Q: Sign Russell Westbrook. We lost that guy to ignite a team when Jimmy Butler left, but we did get deeper. – Tyler.
A: By all appearances, unless the Heat are involved in a trade that sends out more players than are taken back in, it looks like the work on the standard roster is complete, as we wait to see what happens with Dru Smith. For all the energy and perhaps leadership Russell Westbrook can provide, it is time for those who have been in place to take stock of inspiring and motivating. And for all that Russell Westbrook did or didn’t do last season with the Nuggets, there are limits to making it work in the NBA with a wing who can’t shoot. Don’t see the fit, including from a salary-cap/luxury-tax perspective. Plus, one would think Westbrook would want to move to more of a win-now situation, not a play-in team hoping for more. As it is, any guard brought in most likely would set up behind Tyler Herro, Norman Powell and Davion Mitchell, so not sure a proven veteran would embrace being a fourth guard.
Q: Ira, your analysis of the current CBA is spot on correct which brings me on to the current question: Knowing very well as a team that draft picks and draft position are key elements to building a team, do you think moving forward Erik Spoelstra will be more inclined to partially tank at season’s end if the team is not playing for a top six spot? Clearly Spo’s approach this past season cost the team a high pick. What is to gain from such an approach? – Jerry, Miami.
A: What was gained was a three-day span of defying odds by going from No. 10 to the playoffs, showing the value to the team’s young players of perseverance. Unless seeding is locked in, the Heat will not tank. Just won’t. Not this team. Not this management. Granted, with the Heat holding their own first-round pick in June, there could be something to be said about draft positioning. But the only way that comes into play is if injuries rob the opportunity to at least dream of playoff success.
Q: Pat Riley hates LeBron James. Move on. – Mitch.
A: Um, no, he doesn’t. Pat Riley in 2025 is not the same Pat Riley who got blown off by LeBron James at that Vegas hotel in 2014 free agency. The Heat repeatedly have shown the ability to put past differences aside when it comes to the greater good. If LeBron James can find a way to go back to play for Dan Gilbert, Pat Riley certainly can offer an embrace if needed.