New Report on Miami Heat's Plan B Amid Kevin Durant Trade Rumors

It is no secret that the Kings are willing to move DeRozan and have likely had talks with multiple teams regarding possible trade packages. Miami is a team with assets that could prove beneficial to Sacramento and is in the market for a veteran scorer to boost their offensive firepower. 

These rumors have been heating up over the last couple of days, as there are multiple potential trade deals being circulated that would see DeRozan end up in Miami. One component in particular that would almost certainly need to be included in any trade agreed upon by the Kings and Heat is Miami’s first-round pick in the upcoming draft. 

Miami currently owns the No. 20 pick in the first round in next week’s draft. Multiple sources have reported recently that Sacramento’s front office team has been telling agents that the team expects to acquire a first-round pick as high as the early 20s. Since the Kings do not have a first-round pick at the moment, this implies that there may be some sort of deal on the horizon that would land them a pick in the mid-to-late portion of the first round.

A deal with Miami that involves the No. 20 pick would certainly fulfill this prediction, and if Durant gets traded elsewhere, we may see this potential deal come to fruition. However, the Kings may have other avenues of acquiring a first-round pick that do not involve the Miami Heat.

Whether or not the deal is with Miami or another team, and whether it includes DeRozan or another one of Sacramento’s star players, such as Domantas Sabonis or Zach LaVine, the general consensus is that the Kings need to shake things up this offseason. 

Fans should not expect a complete overhaul , but “running it back” with essentially the same team that we saw last season would likely result in even worse results. The Kings’ front office appears to understand and agree with this, and at least GM Scott Perry has acknowledged that changes need to be made. 

If Sacramento can improve the team on the floor while shedding at least one of its larger contracts and get younger in the process, that would have to be considered an unmitigated success. We may find out sooner rather than later if Perry can pull off that kind of deal.