Heat’s ability to land Giannis Antetokounmpo could come down to this 1 player - Hot Hot Hoops

Miami Heat (Mandatory Credit: Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

While Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future with the Milwaukee Bucks has been murky for the past several months, he could be on his way out sooner rather than later.

There’s still a week left ahead of the Feb. 5 trade deadline. But the Bucks are now listening to offers for the two-time MVP, who remains one of the best players in the NBA when healthy.

Antetokounmpo currently isn’t healthy right now, but he’ll still have a market ahead of the trade deadline. And one of those teams widely expected to have interest is the Miami Heat, whose interest in stars is almost as common as the sky being blue.

Admittedly, the Heat have a limited stash of assets. However, their ability to execute an Antetokounmpo blockbuster ahead of the deadline could be contigent on one player.

Why the Miami Heat’s ability to land Giannis Antetokounmpo could come down to Tyler Herro:

At this point, Heat guard Tyler Herro has survived the infinity gauntlet of trade rumors — some more legitimate than others.

That said, no stone should be unturned for the Heat (except maybe Bam Adebayo, the primary attraction for Antetokounmpo) when it comes to Giannis Antetokounmpo.

After all, he’s the name they’ve been pursuing for a half-dozen years. He’s Pat Riley’s white whale, and they shouldn’t consider keeping anything that jeopordizes their chances at acquiring Antetokounmpo.

According to ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania, the Bucks are aiming to “a blue-chip young talent and/or a surplus of draft picks.” Miami only fits one of those criteria, depending on how people feel about Heat center Kel’el Ware. It only has two tradable first-round picks, the first of which comes in 2032.

However, how the Bucks feel about Herro could be the real decider.

He’s currently the Heat’s most expensive contract not named Bam Adebayo. He’s also one of the Heat’s most attractive assets not named Adebayo or Kel’el Ware. And the organization will need to make a decision on him sooner rather than later.

Herro and Ware make the most sense as the two headliners of the deal — as well as all the pick capital. But the value is in the eye of the beholder. Herro’s archetype (one-way scoring guard with short arms) isn’t valued around the NBA. Not to mention, the one-time All-Star has appeared in just 62.2 percent of the team’s games the last three years, including just 11 games this year.

Herro is from Milwaukee, Wis., and would immediately give the Bucks some semblance of star power as they transition into their next phase. But there’s a possibility that the organization may not see him as the center piece to a trade for the greatest player in franchise history.

Heat’s ability to land Giannis Antetokounmpo could come down to this 1 player – Hot Hot Hoops

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