The Heat weren’t willing to part with rookie center Kel’el Ware, young forward Nikola Jovic or more than one future first-round pick in Kevin Durant trade discussions, a source tells Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Their source says the final offer included Andrew Wiggins, Terry Rozier, two bench players and the No. 20 pick in Wednesday’s draft. Another source tells the authors that Miami was willing to take an unwanted salary from Phoenix, and they note that Marc Stein recently reported that there was interest in Cody Martin.
Jackson and Chiang explain that the Heat are permitted to offer two future first-rounders prior to Wednesday, but would have three available if the trade wasn’t finalized until after the draft is over. Miami wouldn’t consider parting with its picks in 2030 or 2031 to get Durant, and its first-rounders for 2026, 2027, 2028 and 2029 are in limbo due to obligations owed to Charlotte in the Rozier trade.
The authors add that the Suns could have opted for some tax relief by trading for Duncan Robinson and waiving him before July 8, leaving them on the hook for only the $9.9MM guaranteed portion of his 2025/26 salary. However, sources tell them that Phoenix never expressed any interest in Robinson. As we explained last month, Robinson’s partially guaranteed contract was never as valuable a trade chip in a Durant scenario as the Herald’s duo made it out to be.
There’s more from Miami:
- Reports have linked the Heat to Kings forward DeMar DeRozan and Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga, but neither player has been the focus of trade talks as of Sunday afternoon, Jackson and Chiang add in the same piece. They note that DeRozan, who’s believed to be on the trade market, will make $24.5MM next season, but only has a $10MM guarantee on his $25.7MM salary for 2026/27.
- The Heat should have been willing to give up more of their young talent to add a player of Durant’s caliber, contends Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. He argues that Jovic, Jaime Jaquez, Haywood Highsmith and even Ware if necessary should have been sent out to add a star who’s capable of making Miami an instant contender in the East. While Winderman would have been hesitant to part with future draft assets beyond this year’s first-rounder, he believes Miami could have easily topped the package the Rockets are sending to Phoenix in exchange for Durant.
- If the Heat can’t trade Robinson, it’s possible that he could decline his $19.9MM option and return on a new deal starting with the $9.9MM he has guaranteed for next season, possibly around $32MM over three years, Winderman suggests in a separate piece. He also examines the possibility of declining a $2MM option on Keshad Johnson and bringing him back on a two-way contact, as well as Miami’s options with Dru Smith, who is eligible for another two-way deal but appeared close to receiving a standard contract before suffering an Achilles injury in December.
Agreed!
Winderman believes Miami could have easily topped the package the Rockets are sending to Phoenix in exchange for Durant.
Key word: easily
Suns need more from Jovic, Jaime Jaquez, Haywood Highsmith than Green and 10th pick
Wiggins = Brooks
Whoever they get with the No. 10 pick will be better than Jovic that’s for sure. This dude is the next Clint Frazier or Miguel Andujar for the Yankees, some untouchable young player that just doesn’t live up to anything.
Giannis for Andujar and Frazier, who says no?!?!
I haven’t heard Clint’s name in a long time. I always confused him with Todd. The guy just turned 30.
If you want to go way back the most over rated baseball prospect was Jose Offerman. 2 time baseball America #1 prospect that never did much.
Nah, Jose had a good career. He played 15 year, 2x All-Star, 17 career WAR…That’s nothing to be ashamed of.
MIA should definitely have gone harder after KD. I never believed their reluctance was just about Ware being off limits, and apparently it wasn’t. They didn’t want to give any asset, beyond the #20 pick in this draft; or they simply didn’t want him and knew that offer would never win out. He would lock them in for the next 3 years. Still, I’m surprised.
Kuminga market is dry (not wet)?
I don’t want to trade Kuminga to Heat or Bulls
Trade Kuminga for a center piece (plus salary if needed}
Kings for Murray
Naz Reid
Walker Kessler
Straight up for Quickley bad contract
All deals add picks if needed
there is not much on Heat roster that teh warriors would need to get back in a trade. If their 2 best youngsters are off the table than jaquez and a protected lottery first round pick.
If the Heat can get Kuminga, they’ll be willing to give up 2 or even 3 of their young guys. Kuminga is 22, Durant is 37 and frequently injured. Yes, when KD is healthy, he’s a difference maker – like Butler. But if he’s injured during the playoffs, he can’t help at all.
Raps don’t want Kuminga. Let his ass go to nets for Cam Johnson.
The Heat sold their soul for those LeBron rings. They can’t make anything happen anymore. lol
That 10 pick might be the way the unload Bradley Beal.
If I were the Wiz. Give me Beal, 10, 29, and a 2nd for 18, Middleton and Holmes.
6.3M cap savings, still get a FRP. Holmes adds to the Center depth, not a starter but at 18 they could target a Center. But at least they’d have a body. They’re out of the Beal money a year sooner. Removes one log jam at SG.
Wizards get two top-10 picks plus 29, they can move up if they want to. Beal was also a fine player there and he isn’t cooked.
Beal and Poole would come off the books at the same time.
Wizards might also be the only place he agrees to go to.
lol….poor Beal….he’d have to go back to the wizards….(I realize he has millions to cry into)
He could Scrooge McDuck-it up with that what 52 or 54 million each year.
And what would Phoenix achieve with that trade other than deprive themselves of picks? :)
You new here? They’ve been trying to move him all year. Theyd free up 54M next year. Or keep him or waive him keep the pick, further into the tax. And his dead money is on the books next season too.
Okay, they get him off the books. And what are they doing without picks and with Holmes and Middleton in 25-26? Competing for 9th-10th? They can do that with Beal.
And how does getting Beal off the books improve their picture in 26-27 and beyond? What particular advantage does it give them? Okay, the cap space will be freed up. Does that improve their fortune that much, are they in an acute need of having that space?
Right now they get to pick 2 players in the first round. Get the 2 first rounders, the 2nd rounder, get Green playing, see who works out and rises in value. The rookies will be on good contracts.
They most certainly will look to get under the aprons, but they will try to do that without giving up lottery picks. They have clever people working for them, they will work on how to do that. I get using 2nd rounders for that, and they got many of those from Houston. But not lottery picks.
The coaching situation will be very important. They better did their work well when appointing that new guy.
If they were in a great situation to compete for a title with a good squad, with many assets, but had that Beal deal like a thorn in the side, okay maybe then they would be looking for ways to aggressively offload him. But where they are currently, why do that and strip themselves of few valuable assets they still have.
Dumping your future to get out of a bad contract is counterproductive. You might as well keep him and be bad. And then have the picks then not have the picks, a future. Beal will be off the books soon enough.
Hah, the Heat weren’t even willing to part with Jovic, if the report is true. 😆
Heat trading spare parts must mean they are offering up draft picks to get somebody but it will not be a star.
Heat free up a lot of money next year so they’ll be able to pursue a free agent and not give anyone up. They’ll also have another year to evaluate their young guns – Ware, Jovik, Jacques, Larsen – and see which one(s) are worth keeping. And, their core will still be young. The smart play this year is to not get to anxious and screw things up for the future.
The Heat seem like Danny Ainge negotiators. The other gm’s arent going to go for it anymore it seems.
Nobody tries harder then the Heat to involved in every star player being traded. You would think they would realize by now that offering 35 cents on the dollar doesn’t move the needle.
Mia thinks it’s so amazing to live at that they don’t really have to do much. Meanwhile on OKC….
MIA historically has been an organization that looked to sign star free agents or do leveraged trades of current or rising free agents (S&T’s, etc.). Such usually reflect a discounted sale price from an arms-length trade. Their recent problem is that free agency for star players has been dead since 2019, so they’re stuck doing regular trades. In many cases, though, their deal approach seems similar to a S&T, where they’re expecting a discount.
For the Heat to get Kuminga they would need to include Jovis or Ware but since they are off the table only 1 other player would fir their needs to Jacquez and a lottery protected draft pick. highsmith would be a filler trade amount. there is nothing exciting about him to be a better player than 8th man off the bench.
KD:,Heat are being real, a 37 injury prone player wanting a 120M extension…. Averages 52 games a year/ maybe more depending on the year…. They just went through the JIMMY BUTLER SAGA…. If they could have gotten KD reasonably, OK… but they didn’t want to give up the kids, draft picks, they made an investment in time in the kids… HEY, if GIANNIS comes available they have all their assets available.
Heat would be bad even with Durant, and they will continue to be bad for decades if they keep doing stupid things like trade a haul for a 37 year-old shooter.
The way out of this is with discipline and proactive deals to rebuild their depth.
It is extremely rare that I agree with Ira, but I would have definitely included Ware or Jovic, if necessary. However, the framework of the deal wouldnt have worked for eother team regardless, so I dontnknow why he’s acting lile that is some guaranteed deal finalized. Hpuston’s deal is still better, even having booker/beal/green/Grayson Allen, and 3 of those guys to get rid of. Works a lot more for the Heat talent wise, but flexibility would have been non existant again
Dru Smith should 10000% be on a standard deal if he is healthy enough, but should at least be brought back regardless
Duncan Robinson remaining, on a restructured deal, would be amazing. I was really hoping I hadn’t seen his last game with the Heat, but was pretty sure it would be, among others. That also makes him a more viable trade option again, in that scenario
I’ll rather see Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra go after DeMar DeRozan because they won’t have to give up a bunch of young guys or draft picks. They need to keep their draft picks.
Jonathan Kuminga would fit in very well but I think he’s going to the Chicago Bulls for Nikola Vucevic.
can’t happen becaus ethe warriors only can take back $12 million and Vuc is $20 million.