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MIAMI, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 21: Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat drives to the basket against Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half at FTX Arena on October 21, 2021 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
The Miami Heat will have a chance to upgrade their roster for true title contention next season after the shocking move of trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Miami dealt draft picks and young talents to acquire Giannis, but questions have emerged about filling out a deep enough roster to truly contend in the East. Other offseason trades and free agent moves will be needed for the Heat to prepare for their future.
Longtime Miami writer Ira Winderman listed popular sharpshooter Tim Hardaway Jr. when discussing his belief of the Heat’s next step in their offseason plan:
“To me if you’re asking for the next name in play (to get traded soon), I think it’d be Nikola Jovic at his $14-to-16-million-dollar salary. You clear that out, you could bring (Norman) Powell back, bring Wiggins back, you’d have the mid-level and maybe go for Tim Hardaway Jr. You can round this out fine. The Heat are not done.”
The Heat are trying to find ways to create more money and add more talent to the roster. Winderman revealed that he expects Nikola Jovic to get traded next to remove his contract from the books. Miami would then look to both retain players from last season’s team and potentially go after Hardaway Jr to improve the outside shooting.
Why Tim Hardaway Jr. Is Perfect For Miami Heat
The first thing to look at when thinking about Hardaway’s role on the Heat roster is to realize how much talent they’ve lost. In exchange for Giannis, Miami gave up on Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr, and Kasparas Jakucionis as four rotation players.
The Heat did get Bobby Portis from the Milwaukee Bucks with Antetokounmpo, but his age makes it hard to fully trust him in a consistent rotation as easily next year. Hardaway instantly fills one of those spots as one of the best veteran role players in the NBA today.
The Denver Nuggets signed Hardaway last summer and saw him helping their roster, despite the lack of team playoff success. Hardaway is comfortable taking big shots in big moments. Denver not looking to retain Hardaway could see him picking Miami as his next title contending roster to join.
Miami Hoping To Retain Popular Names
Winderman referenced both Andrew Wiggins and Norman Powell as names that are uncertain to return. Wiggins holds a player option that will see him likely wanting more years added to his contract on a smaller figure.
Powell is entering free agency and reportedly felt unsure about his role in Miami due to getting benched after making the All-Star team. However, things have changed and the Heat would love to keep him after losing about a third of their rotation from last season.
Trading Jovic means that they can boost their chances of signing Powell or extending Wiggins. The hope would be to have one or both of those names joining Giannis and Bam Adebayo as core starting players for next season. Hardway is required to take a small contract either way, but he may be the ideal sixth man for this exact situation.
Joey Haverford Joey Haverford is a seasoned sports content writer with over 12 years of experience. He has covered the NBA, WNBA, MLB, NFL, and professional wrestling in the sports industry. More about Joey Haverford