Among the biggest what-ifs in Miami Heat history is what would have happened had the Heat simply selected Devin Booker in the 2015 draft.
And it’s not just Heat fans who wonder about it. Booker revealed that he thought the Heat were going to take him with the 10th overall pick, too, a painful reminder of the organization’s missed opportunity to land an All-NBA level scorer.
“I thought I was going to Miami,” Booker told Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell on The Backyard Podcast. “That’s where I was hoping… Miami was my best workout, and then I remember, I think Pat Riley came into . He did an interview and he’s like ‘We’re looking for a player like Klay Thompson, we need to up our shooting.’ I just shot 40 in college.
“I’m looking at spots right down there by the arena,” he added.
Devin Booker was so convinced that he was getting drafted by the Miami Heat in 2015 that he was looking for places to live in downtown Miami.
Booker was on the board when the Heat were selecting 10th overall but, surprisingly, so was Duke forward Justise Winslow. The Heat went with Winslow, who was a projected top-five pick in that class. Booker was taken 13th by the Phoenix Suns.
“Draft is crazy,” Booker said. “Your life changes like that, you have no control over it really.”
Booker averaged 13.8 points per game as a rookie, then 22.1 in his second season. Nine years into his career, he’s a four-time All-Star, has been earned All-NBA honors twice and helped lead the Suns to the 2021 Finals. He’s averaged 24.3 points for his career.
Meanwhile, Winslow averaged 9.0 points and 5.4 rebounds in five seasons and 105 starts with Miami. He went on to play with the Grizzlies, Clippers and Trail Blazers and spent last season with Toronto’s G-League team.
On the night of the 2015 draft, Heat president Pat Riley acknowledged that it was a surprise that Winslow was on the board when they were making their pick. Riley compared the process to when Caron Butler dropped to the Heat in 2002, then compared Winslow to Draymond Green.
Since then, the Heat have been better at the draft and have made it a point to stick to their board. Their selections of Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jovic were all met with some skepticism on draft night but have yielded cornerstone pieces and rotation players.
But if the Heat could take two picks back, it would be selecting Winslow over Booker in 2015 and taking Precious Achiuwa with the 20th pick in 2020 over Tyrese Maxey, who has emerged an an All-Star with the Philadelphia 76ers.
It’s fair to wonder how things would have been different had the Heat selected Booker in 2015. Would Dwyane Wade had left a promising future All-Star the next summer? How much winning could that team have done, and would they have been in position to draft Bam Adebayo in the lottery two years later? Would Jimmy Butler still have come over in 2019? Of course, it’s all impossible to know.
🚨 Reckless speculation alert 🚨
Are we sure Booker won’t ever play in Miami?
Booker can become a free agent in 2028, the same summer Adebayo – Booker’s Team USA teammate – will be eligible for a contract extension.
Booker has endured playing for one of the league’s most unstable organizations. His career includes playing for two owners and seven head coaches in nine seasons. He could crave the environment and stability of the Heat, which is regarded as one of the most professional organizations in the sport and where coach Erik Spoelstra recently signed an eight-year contract extension.
Maybe Booker still has those Zillow listings saved.