5. Josh Richardson
Richardson is back with the franchise that drafted him, but he has been traded five times in his nine-year NBA career. The 6’5 wing is always on a reasonable contract and has intriguing versatility. He could be dealt again this offseason.
Richardson averaged 9.9 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 25.7 minutes per game before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in February. The 30-year-old is expected to fully recover for the start of the 2024-25 season but has to decide on his $3.0 million player option first. If he opts in, Miami may put him back on the trade block to sweeten a deal.
The Heat cannot aggregate salaries in a trade if they exceed the second apron, but the franchise can if they remain over the first. Miami needs to send out more money in the trade than they take back. Richardson’s $3 million could be an added piece to get dollars up.
Teams will want Jamie Jaquez or Nikola Jovic, but Pat Riley is unlikely to part with either unless a star returns to South Beach. With the Heat only being able to offer two first-round picks and whoever they select at 15th overall in the 2024 draft, it seems unlikely they land a marquee talent. Miami should look to upgrade and finding a wing improvement over J-Rich may be another reason to trade him.