The Dallas Mavericks have officially ruled themselves out of the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, thus opening the door for the Miami Heat to make their move. It's an admittedly surprising development so far out from the 2025 NBA Draft, but Dallas has reportedly confirmed that it will hold on to the No. 1 overall selection.
As a result, the single most attractive trade asset in the NBA has officially been eliminated from any potential Antetokounmpo negotiations.
Dallas entered the lottery with just 1.8 percent odds of landing the No. 1 overall draft pick. A shot at Luka Doncic redemption arrived earlier than anticipated, however, when the Mavericks made a scrutinized leap to No. 1.
According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, the Mavericks will draft Cooper Flagg and won't even consider trading the No. 1 pick—for Antetokounmpo or anyone else.
"After making the biggest leap in NBA draft lottery history to land the No. 1 overall pick, the Dallas Mavericks plan to select Duke forward Cooper Flagg and will not entertain the possibility of trading away the pick for a proven superstar, sources told ESPN."
MacMahon continued:
"Sources told ESPN that Patrick Dumont, who just finished his first year as the Mavs' governor, considers the opportunity to be in position to draft a generational talent such as Flagg a 'gift.'"
The true gift, however, is the one that Dallas has inadvertently handed to the Heat: An opportunity to pursue Antetokounmpo without their most obvious competitor standing in their way.
Mavericks will not trade No. 1 pick for Giannis Antetokounmpo
Had Dallas offered the No. 1 overall selection for Antetokounmpo, it would've been hard to defend Milwaukee declining the trade. Assuming Antetokounmpo formally requests a trade, then the Bucks will immediately be sent into a rebuilding phase.
Perhaps Milwaukee believes it can acquire a star-caliber talent, but with limited resources to build for the now, no offer would be more appealing than the No. 1 pick.
Flagg isn't just the consensus No. 1 overall selection, but is widely regarded as a generational talent. He's a 6'9" forward with positional versatility, NBA-caliber athleticism, a well-rounded skill set as a scorer, the willingness and ability to facilitate, and high-level defensive acumen.
Thankfully, the Mavericks have opted against offering the Bucks a new franchise player—meaning the Heat remain alive in the race for Antetokounmpo.
What can the Heat offer for Giannis Antetokounmpo?
Miami has an intriguing collection of assets that can be offered in a potential move for the two-time MVP. That includes All-Star scoring guard Tyler Herro, who would give Milwaukee an early building block in its expedited rebuild.
Herro, 25, finished the 2024-25 regular season averaging 23.9 points, 5.5 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 0.9 steals, and 3.3 three-point field goals made per game on .472/.375/.878 shooting.
Throwing in Terry Rozier's expiring contract would get the deal over the finish line from a financial perspective. From there, the Heat could include as many as three future first-round draft picks, slated to relay in 2025, 2029, and 2031—with additional options for pick swaps in 2026, 2028, and 2030.
Miami also has a surplus of intriguing up-and-comers on rookie-scale contracts who can be included, including Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jovic, and Kel'el Ware.
The Heat would obviously prefer not to lose all of Herro, Jaquez, Jovic, and Ware. Conventional wisdom would imply they'll be able to achieve that goal. In saying that, this is a trade for one of the three best players on the planet—a former NBA champion, at that.
If Herro, Rozier, draft compensation, and one or even two of Jaquez, Jovic, and Ware is enough to get this trade done, then the Heat shouldn't hesitate to do so.
What would a Giannis-era Heat team look like?
In the event that Herro is the star player Miami opts to trade for Antetokounmpo, the Heat would instantly build the early foundation for a defensive juggernaut. Antetokounmpo would start alongside Bam Adebayo, thus giving Erik Spoelstra elite versatility at the back end of his defense.
Miami would also have two interior players capable of leading the offense, with Adebayo showing his value as a scorer by averaging 21.0 points on .513/.432/.811 shooting after Feb. 1.
If the Heat were to trade Adebayo instead of Herro, they would create an intriguing high-low balance. Herro is fresh off of his best regular season in the NBA, and has proven capable of thriving both with and without the ball in his hands.
Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, has scored upward of 30.4 points per game in each of the past three seasons and is arguably the most dominant interior presence in the game.
Regardless of which path the Heat opt to follow, the bottom line is that they'd need to be resourceful in their efforts to complement Antetokounmpo. Kyle Anderson, Duncan Robinson, and Andrew Wiggins would be the most experienced remaining veterans, although Robinson only has a rounded-up $9.9 million guaranteed for 2025-26—meaning roughly $10 million in space could be created.
With no state income tax and a proven track record of winning with superstar talent, however, the Heat seem like the perfect place for Antetokounmpo's next chapter.
The Mavericks just made that Miami dream a significantly more realistic possibility.