ESPN Insider Gives Reason Miami Heat Lost Out On Kevin Durant

The Miami Heat lost out on Kevin Durant this offseason when many considered them the favorite. ESPN's insider Tim Bontemps believes he knows the reason Durant chose the Houston Rockets. He spoke about it Thursday on First Take.

"You want to know why the Heat didn't go all-in on Kevin Durant," Bontemps said. "Because they lost by a million points to the Cleveland Cavaliers."

The Heat reportedly refused to offer assets like Jaime Jaquez Jr., Haywood Highsmith and Nikola Jovic in the deal. Bontemps said the Heat made the right move because he feels they aren't a contender even with Durant.

"They have to have some level of prudence on looking at their team and saying, `What are we,"' Bontemps said. "Are we a team that's a real contender in the Eastern Conference or are we a team that's a Play-In team? They've been a Play-In team the last several years in a row ... This is not a team where you can look at it and say they are a Kevin Durant away from being a real threat."

DRAFT ANALYST GIVES HEAT PICK A HIGH GRADE

Any notion of the Miami Heat drafting assets for a potential trade faded away as it quickly became a reality, with a lottery pick shockingly falling to the No. 20 pick.

Kasparas Jakučionis was considered a consensus top-14 draft pick among most expert draft boards, with several having him among the top-10. ESPN’s draft analyst Kevin Pelton believed the Heat’s pick to be one of the best matches in the draft because he feels Jakučionis’ ceiling is tied to Heat fan favorite Goran Dragic.

“Kasparas Jakucionis to the Heat at No. 20. Former Miami guard Goran Dragic has been my comparison for Jakucionis if things go right,” Pelton explained. “They're both physical guards with shooting ability. Dragic improved his high turnover rate that limited him as a young player, and Jakucionis will have to do the same. Jakucionis' size at 6-foot-6 will allow him to play alongside either Tyler Herro or Davion Mitchell, presuming the Heat retain Mitchell as a restricted free agent.”

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