![\"Kevin](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/122031839.jpg\" "\\"Kevin")
Kevin Durant trade explodes after Miami Heat refuse to sacrifice Nikola Jovic offer weak draft compensation (Image Source: Getty Images) The Miami Heat surprised many this week. They appeared in trade discussions for superstar Kevin Durant, but didn\u2019t truly put their top young talents on the table. Instead, they made it clear: Nikola Jovic and Kel\u2019el Ware weren\u2019t for sale. The team also offered just one first-round pick. Now, fans are wondering\u2014was Miami even serious?<\/p>\n
The Miami Heat slammed the door on offers involving Nikola Jovic and Kel\u2019el Ware<\/p>\n
According to longtime Phoenix insider John Gambadoro, known as @Gambo987, on June 23, the Miami Heat told the Phoenix Suns that two of their rising forwards, Nikola Jovic and Kel\u2019el Ware, were off limits in talks for Kevin Durant . Gambadoro added the Heat offered “only one first\u2011round pick” in the deal .Gambadoro also suggested that Miami was never truly pursuing the trade. He said, \u201cMiami was never really serious. They just pretend to be to appease their fan base\u201d. The phrasing indicated that Heat management may have seen benefits in generating buzz without risking their future core.<\/p>\n
John Gambadoro\u2019s claim sparks fresh debate over Miami\u2019s commitment<\/p>\n
Who is John Gambadoro? He\u2019s a veteran Phoenix Sports 98.7 FM radio host with nearly 30 years of experience and over 100,000 followers. He broke the story on June 23, on X (Twitter).He said Miami refused to include both Nikola Jovic and Kel\u2019el Ware two players who are viewed as potential cornerstones for the Heat. The team only put forward one first\u2011round draft pick. According to Gambadoro, that move combined with the untouchable label made the Heat stance all but symbolic.<\/p>\n
Miami Heat PUSH for Kings Trade! Cody Martin in Their Sights, Kelel Ware UNTOUCHABLE in KD Talks!<\/p>\n
So far, only the Phoenix Suns have confirmed receipt of Miami\u2019s offer. They still seem to be trade Durant to multiple teams. Whether Miami’s approach was strategic posturing or genuine restraint fans are left debating.On June 22, Kevin Durant was traded to the Houston Rockets. The deal included Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick, and five second-rounders, ending Miami\u2019s weak bid and shifting Houston into title contention.Also Read: Dwyane Wade drops shocking reaction after Tyrese Haliburton\u2019s painful Game 7 NBA Finals injury<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kevin Durant trade explodes after Miami Heat refuse to sacrifice Nikola Jovic offer weak draft compensation (Image Source:…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":120227,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3778],"tags":[7,2346,572,142,144,7680,295,189,3881,6,24553,1783,2202,472],"class_list":{"0":"post-120226","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-heat","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-basketball-news","10":"tag-dwyane-wade","11":"tag-game","12":"tag-heat","13":"tag-kevin-durant-trade","14":"tag-miami","15":"tag-miami-heat","16":"tag-miamiheat","17":"tag-nba","18":"tag-nba-finals-injury","19":"tag-nba-trade-rumors","20":"tag-nikola-jovic","21":"tag-phoenix-suns"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/114736705466042987","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120226","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120226\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}