I'll admit, I have been an incredibly harsh critic of Nikola Jovic. Before I continue that trend, I'm sure he's a great guy, and I think he could eventually turn into a quality NBA player in a new situation. After all, he's still only 23 years old, and I wouldn't want to count his entire career out this young.
Now that we have the positives out of the way, Jovic should be in street clothes for the rest of his Heat tenure. Not because he's injured, but because he has no reason to be playing for the Heat, even if the depth isn't the strongest. There is nothing he has done in the past year and a half that gives me any confidence in his ability to contribute to this team.
Nikola Jovic doesn't seem like a great fit in Miami
Of course, the Heat paying Jovic $62 million fully guaranteed is absolutely part of the problem. I understand he showed some potential, starting quite a few games for the team while also being a decent secondary playmaker. However, between inconsistency and injury history, he was not worth the amount he was paid a year ago.
He had some moments here and there, but that contract is looking like a huge mistake for the Heat.
Last season, Jovic had his worst season to date. Just after he signed the contract extension. There's an argument to be made that he was one of the worst rotation players in the NBA.
In 47 appearances, he shot a putrid 36 percent from the field, 27 percent from the 3-point range on 3.6 attempts per game. Even if his advanced defensive numbers weren't terrible, he always seemed outmatched on that end of the floor, too.
And yet, Jovic still somehow earned another opportunity this season.
It's hard to defend this decision from Erik Spoelstra when a role-specific player like Simone Fontecchio can't seem to buy a minute. Despite his inconsistencies last season, Fontecchio had some really strong moments last year as a 3-point shooter. Sure, Jovic is younger and is being paid more, but if Spoelstra is really looking for a spark, maybe the move should've been to turn to a specialist like Fontecchio instead of shooting for the stars with the unproven talent.
Pat Riley needs to work to try and miraculously trade Nikola Jovic
So if there's another miracle trade that Pat Riley can pull off after the unlikely move for Giannis Antetokounmpo, it almost has to start, or at least include, Jovic.
I get that his contract is not good by any stretch, but he's young enough that teams could convince themselves that they wouldn't need the Heat to attach a huge draft asset to get off of Jovic's contract. And his contract is big enough to match the deals of veterans the Heat may want to target.
Maybe the Clippers want to trade the expiring contracts of former Heat players like Derrick Jones Jr. or Max Strus for some young talent? You never know. At this point, the Heat must explore those options.
One thing I do know: Jovic's time on the Heat could be over very soon. The Heat aren't a rebuilding team, and Jovic, as a project, just doesn't match the Heat's timeline.
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