Heat get night #1 draft steal

He is big enough to defensive rebound (he averaged 5.7 rebounds per game for the Illini.) He has great court vision and “gets the offense going.” Jonathan Givony from Draft Express tweeted after the draft combine that he measured 6’6 in shoes and was comfortable in the combine shooting drills.

The young man won’t be “a savior.” He is a developmental player that will go to the G-League and will learn quickly. The Heat have not had a point guard prospect for a long while. The draft profiles have him switching to the off-guard position for the NBA, but I want to dream.

Heat balance between fans and salary cap reality

Heat fans over the years have complained that they had too many older players. Pat Riley has historically been a President that hasn’t liked investing in young players. The Heat as a basketball franchise has been at the upper levels of the salary cap with little room to navigate. The Heat wouldn’t have won the lottery. Fans shouldn’t have been grimacing when they saw the Mavs pick Cooper Flagg with the first pick.

What do the Heat do? Well their plan is to “meet in the middle.” The Heat are stockpiling young players and developing them in the G-League. The players are good (Keshad Johnson, Josh Christopher, Orlando Robinson, Jamal Cain) and can contribute/have contributed to wins.

NBA teams know the developmental talents of the Heat. The Heat can win with the players and develop them into reliable team contributors. They could be average with these players but package several of them for an elite player. With both paths of commitment, they will be a team that is below salary caps and aprons. The team is doing what every fan wants, their job.