Giannis) or Nikola Jovic (whose new four-year, $63 million contract kicks in this season).
Those could be considered tall tasks for the Heat, but accomplishing any one of those two moves (or perhaps both) will give this team so much more financial flexibility right now in their attempts to surround Giannis with a strong supporting cast.
So where the Heat goes from here is really anyone's guess. They're also still waiting out the entire process with LeBron James, who could be considering a return to Miami.
Even after the big move for Giannis, there are plenty of unknowns about how this Heat roster is going to look a month from now, or even when they open camp in October. The hope is that over the next few days, many of those questions will begin to be answered.
And, at this point, especially if the recent rumor mill holds true, you can expect the Heat to add a big guard to their roster before that. Odds are, it's probably going to be one of the names they've recently been linked to.
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