Piece by: Nick Lombardi
Less than a year ago, the Miami Heat won the Eastern Conference with one of the most shocking playoff runs we've ever seen. They had three key rookies in Duncan Robinson, Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro with both Robinson and Nunn joining the team as undrafted rookies. They had versatile big man, Bam Adebayo and their star player, Jimmy Butler. With so much cap space avaliable, the Heat seemed poised for another big run in 2021.
After 4 grueling games against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Heat have exited the postseason with a whimper. Jimmy Butler, a man who has embraced his role as the leader and the star of the team, averaged just 14.5 points on 32% shooting from the field. Tyler Herro looked like a budding star in the bubble last year, only to completely disappear down the stretch for Miami.
So where do the Heat go from here? Well, Nunn and Robinson are free agents, as is trade deadline bust Victor Oladipo. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo account for over 80% of the current Heat payroll next season, so there is a possibility that they could bring in a top free agent, though the class appears to be a bit weaker than in previous years.
The team likely has enough cap space to resign their younger players and attempt to patch up some holes with cheaper veterans. Veteran GM Pat Riley has a very long off-season ahead of him as he tries to repair this franchise that's seemingly nowhere close to competing in a top heavy Eastern Conference. On top of the personnel choices, the Heat don't have total control over their first round draft picks until 2024.
In 9 months, the Heat have gone from looking like a team with both a bright present and promising future and now, all of that seems gone and what's left is a mediocre basketball team treading water. This off-season will determine what direction this franchise takes and it could ultimately be a make or break summer for South Beach basketball for the foreseeable future.