Q: Ira, the rumors of the Heat giving up Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis plus two first-round picks for Giannis Antetokounmpo are crazy. Way too much. Giannis is great, but he gets hurt a lot. This season will be the seventh season out of the last eight that he has played in 67 games or less and this would decimate the Heat roster. The Heat need more than a quick fix. OK GM, what are your thoughts on what would be a reasonable offer for Giannis, and how would the roster look after it. – Joel, Plantation.
A: Actually, I would throw in Andrew Wiggins into the package you cite, to get the Bucks another first-rounder. And, no, it is not too much. It is never too much for greatness in its prime. But the second part of your question is what matters most: what is left? That is how you have to look at such a deal, not worry about what might develop elsewhere, but rather where it positions your team. So with those you mentioned offloaded, plus Wiggins, it would leave the Heat with a starting lineup of, say, Bam Adebayo at center, Giannis Antetokounmpo at power forward, Pelle Larsson at small forward, Norman Powell at shooting guard and Davion Mitchell at point guard. That would, at the moment, leave a bench of Nikola Jovic, Dru Smith and Simone Fontecchio. But keep in mind, a robust buyout market could make it relatively simple to almost instantly augment, particularly since the Heat would be below the first luxury-tax apron, and therefore eligible to sign any player on the buyout market, regardless of current contract (assuming most such deals are at the minimum). Dario Saric already is setting up as such an option.
Q: Ira, I keep hearing that Milwaukee would want a bunch of first-round picks plus young talent for Giannis. From what you wrote recently, the Heat could offer several first round-picks plus numerous young players that were first-round picks the last few years who have already started their NBA development. One, Tyler Herro, was an All-Star last year. First-round picks plus several players who were first-round picks, isn’t that a fair offer? – Rich, Plantation.
A: What many lose sight of is that a first-round pick yet to be exercised means it still can be packaged, such as those packaged in bulk in the deals for Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, Mikal Bridges and Demond Bane. Once those picks are exercised, they no longer have the allure of the unknown, can’t be packaged as pick packages. So, yes, it is possible, perhaps even likely, that picks added from elsewhere by the Bucks won’t turn out as good as, say, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr. or Kasparas Jakucionis, but there would remain the allure that they could. It almost is why distant picks often are the preference.
Q: Since the Heat are limited in the power rotation, why have they not added anyone in their remaining roster spot? Couldn’t they use 10-day contracts to try out players before committing? – Jerome, Hollywood.
A: They could, and after the trading deadline, they might well do so. But for now, it’s about conserving as much space below both the luxury tax and tax apron to see if it might be necessary in a potential transaction. No matter how the deadline plays out, a goal for the Heat likely will be to remain below the tax and therefore not have to worry about the repeater tax. Plus, such space below the tax could come in handy on the buyout market.