Former Miami Heat forward and NBA journeyman Markieff Morris believes that the Heat made a mistake by not trading for superstar Kevin Durant.
Miami was one of the teams that reportedly was interested in Durant, but the Houston Rockets ended up agreeing to a trade for the two-time NBA Finals MVP on Sunday, giving up a package headlined by Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and the No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
“Of course they made a mistake,” Morris said when asked if the Heat made a mistake by missing out on Durant. “Why would you not go get a Hall of Famer to actually give you guys the push to get over, right? He has ties with Bam [Adebayo] playing in USA Basketball. He can help Tyler Herro grow.
“But, no disrespect to the players, but the pieces that you had to give up to give K.D., I’m doing that 10 out of 10 times. And in the basketball world, I think everybody else is doing that 10 out of 10 times, right, especially with how up in the air the East will be next year, right?
“You have teams up and coming like the Orlando Magic that just got [Desmond] Bane. So, you got teams like that up and coming, but other than that, it’s up in the air. You have the [New York] Knicks that you have to go against.
“But other than that, a guy like Kevin Durant added to that team, added to that foundation, that structure that they already had, how could you not do that? I just don’t get – the players – I know who you were trading and the pieces. I’m just like – I’m in awe. I’m just still sitting like, how did that not happen?”
The Heat reportedly improved their offer for Durant, but they were unable (or unwilling) to compete with the Rockets’ package for the star forward in the end.
Now, Miami will have to look elsewhere as it tries to upgrade a roster that finished in the No. 10 spot in the Eastern Conference in the 2024-25 regular season. The Heat still ended up making the playoffs by winning back-to-back games in the play-in tournament, but they were not title contenders in the 2024-25 season.
That was evident in the first round of the playoffs, as Miami was swept by the No. 1-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. The Heat were blown out in multiple games in that series, showing that they simply do not have enough firepower to compete with some of the NBA’s top teams at the moment.
In 62 games in the 2024-25 season, Durant averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 52.7 percent from the field and 43.0 percent from 3-point range.
Morris clearly thinks that he would have helped Miami in the 2025-26 season, but now the Heat will have to watch Durant on a Rockets team that should be in the mix for the top spot in the West. Houston finished with the No. 2 seed in the West in the 2024-25 season.