There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history.&nbsp;
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There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many players who went undrafted
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight their way onto a roster spot.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight for a roster spot. Some of these players have gone on to exceed all expectations.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight for a roster spot. Some of these players have gone on to exceed all expectations and make
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight for a roster spot. Some of these players would eventually exceed all expectations.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight for a roster spot. Some of these players would eventually exceed all expectations.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history (in no particular order):
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight for a roster spot. Some of these players would eventually exceed all expectations.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history (in no particular order):
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Be sure to subscribe to BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel for more original content.&nbsp;

There are many paths to get to the pinnacle of basketball. There are many outstanding players who went undrafted and had to fight for a roster spot. Some of these players would eventually exceed all expectations.
On the latest episode of "The Goods," Bryan Fonseca looks back at the top-10 undrafted players throughout NBA history (in no particular order):
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VeABCAbPNQM" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Be sure to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">subscribe to BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a> for more original content.&nbsp;

Who are the best undrafted players in NBA history? Bryan Fonseca lists his top-10 players who didn't hear their name called in the draft.

The Goods: Who are the 10 best undrafted players in NBA history?

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
&ldquo;Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense,&rdquo; Babcock adds. &ldquo;The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.&rdquo;
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
&nbsp;
&ldquo;Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense,&rdquo; Babcock adds. &ldquo;The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.&rdquo;
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock
&ldquo;Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense,&rdquo; Babcock adds. &ldquo;The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.&rdquo;
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on
&ldquo;Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense,&rdquo; Babcock adds. &ldquo;The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.&rdquo;
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on Ivey's fit on the Knicks if they were to
&ldquo;Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense,&rdquo; Babcock adds. &ldquo;The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.&rdquo;
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on Ivey's fit on the Knicks if they were to try it:
Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense. The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on Ivey's fit on the Knicks if they were to try it:
<blockquote>
Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense. The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.
</blockquote>
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett, and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on Ivey's fit on the Knicks if they were to try it:
<blockquote>
Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense. The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.
</blockquote>
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett and Toppin could generate? I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85 percent of the league is TBD right now. Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on Ivey's fit on the Knicks if they were to try it:
<blockquote>
Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense. The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.
</blockquote>
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett and Toppin could generate?
I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85% of the league is TBD right now.
Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The New York Knicks are one of the primary teams linked to a potential Donovan Mitchell blockbuster trade this summer.&nbsp;
Because Mitchell is currently in a Utah Jazz situation that is likely leading to a tear down and rebuild more than seemingly any other franchise in the NBA, conventional wisdom (along with some reporting) has suggested that the team will likely part ways with either him or Rudy Gobert &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/an-awkward-offseason-looms-for-the-jazz-as-they-try-to-avoid-rebuild" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potentially both</a> &mdash; to reshape their roster.
The Knicks have several ties to Mitchell. He&rsquo;s from Elmsford, New York, a six-minute drive from the Knicks&rsquo; training facility in Westchester. &nbsp;His father <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/donovan-mitchell-10-things-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">works for the New York Mets organization</a>. Both are fans of some New York sports teams, including the Mets and the Rangers, <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1526039997501022208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whom Mitchell saw in this year&rsquo;s playoffs up close</a>. Mitchell is a CAA client, and the agency has fingerprints all over the Knicks organizationally. And, while he hasn&rsquo;t formally requested a trade publicly, the Knicks are <a href="https://twitter.com/gregsylvander/status/1482101290964504580?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly on his list if he were to do so</a>.&nbsp;
But the Knicks are honestly not a team ready for Mitchell. They&rsquo;d acquire him and do... what?&nbsp;
This is an Eastern Conference with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks at the top. It's one where the Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets are possibly an offseason away from joining the tier-one group.
And with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; all of whom were better than the Knicks last season &mdash; expected to build on successes within these last two seasons, acquiring Mitchell wouldn&rsquo;t elevate the Knicks enough. Unlike the Heat, where Mitchell would serve as a missing piece, the Knicks would be forfeiting much of their young talent and/or draft capital to make such a deal.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And this is why New York should stay the course by trading up in the draft and grabbing dynamic Purdue guard Jaden Ivey.
At 6-foot-4, 200-pounds,&nbsp;<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/nba-draft-why-jaden-ivey-with-comparisons-to-ja-morant-could-be-selected-no-2-overall-by-the-thunder-130042049.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ivey has often been compared to Ja Morant</a>. It feels like an easy comparison, but even their college careers have some parallels. (Not a ton, but some.) Morant was a starter as a true freshman with the Murray State Racers. While he was clearly good, he hadn&rsquo;t yet been considered a top-five NBA prospect, which he became throughout his breakout sophomore campaign. Ivey started more than half of his freshman-year games and similarly showed promise, but wasn&rsquo;t yet the top-five prospect he since grew into coming off this season's strong sophomore season.&nbsp;
BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock notes that, while Ivey is still in development, his ceiling can rival anyone in the 2022 NBA Draft class:
<blockquote>
I don&rsquo;t think Jaden Ivey is a finished product, as he has room for improvement with his ball skills, feel for the game and consistency with his outside shooting. However, it&rsquo;s more than arguable that he possesses as much star potential as any other prospect in this year&rsquo;s draft, if not more. Ivey&rsquo;s athleticism, explosiveness and ability to get to the rim with the ball in his hands and raise above have drawn comparisons to star players like a young Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
</blockquote>
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kgkWp5e61Ow" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
More similarly, Morant and Ivey made leaps from All-Freshman (or All-Newcomer, in Morant&rsquo;s case) in their first college go-round to being Consensus All-Americans in their second years.
For the Knicks, here&rsquo;s why and how you do it, beginning with the latter.
Most mock drafts have had Ivey going No. 4 in recent weeks, including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft">our own at BasketballNews.com</a>. The thinking is that the top three will be Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren in whatever order, with Ivey following up as the best of the next group. So, barring surprise &mdash; which always&nbsp;can&nbsp;happen &mdash; a team trading for No. 4 should be in a position to snag Ivey.
The Sacramento Kings currently hold No. 4. With De&rsquo;Aaron Fox already in place and having just traded for Domantas Sabonis (using Tyrese Haliburton), they&rsquo;re probably closer to &ldquo;win-now&rdquo; (at least, in theory). This should make No. 4 available. The current 1-to-3 slots are occupied by the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets, all of whom are rebuilding and more likely to keep their picks by comparison.
The Knicks are currently at No. 11 in this draft lottery, with an additional selection at No. 42 in Round 2. They also hold their own first-round pick in every season going forward and most of their seconds. They also still have a top-10 protected first from the Dallas Mavericks in 2023. (We&rsquo;re anticipating that will head to New York as the last remnants of the Kristaps Porzingis deadline deal of 2019.)
So it&rsquo;s very easy for the Knicks to combine another first with their No. 11 selection to throw at the Kings in hopes of this hypothetical coming together. If you&rsquo;re Sacramento, maybe a No. 11 and an unprotected or barely-protected 2024 first-rounder is enough. If not, the Knicks do still have a collection of young players to dangle, be it Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Cam Reddish or Miles McBride, or a combination of these names. No. 11 and Quickley doesn&rsquo;t actually sound nuts as a starting point.
(Additionally, Knick fans, I know you&rsquo;d probably like it to be No. 11 and Julius Randle, but I question whether a Sabonis-Randle pairing fits. However, I get the idea &mdash; you don&rsquo;t think the Kings aren&rsquo;t above trying it out either, and I respect that.)
The last time a top-four pick was traded was in 2019 when De'Andre Hunter, picked No. 4 overall, was part of the three-team Anthony Davis deal, which sent Hunter from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Atlanta Hawks. The year before, the Hawks moved from No. 3 to No. 5, additionally acquiring another first in the famous Luka Dončić-Trae Young swap that also landed Reddish in the ATL.
If you&rsquo;re the Knicks, why do you do it? Simple &mdash; continuing to rebuild on the fly is the way to go.
And overnight, Ivey gives the Knicks their best point guard since Raymond Felton. If you fancy him as a combo guard, he&rsquo;d be their most dynamic backcourt player since... damn, is it Stephon Marbury? That far back?
Babcock shared his thoughts on Ivey's fit on the Knicks if they were to try it:
<blockquote>
Regarding his potential fit with the Knicks, I think it makes a lot of sense. The Knicks have some young budding players who have shown promise. However, they need more star power, and Jaden Ivey just might be that star in the making that the Knicks need to get over the hump.
</blockquote>
Just keep the rebuild going and continue to get better. More importantly, think of the excitement guys like Ivey, Barrett and Toppin could generate?
I&rsquo;d name other guys on the roster, but you know 85% of the league is TBD right now.
Most of all, listen to Matt if you won&rsquo;t listen to me!
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Bryan Fonseca insists the Knicks stay the course instead of going hunting for a big star, and that Jaden Ivey could be a perfect fit.

Why Knicks trading for Jaden Ivey, not Donovan Mitchell, makes sense

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor, and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing, but it makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the play-in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo</a>
All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team, if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing, but it makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the play-in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo</a>
All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team, if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the play-in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo</a>
All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team, if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz7lQZKtPTo</a>
All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team, if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team, if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Terry Rozier and LaMelo Ball combine for 60 points in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hornets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hornets</a> win! 🐝<a href="https://twitter.com/T_Rozzay3?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@T_Rozzay3</a>: 32 PTS, 8 3PM, 2 STL<a href="https://twitter.com/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MELOD1P</a>: 28 PTS, 13 REB, 7 AST, 3 STL <a href="https://t.co/T3ldOUfAIH">pic.twitter.com/T3ldOUfAIH</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1463139199817818119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2021</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team, if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Terry Rozier and LaMelo Ball combine for 60 points in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hornets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hornets</a> win! 🐝<a href="https://twitter.com/T_Rozzay3?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@T_Rozzay3</a>: 32 PTS, 8 3PM, 2 STL<a href="https://twitter.com/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MELOD1P</a>: 28 PTS, 13 REB, 7 AST, 3 STL <a href="https://t.co/T3ldOUfAIH">pic.twitter.com/T3ldOUfAIH</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1463139199817818119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2021</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team &mdash; if allowed to do so, into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2SCwZBrzl9M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMqUCF-YRFs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Terry Rozier and LaMelo Ball combine for 60 points in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hornets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hornets</a> win! 🐝<a href="https://twitter.com/T_Rozzay3?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@T_Rozzay3</a>: 32 PTS, 8 3PM, 2 STL<a href="https://twitter.com/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MELOD1P</a>: 28 PTS, 13 REB, 7 AST, 3 STL <a href="https://t.co/T3ldOUfAIH">pic.twitter.com/T3ldOUfAIH</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1463139199817818119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2021</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team &mdash; if allowed to do so &mdash; into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season. Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
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The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
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Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Terry Rozier and LaMelo Ball combine for 60 points in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hornets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hornets</a> win! 🐝<a href="https://twitter.com/T_Rozzay3?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@T_Rozzay3</a>: 32 PTS, 8 3PM, 2 STL<a href="https://twitter.com/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MELOD1P</a>: 28 PTS, 13 REB, 7 AST, 3 STL <a href="https://t.co/T3ldOUfAIH">pic.twitter.com/T3ldOUfAIH</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1463139199817818119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2021</a></blockquote>

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All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team &mdash; if allowed to do so &mdash; into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season.
Is he the desired coach for your super team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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Does anyone actually think Kenny Atkinson deserved to be let go from the Brooklyn Nets when he was?&nbsp;
Sure, it was the first season after the &ldquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1145435852476243968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clean sweep</a>&rdquo; in the summer of 2019, which immediately placed Atkinson under a national microscope. However, the spotlight wasn&rsquo;t then what it became the following season because Kevin Durant (torn Achilles recovery) hadn&rsquo;t been playing yet. Atkinson was in his fourth year leading the Nets in 2019-20. Kyrie Irving had been playing, albeit sparingly, and those times it was due to injury, not yet other stuff.
In any event, the Nets were still competitive. They were 28-34, COVID hit America just days later and the team subsequently finished 35-37, making the playoffs as the No. 7 seed &mdash; as they did this year &mdash; and were swept by the Toronto Raptors... as they were by the Boston Celtics this season.
Yahoo&rsquo;s Vincent Goodwill reported that <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Atkinson wasn&rsquo;t &ldquo;fond&rdquo; of coaching Durant and Irving</a>, Irving had &ldquo;soured&rdquo; on him and that Irving <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/kenny-atkinsons-tenure-with-nets-comes-to-its-natural-conclusion-as-kd-kyrie-era-nears-014215773.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue to take over the team</a>. Ironically, L.A. is where Atkinson went last season before becoming a top assistant with the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors currently.
Atkinson <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34047327/charlotte-hornets-owner-michael-jordan-meet-head-coaching-finalists-mike-dantoni-kenny-atkinson-week-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is reportedly a finalist for the Charlotte Hornets' head coaching job</a>, and it builds as the perfect meeting between both sides from a basketball standpoint if they&rsquo;re on the same page otherwise. Having covered Atkinson during those Nets years, this potential pairing with the Hornets makes so much sense.
The pre-super-team Nets had a distinct charm about them, even though they sucked in the beginning by NBA standards. Atkinson was introduced in April 2016, two months after Sean Marks was announced as the team&rsquo;s new general manager.
Brooklyn surprisingly drafted a kid named Caris LeVert at No. 20 overall in the draft that June, a pick acquired after trading Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers. Jeremy Lin and Trevor Booker were the big offseason signings, overshadowing lesser acquisitions at the time (like current longest-tenured Net Joe Harris). In December, the Nets controversially released Yogi Ferrell for Spencer Dinwiddie, whom Net fans didn&rsquo;t fully accept, especially after Ferrell showed up with the Dallas Mavericks <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMQq3lmMUBM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and had a 30-ball on national TV</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Caris LeVert just shattered Wayne Ellington's ankles <a href="https://t.co/P8hJv0JK9J">pic.twitter.com/P8hJv0JK9J</a>
&mdash; The Crossover (@TheCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheCrossover/status/824440554029195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2017</a></blockquote>

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And even though it was a miserable 20-62 first campaign, you saw flashes from a team devoid of talent and saddled by injuries. Brook Lopez <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/16/14943966/changing-course-how-kenny-atkinson-turned-brook-lopez-into-a-three-point-threat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">became a three-point shooter</a>, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/4/21/15383034/rondae-on-playing-the-4-put-me-anywhere-ill-do-my-job" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went from a 2 to a 4</a>, Lin <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2017/3/17/14955954/the-difference-maker-jeremy-lin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was impactful in the 36 games he did play</a> (they only won 7 of the 46 games he didn&rsquo;t), and formally fringe guys like Harris and Dinwiddie appeared like they belonged, as did LeVert.&nbsp;
In 2017-18, they played even harder. And damn it, they had to. Lin ruptured his Achilles on opening night, never to play again for the Nets. Lopez turned into D&rsquo;Angelo Russell via trade, but he had arthroscopic knee surgery one month into the season, throwing off his rhythm. They again struggled with injuries, but more games were within reach.
Dinwiddie was a Most Improved Player candidate and kept hitting game-winners all season long. Hollis-Jefferson developed into a reliable, mid-range hitting (47.7% from 10-to-16 feet), two-way 4 with point-forward skills that his assist numbers will never do justice. LeVert remained healthy and showed high-level starter flashes.
Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll came from elsewhere, and bought in immediately while leading the team in minutes. A rookie and No. 22 overall pick named Jarrett Allen <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/making-the-nba-all-star-case-for-cavs-big-man-jarrett-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was just scratching the surface of what Atkinson saw as massive potential</a>. (He&rsquo;d probably still be in Brooklyn instead of DeAndre Jordan if Atkinson was. And if you don&rsquo;t believe that, look at who was starting at center before and after he was fired.)&nbsp;
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The Nets went 28-54 in the 2017-18 campaign, an eight-win improvement, and 15 of their losses came within 5 points or less.
The season following was when they shocked much of the NBA world.&nbsp;
Brooklyn had built a culture legitimately. They were, without their own first-round picks, manufacturing creative ways to add players who were viable and fit their desired mold. It included second-round castoffs like Dinwiddie and Harris, role players seen as salary dumps like Carroll and Crabbe and developing late first-rounders like Allen and Hollis-Jefferson. The organization found a new-home-needing future All-Star in Russell right before his ascent, surrounding youth with leadership in Jared Dudley and Ed Davis.
They hit all the right notes in 2018-19. There was a 14-win leap to 42-40, as the Nets <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2019/2/14/18224545/how-dangelo-russell-became-king-of-new-york-not-brooklyn-new-york" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufactured an All-Star in Russell</a>, &nbsp;a fringe one in Dinwiddie <a href="https://www.netsdaily.com/2018/10/30/18040128/what-is-pressure-to-spencer-dinwiddie">who made another massive jump</a> and a possible one in LeVert, who was at that level before breaking his leg early in the season. No. 6-seeded Brooklyn even won a fun Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers before losing in a mostly completive five-game series to Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
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Why Atkinson works with the Hornets is simple: What Michael Jordan&rsquo;s team needs more than anything else from within is someone who emphasizes ball movement, playing in space and excels in player development (in particular, with guards, though he was clearly influential on Allen too). Watch what Atkinson did with Russell, Dinwiddie, and LeVert; now, picture that man, after an additional year under Lue and Steve Kerr, being responsible for LaMelo Ball&rsquo;s ascent in Year 3 and beyond.
Elsewhere on the roster, it&rsquo;s tough to say because, realistically, Ball seems to be the only untouchable Hornet this summer. Though, Charlotte should probably keep Terry Rozier since that combination of shooting and playmaking in the backcourt is tailor-made for Atkinson, who navigated a labyrinth of young, coachable talent in Brooklyn.
If pending free agent Miles Bridges is also retained this summer, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/free-agency-2022/hornets-intention-is-to-keep-miles-bridges-long-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which is the plan</a>, then that&rsquo;s even better. James Bouknight, Kai Jones (a University of Texas alum like Allen), JT Thor and Jalen McDaniels are among the young talents who need harnessing. It makes Atkinson the perfect fit to lead the Hornets back into the playoffs, where they haven&rsquo;t been since 2016, even after making the Play-In Tournament in two straight seasons.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Terry Rozier and LaMelo Ball combine for 60 points in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hornets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hornets</a> win! 🐝<a href="https://twitter.com/T_Rozzay3?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@T_Rozzay3</a>: 32 PTS, 8 3PM, 2 STL<a href="https://twitter.com/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MELOD1P</a>: 28 PTS, 13 REB, 7 AST, 3 STL <a href="https://t.co/T3ldOUfAIH">pic.twitter.com/T3ldOUfAIH</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1463139199817818119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2021</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

All in all, Atkinson has shown enough to prove he&rsquo;s the guy to establish a legitimate culture and will develop your team &mdash; if allowed to do so &mdash; into a hard-charging pain in the ass who we&rsquo;d expect to be competitive next season.
Is he the desired coach for your super-team? With the Nets, it didn&rsquo;t appear so, but we also weren&rsquo;t allowed to find out. (By the way, with all due respect, is Steve Nash that guy? Or was he just chosen by the stars on that team, for better or worse?)
Just cross that bridge if you get there, Charlotte.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Bryan Fonseca praises Kenny Atkinson for building the Nets' culture and reasons that he'd be a fit with the Hornets because of it.

Kenny Atkinson coaching the Hornets would make so much sense

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
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But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
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Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
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For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision&nbsp; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic. But as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves, and he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think a mid-range foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and might be all he needs. You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves, and he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think a mid-range foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and might be all he needs. You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves, and he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think a mid-range foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and might be all he needs. You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and might be all he needs. You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think adding a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and might be all he needs. You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think adding a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and it might be all he needs. You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think adding a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and it might be all he needs. Y
ou start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05QyiNn42XI</a>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think adding a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and it might be all he needs. Y
You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think adding a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and it might be all he needs. Y
You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Pat Riley spoke on Monday.&nbsp;
It rarely happens now, these Riley pressers. You get one after the season, you might get one before the season and you might get one after the trade deadline if something happens. But for the most part, other than seeing him sitting alongside Alonzo Mourning watching Miami Heat games, this is it for most of us. Often seen, seldom heard.&nbsp;
So, when he speaks, it sparks a gathering, especially after a season like this one. The Heat were one shot away from beating the Boston Celtics and facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. One ballsy, controversial, &ldquo;f*** you&rdquo; shot from Jimmy Butler in the face of a backpedaling Al Horford would&rsquo;ve completed one of the greatest comebacks &mdash; and most epic collapses &mdash; in NBA playoff history. (The Celtics led 98-85 with 3:30 left, and just 98-96 when Butler pulled a three with about 10 seconds left.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/05QyiNn42XI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-offseason-preview-what-takes-the-miami-heat-over-the-top" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I already previewed Miami's offseason</a> &mdash; chiefly centered around the pending decision on Tyler Herro&rsquo;s future &mdash; which Riley also spoke about on Monday. For this article in particular, our focus will be on Bam Adebayo, who drew the ire of many casual and diehard Heat and NBA observers underwhelmed by his postseason offensive consistency.
You either think he isn&rsquo;t as good as advertised or are frustrated because of your expectations for him. Or... or... or... you watch the Heat with an understanding that, while he could be better offensively, maybe he isn&rsquo;t wholly to blame for these apparent shortcomings &mdash; if we&rsquo;re calling it that.
Riley recognizes the latter.&nbsp;
&ldquo;(Adebayo&rsquo;s) been asked to do a lot of things as a young player, and he has grown into being very efficient at doing those things,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost that learning curve of being a facilitating big, either at the elbow, on handoffs, on pick-and-rolls. He&rsquo;s always getting somebody open. Duncan [Robinson] should pay him half his check, Tyler [Herro] should pay him half his check, Max [Strus] should pay him half his check.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Pat Riley on Bam Adebayo: He's always getting someone open. Duncan, Tyler and Max should give him half their check. This could be a year on how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night. Getting 15 shots every night. <a href="https://t.co/AKzCpqQgc8">pic.twitter.com/AKzCpqQgc8</a>
&mdash; Brendan Tobin (@Brendan_Tobin) <a href="https://twitter.com/Brendan_Tobin/status/1533879183482535936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

The Adebayo conundrum is layered. It requires context that may bore you, especially if you just care about the superficial, click-baity sh**. The theories might not move you, substantive as they appear, so let&rsquo;s say what&rsquo;s real.
Though Adebayo will be 25 in July, the five-year pro has only been a full-time starter for three seasons.
In his first two years, he primarily came off the bench until taking the starting role from Hassan Whiteside toward the end of the 2018-19 season. He started 22 of the last 23 games of his sophomore campaign, and the 22 were consecutively from Feb. 27 through April 9.
In the summer of 2019, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/04/06/bam-adebayo-will-never-forget-gregg-popovich-cut-team-usa-2019#:~:text=Adebayo%20was%20cut%20from%20Team,that%20won%20gold%20in%20Tokyo.">he was famously cut from Team USA&rsquo;s underwhelming World Cup team</a> that finished seventh. Still, Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2020.html">nearly went on to win Most Improved Player in 2020</a>, and he probably should&rsquo;ve over Brandon Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick just four years prior. (But anyway...)
In his three seasons as a starter, he&rsquo;s been an All-Star caliber player, has been named to the All-Defensive Second Team every year and has finished in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year all three times &mdash; a feat matched only by Rudy Gobert in that span. Offensively, he&rsquo;s grown from a rim-runner and lob threat with a &ldquo;Clint Capela&rdquo; ceiling out of the 2017 NBA Draft to a versatile hub who activates the team&rsquo;s shooters. Those shooters led the Heat to their season-best 37.9% shooting from three during the regular season. That&rsquo;s a product of multiple years of point-center work, not just this season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e6Lmd7npeto" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
But the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; &mdash; an unfair term to an awesome squad that was among the last three standing, but still &mdash; have publicly been placed on Adebayo&rsquo;s broad shoulders, to some extent.
Now, more context.&nbsp;
We&rsquo;ll ignore that Adebayo had COVID to close the regular season (<a href="https://account.miamiherald.com/paywall/stop?resume=259746525">thus, unable to join the Heat on a trip to the Bahamas</a>) because it didn&rsquo;t appear to have any long-lasting effects, sure. At one point, his availability for Game 1 against the Atlanta Hawks was in question, but he was ready. He didn&rsquo;t break 10 shot attempts until Game 4 and didn&rsquo;t have an Adebayo-like offensive game &mdash; the All-Star kind &mdash; until Game 5, the series&rsquo; closer with an injured Butler watching.&nbsp;
With Joel Embiid off the floor against the Philadelphia 76ers, Adebayo recorded 47 points, 21 rebounds and 7 assists on 15-of-21 shooting and 17-of-19 on free throws across Games 1 and 2. He, again, only broke 10 field goal attempts one time in the series&rsquo; final four games. It was Game 4, where he finished with 21-7-4 on 9-for-12. In the seven games against the Celtics, it was a bit more all over the place &mdash; but it encompassed this year&rsquo;s Adebayo-playoff experience.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-6-04-18-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="725" height="348" />
And yet, even with the offensive seesaw, without Adebayo&rsquo;s defense, there is no Game 7. There is no pushing the Celtics to seven. There might not even be a Celtics series. That&rsquo;s how good Adebayo is defensively, yet the offensive glimpses leave you pleading for more, because of the elite two-way possibilities. And it&rsquo;s understandable.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8uBleTEx5pI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Not to be overly simplistic, but if the Heat, I don&rsquo;t know, shot better than 31.3% from three in the playoffs &mdash; seven percentage points lower than they did when leading the league in the regular season &mdash; Adebayo isn&rsquo;t magnified to this degree. We can look at Adebayo and say: Hey, you&rsquo;ve gotten 30-plus against the Celtics&rsquo; elite defense without Butler, with heightened focus on you, and were unstoppable. Why can&rsquo;t you do this all the time? However, it&rsquo;s complicated.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JQUJLleV1WY" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
For one, when you watch the Heat, there honestly aren&rsquo;t a lot of plays drawn up for Adebayo to just go. <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/five-on-the-floor-miami-heat-nba/id1336060206" target="_blank" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s a point made on 5 On The Floor all the time</a>, primarily by Heat reporter Alex Toledo of 5 Reasons Sports. Adebayo&rsquo;s primary offensive assignment is to activate their shooters.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t realize what he does to get people open,&rdquo; Riley said at his presser, speaking of Bam. &ldquo;A lot of that has to do with how other teams are playing (Adebayo), dropping way back, and we can get that shot. Maybe we look for that a little bit too much.&rdquo;
But Riley later adds a wrinkle that a portion of Heat fans and even media have been calling for since Adebayo&rsquo;s emergence.
More... simply, more.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This could be a year, and (Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra) and I will sit down a talk about it, about how can Bam be developed in a way to improve his consistent shot ability every night,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;Getting 15 shots every night, quality shots that he can get, he can create &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s in the post or at the elbow. He can be very prolific at times, but it can&rsquo;t always be on effort, on running, on getting offensive rebounds, on lob dunks, on little floaters.&rdquo;
And the frustrating thing for some is, the teases and flashes are there.
The two-way versatility, the ability to be a walking mismatch to opposing bigs, the fakes, the handle, the bounce passes to cutters, the mid-range jumper when he takes it confidently; it&rsquo;s why I, personally, said he&rsquo;s a jumper away from being a Kevin Garnett remix, and that was in 2019. It&rsquo;s what we saw when Adebayo <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2020-nba-eastern-conference-finals-heat-vs-celtics.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was the best player in the Eastern Conference Finals less than two years ago</a>, averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 60.8% shooting, while doing all he does on defense. (He would&rsquo;ve won that new Larry Bird MVP trophy had it been around.)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZBeb8Q1l3s" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;I do think there&rsquo;s a part of him that can grow. That depends on a bit on your overall offensive philosophy and how much you want to change that," Riley continued. "I think there&rsquo;s another level at his age now that we need more consistency in his ability to get good shots, create good shots, and scoring.&rdquo;
The bottom line is that Adebayo is arguably the best defender in the NBA, and most certainly in any rational observer&rsquo;s top five as a floor. That can&rsquo;t be taken for granted, even though it clearly is, largely due to the offensive questions. As hard as he works on the defensive end &mdash; switching more than anyone, legitimately guarding 1-through-5 and being the defensive cheat code that engineers Spoelstra&rsquo;s vision &mdash; having him additionally as a No. 1 option on an NBA champion is unrealistic.
But having him as a No. 3 alongside Butler and Herro, or someone else not yet on the roster, is a place you&rsquo;d rather be. If the Heat want more of a focus on Adebayo&rsquo;s offense, they could manufacture it themselves. And he obviously has to hone his tools to prepare for, in theory, an increased role and usage.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-07-at-11-00-22-pm_690w.png" alt="" width="690" height="158" />
Personally, I think adding a mid-range, foul-line/elbow jumper he&rsquo;s confident enough in to pull regularly will go a long way, and it might be all he needs. Y
You start there, and a lot else could follow, especially while continuing to be an offensive hub.&nbsp;
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Bryan Fonseca reviews Pat Riley's presser to cap the Heat's season and how Bam Adebayo's offense will be a huge focus this summer.

Heat's Pat Riley, like most of us, wants more Bam Adebayo offense

In the fourth episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca revisits the best NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, with a top five and some honorable mentions.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
Be sure to subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a>.
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In the fourth episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca revisits the best NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, with a top five and some honorable mentions.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
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In the fourth episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca revisits the best NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, with a top five and some honorable mentions.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 3: &nbsp;5 best teams to never reach NBA Finals</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
Be sure to subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a>.
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In the fourth episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca revisits the best NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, with a top five and some honorable mentions.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 3: &nbsp;5 Best Teams to Never reach the NBA Finals</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
Be sure to subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a>.
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In the fourth episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca revisits the best NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, with a top five and some honorable mentions.
&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-5-best-teams-to-never-reach-nba-finals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 3: &nbsp;5 Best Teams to Never Reach the NBA Finals</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
Be sure to subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a>.
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In the fourth episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca revisits the best NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, with a top five and some honorable mentions.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZtTcxS6v_9Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-5-best-teams-to-never-reach-nba-finals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 3: &nbsp;5 Best Teams to Never Reach the NBA Finals</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
Be sure to subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a>.
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Bryan Fonseca revisits the top five NBA Finals performances in a loss since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger.

The Goods with Bryan Fonseca: Top-5 NBA Finals performances in a loss

To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall. 
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With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
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The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
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If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., signing and trading the free agent to be Bamba makes the most sense, especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the often-injured Carter. That is unless you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade, and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
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To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall. 
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to -e Bamba makes the most sense, especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the often-injured Carter. That is unless you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade, and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall. 
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to -e Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the often-injured Carter. That is unless you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade, and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall. 
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to -e Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter. That is unless you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade, and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall. 
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to -e Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter.
That is, unless, you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade, and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall. 
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to -e Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter.
That is, unless, you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
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Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
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The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to move Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter.
That is, unless, you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
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The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade of their free-agent-to move Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter. (It isn't a great deal for Orlando, sure.)
That is, unless, you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade to move Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter. (It isn't a great deal for Orlando, sure.)
That is, unless, you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

To even get in this position, the NBA&rsquo;s most unyielding organizational machine almost somehow, some-f***ing-how, did it again.
Down 98-85 with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, where his team hadn&rsquo;t led once, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over.
But, then again, it was about 48 hours removed from Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s remix of LeBron James&rsquo; famous Game 6 in Boston performance as the Heat trailed 3-2 a decade ago in the 2012 East Finals.
Again, LeBron? After you couldn&rsquo;t get it done with the Cleveland Cavaliers, after you didn&rsquo;t want to post-up JJ Barea in the 2011 Finals, you&rsquo;re crumbling again?
That's what people may have thought prior to James exploding for 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 19-of-26 shooting on the road with Miami's backs against the wall.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With the Celtics as 10-plus-point favorites in sportsbooks and the media ready to coronate Boston (as some of them would shamelessly do every year if they could), Butler outdid James, willing his way to 47 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, shooting 55.2% from the field, going 4-of-8 from three and making all of his 11 free throw attempts.
Most thought even getting to this point would be impossible. And yet, here they were &mdash; this organization &mdash; defying the public again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S9fg2xOVnDw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Trailing by 13 points with 3:30 left to go in Game 7, this sh** should&rsquo;ve been over. But Kyle Lowry makes a prayer of a mid-range jumper with 3:22 left and Max Strus dunks a putback after a Victor Oladipo miss with 2:40 to go. Then, off a Lowry steal on Grant Williams below the opposing basket, Oladipo finishes in transition and cuts the deficit to 98-91 as 1:23 remained on the game clock.
There&rsquo;s no way. There&rsquo;s just no f***ing way. But a mere 20 seconds later, Lowry lays it up against Williams. It&rsquo;s an 8-0 run. With about 50 seconds left, Jaylen Brown elbows Bam Adebayo in the mouth on a drive; it's an offensive foul. Five seconds later, Strus buries a three &mdash; fading away, heavily contested &mdash; and now, it&rsquo;s 98-96.
And then, it comes down to Butler&rsquo;s decision. To this point, he has 35 points and 9 rebounds on almost 60% shooting. He&rsquo;s averaged about 26-7-3 despite playing like sh**, by his standards, from Games 3-5 while battling the knee injury he was still enduring. With 18.3 seconds left, after pushing up the floor, he faces Al Horford and, with enough space, goes for the kill shot to put the Heat up one finally. He brought you here. He can do what he wants.
Butler missed. It fell short, and the Celtics mercifully hung on for the victory in the face of an all-time collapse, but the Heat were one shot from a second NBA Finals appearance in the Butler era, which is now entering its fourth season.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-lBQqH0OeVc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Heat don&rsquo;t just have a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16-Game Player</a>, they have one of the best playoff performers in the league. If you disagree, how many times does he have to f****ng show you? Right knee inflammation be damned &mdash; he was arguably the best two-way playoff player standing up until Sunday night. But to drag, claw and will his team to that moment was something few saw capable prior to it, even as he showed us in the 2020 playoffs what was possible.
This Heat team overcame injuries and/or COVID and/or personal issues regarding every single player on the roster. Famously, it was noted all year how little the team&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremytache/status/1494520255829401628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four best players even shared the floor</a>. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-miami-heats-blow-up-was-necessary-but-now-the-rest-is-up-to-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly spiraling out of control and f****ng each other up on the sidelines in late March</a>, the Heat gave up the No. 1 seed, rallied as only they could and secured it again before playoff time.
But still, questions linger. Turning 33 years old in September, how much of this Butler can you count on? Soon to be 25 years old, is Adebayo ready to take his much-needed next step offensively with consistency? How much does Lowry have left in the tank at 36?
And even at just 22 years old, which <a href="https://twitter.com/5ReasonsSports/status/1531703266870009856?s=20&amp;t=B2ebiuI498-FFI96iW6s6A" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he reminded us of yesterday</a>, is Tyler Herro the one who gets squeezed? Because he&rsquo;s extension eligible now after underperforming in the playoffs, having far and away the team&rsquo;s worst postseason On/Off Court rating (-22.7) even before his groin injury in the conference finals.
As Ethan Skolnick usually says on <a href="https://twitter.com/5OTF_" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 On The Floor</a>, quoting Pat Riley, &ldquo;The playoffs tell,&rdquo; and what the playoffs told the Heat are a few things.
This Miami team has two glaring needs: Length and shot creation.
Regarding length: Adebayo is still your center, and although the Heat reached an NBA Finals with Jae Crowder as the 4 beside him and were one shot from PJ Tucker doing the same, they should be in the market for a big who can do two key things: Stretch the floor and protect the paint.
If the Heat are going to switch everything (and <a href="https://www.nba.com/heat/everything-everywhere-bam-adebayo-defensive-player-year#:~:text=When%20Adebayo%20is%20on%20the%20court%2C%20that%20number%20drops%20to,per%20100%2C%20tied%20for%20No.">Adebayo will switch more than anyone in the league</a>), you need a back line of defense when teams like the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers try to size up and attack the interior. Additionally, Tucker turned 37 during the playoffs and has a player option worth $7.35 million, which he could decline for one, last multiyear deal if he wishes. Either way, the Heat would prefer to retain him, but he shouldn&rsquo;t carry the load he did all 2021-22 season next campaign.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward via Basketball-Reference.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-06-01-at-10-08-07-am_690w.png" alt="" width="644" height="418" />
The Heat will not have cap space this summer, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/miami-heat/cap/">but Spotrac indicates</a> that they will have a full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth $10.2 million next season because the team is, as of now, not in the luxury tax. The mid-level <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2021/09/mid-level-bi-annual-projections-for-2022-23.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be a four-year deal up to around $43 million</a>, though most mid-level deals are shorter and may include an option. The Heat also have the bi-annual exception, in which they could use up to $4 million for the 2022-23 season. And in addition to that, Miami has a $1.8 million trade exception from the KZ Okpala deadline deal with Oklahoma City that <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-net-kz-okpala-future-first-round-pick-in-trade-with-miami-heat">essentially gave the Heat three first-rounders to play with this summer,</a> or whenever, as opposed to the one the franchise possessed.
Speaking of that, we did say the Heat need shot creation.
Having already noted that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-heat-havent-needed-a-herro-yet-but-they-better-get-one-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herro may have been playing for his future</a> during the playoffs, one thing was made clear: Butler needs help offensively.
As frustrating as Adebayo&rsquo;s lack of aggression can be for some, it&rsquo;s important to note that without his defense, they don&rsquo;t even beat the Sixers, let alone push the Celtics to seven games. We&rsquo;re getting to the point where people are saying, &ldquo;Oh, I understand his defense, whatever, but...&rdquo; Like, no, fam. No. This is arguably, pound-for-pound, the best and most versatile defender on the planet. God forgive him for giving you world-class defense, including more switches than anyone else on earth, and not dropping 27 points a night. If he did, he&rsquo;d probably be worn down and injury-prone by his late 20s. As a contender, Bam should be your third option offensively, as he was this year, nearing 20-10 per night in the regular season and occasionally exploding in the playoffs. (That, he should do more, no doubt.)
The true question: Is Herro good enough to round out that top three with Butler and Adebayo? Unlike Adebayo, Herro isn't providing much if he isn't scoring. Do you work around them to improve the committee? Or do changes need to be made at the top?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If it&rsquo;s the former, the Heat will need to get creative and trust that Herro&rsquo;s development will meet Butler&rsquo;s timeline in a playoff setting &mdash; not just for 82 games &mdash; as Herro finishes the last of his rookie-scale deal. If it&rsquo;s the latter, Tyler's the one that goes. You&rsquo;d be moving the good player for the great player. Even if you think Herro tops out at Devin Booker-level in three years, that doesn&rsquo;t make him a can&rsquo;t miss developmental story if the Heat are trying to win now. They can&rsquo;t afford not to have Herro get there as soon as possible; it isn&rsquo;t fair, but it&rsquo;s part of the business and the crossroad the Heat find themselves at.
Butler is 33. Lowry is 36. Tucker is 37. Erik Spoelstra, who might have more than just "head coach" in his future, is 51. And most importantly, Pat Riley is 77.
(Besides, name all the players that were traded from the Heat and improved considerably? I&rsquo;ll wait...)
The players you should most expect to see back, as of now, are Butler, Adebayo, Lowry, Strus and Gabe Vincent &mdash; the latter two will make $1.8 million each next season and made significant strides in 2021-22 as rotational pieces. Tucker should be more likely back than not, but there&rsquo;s no certainty there. Spoelstra <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1531698466921013251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made it sound as if Oladipo will be back</a>. However, Oladipo will be a free agent this summer, so that&rsquo;s to be determined, as is the status of <a href="https://twitter.com/Anthony_Chiang/status/1531773926359048193" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pending free agent Caleb Martin, who wants to stay</a>.
Duncan Robinson and Dewayne Dedmon &mdash; both of whom lost rotation spots in the playoffs &mdash; most certainly will have new homes next year.
Robinson&rsquo;s will have to be via trade, and although his value has tanked compared to where it stood 12 months ago, no NBA deal is unmovable. The question is whether or not he&rsquo;ll be packaged with Herro as part of a blockbuster deal that further cements the Heat&rsquo;s contendership, or if Robinson's mainly a standalone in a deal, perhaps packaged with someone like Omer Yurtseven (who&rsquo;ll get over $1.7 million next season and showed flashes throughout the season of a rotational piece).
We&rsquo;ll get deeper into the weeds as the draft and free agency actually approaches. What I&rsquo;ll end on is this: If it&rsquo;s Robinson alone and/or Robinson and Yurtseven, people have thrown names out there like Christian Wood and Marcus Morris. For me, if I built someone in a lab who I&rsquo;d want to play next to Bam on the interior, he&rsquo;d be able to shoot threes and protect the paint, as outlined earlier. He&rsquo;d be around 7-foot tall since Adebayo is about 6-foot-10, maybe, with a distinct wingspan. He&rsquo;d... basically be Mo Bamba, so if I had a Heat wish list, that&rsquo;d be the first place I look if it were possible.
The Orlando Magic have the first overall pick in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a>, and given that they&rsquo;ll likely end up with Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero next to Wendell Carter Jr., a sign-and-trade to move Bamba makes the most sense &mdash; especially if it&rsquo;s for shooting and a backup big man with upside to play behind the oft-injured Carter.
That is, unless, you could convince Danny Ainge, Dwyane Wade and the Utah Jazz to send you Donovan Mitchell for a package in the neighborhood of Herro, Robinson, Yurtseven, and multiple first-round picks.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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Bryan Fonseca details what the Heat must do to take their franchise over the top after coming up just short in the East Finals.

2022 NBA offseason preview: What's next for the Miami Heat?

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together of those three and Dorian Finney-Smith and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban says that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year, to how far he came this year, is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together of those three and Dorian Finney-Smith and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban says that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year, to how far he came this year, is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together of those three and Dorian Finney-Smith and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban says that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year, to how far he came this year, is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together of those three and Dorian Finney-Smith and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban says that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year, to how far he came this year, is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together of those three and Dorian Finney-Smith and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban says that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year, to how far he came this year, is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together (those three and Dorian Finney-Smith) and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban says that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year, to how far he came this year, is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together (those three and Dorian Finney-Smith) and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban said that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed that it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year to how far he came this year is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together (those three and Dorian Finney-Smith) and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban said that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed that it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year to how far he came this year is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jalen Brunson on being a free agent: &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now. I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
&mdash; Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together (those three and Dorian Finney-Smith) and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban said that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed that it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year to how far he came this year is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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One of the breakout stars of this year&rsquo;s NBA playoffs has been Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson. He&rsquo;s old-school, unconventional, talented, savy and up for a big pay day this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound guard and Villanova alum was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and is one of the better second-round draft picks over the past few classes.
Last year, he was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 12.6 points and 5.5 assists on 52/41/80 shooting splits in this third season with the Mavericks. This season, as a full-time starter, while watching his minutes jump from 25.0 to 31.9 per game, his productivity increased to 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game on 50/37/84 shooting. In the playoffs (35.2 minutes per contest), Brunson jumped to 21.6 points and 3.7 assists per contest on 47/35/80 shooting.
His 2022 postseason included signature performances like a 41-point game in a win over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 without Luka Dončić and a 31-point effort against the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He also had a meaningful 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting in Dallas&rsquo; shocking Game 7 romping of the Phoenix Suns.
But now, he&rsquo;s an unrestricted free agent. Dallas has a lot of questions to answer. How can they best build around Dončić? What do they do with Tim Hardaway Jr.? If they want to upgrade at center, what's the best answer at that position?
Among the most important questions is: do they extend Brunson? Here are some teams to watch in the Brunson sweepstakes this offseason.
NEW YORK KNICKS
The New York Knicks haven&rsquo;t had a reliable point guard since Raymond Felton in their famed 54-win season back in 2012-13. Since then, it&rsquo;s largely been a revolving door of meh at the point of attack at Madison Square Garden. Jose Calderon was past his peak when he got to New York. Iman Shumpert, though very talented, wasn&rsquo;t a natural point guard. Frank Ntilikina is closer to a three-and-D wing than a true floor general. Jerian Grant never panned out. Neither has Kemba Walker. Derrick Rose has arguably been the best of the bunch.
Walker, Rose, Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride make up the Knicks' point guard depth chart for 2022-23, in no particular order. Walker&rsquo;s health can&rsquo;t be trusted for an entire season. Burks isn&rsquo;t a true point guard and might be a trade chip. Quickley, if he starts, is probably better suited next to a natural point, and the same could be said for R.J. Barrett. And McBride is young, raw and inexperienced. Brunson is better than all of them, hard stop.
Because Brunson will be unrestricted, the highest-bidder has a chance. The bad news for the Knicks is that <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/new-york-knicks/cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they&rsquo;re pretty much capped out</a>.
That means getting Brunson to New York would require a sign-and-trade. The good thing is that the Mavericks need a Mitchell Robinson type of center, and for about two years, I've been pushing for Brunson-Robinson swap. The Knicks should throw in something else, be it draft capital and or an additional young piece to make the deal work (for cap purposes too), but that&rsquo;s the framework that can come from this. Robinson gives Luka a lob threat, gives the team a higher upside defensively, and gives the coaching staff a player who can share the floor with just about anyone on the roster.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If Brunson can play with Dončić and Spencer Dinwiddie, he can share a backcourt with Reggie Jackson. Kawhi Leonard has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wanted a point guard</a>, but the Clippers still don&rsquo;t have one. It&rsquo;s Jackson, and that&rsquo;s it. Norman Powell, Luke Kennard and Terance Mann are guards, but they're all wings. 2021 second-round pick Jason Preston still hasn&rsquo;t played due to injury, and Xavier Moon was a two-way guy last year who played just 10 games. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2020/10/19/report-kawhi-leonard-wants-clippers-to-add-point-guard/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leonard&rsquo;s been wanting a point guard for two seasons</a>, and it&rsquo;s time for the Clippers to address that spot since both Leonard and Paul George are due back next season.
Given the Clippers' cap situation, this would most certainly be a sign-and-trade. Powell, Marcus Morris, Kennard and Robert Covington all make between $12 and $16 million next season, and any of them could make sense going to Dallas. Only one or two of them would probably need to go at most, among other compensation (i.e. young players and picks).
Brunson in L.A. would join the starting line-up alongside Jackson, Leonard, George and a center. Ivica Zubac is an expiring $7.5 million contract next season, and he could actually be a piece Dallas wants in return. Assuming he stays in Los Angeles, Zubac rounds out their starting five and gives Los Angeles a true point guard, which they&rsquo;re clearly missing.
DALLAS MAVERICKS&nbsp;
The Mavericks reportedly had multiple opportunities to sign Brunson to a four-year, $55.5 million deal before and during the season, <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/25/report-mavericks-didnt-offer-jalen-brunson-contract-extension-until-after-trade-deadline/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per reports</a>, but did not. As a result, he could be looking at <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2952513-latest-nba-trade-intel-lakers-realistic-targets-myles-turner-landing-spots?share=sms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">something in the $80 million range</a>, and possibly more after these playoffs.
Clearly, the offense works with him and Luka in the backcourt, blending in Dinwiddie in a natural role as a combo guard off the bench who can finish games. Dallas can keep their core together (those three and Dorian Finney-Smith) and work around the margins.
After losing to the Warriors in Game 5, Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban said that keeping Brunson is a priority, and damn near guaranteed that it&rsquo;ll happen.
"We can pay him more than anybody,&rdquo; Cuban said. "I think he wants to stay, and that's most important. I think [Jason Kidd] has a big part to play in that... JB blossomed as a player as much as anybody on this squad. From where he was last year to how far he came this year is a tribute to how hard he worked. And the support he got from his dad and his family and his girlfriend, but also, what he was able to learn from [Kidd]. I think he recognizes that, and I think he wants to stay."

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/mcuban?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mcuban</a> reflecting on the 2021-22 Dallas Mavericks season with Marc Stein. <a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSteinLine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheSteinLine</a> <a href="https://t.co/YZROfVsnq0">pic.twitter.com/YZROfVsnq0</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1530038560673435658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Brunson didn&rsquo;t have the exact same tone, but he&rsquo;ll cross that bridge when he gets there, it seems.
"When it&rsquo;s time, it&rsquo;s time. I&rsquo;m not worried about it right now," Brunson said, <a href="https://twitter.com/sixfivelando/status/1530037759955636242" target="_blank" rel="noopener">via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life</a>. "I&rsquo;m just really happy I got to play with these guys and what we did this year. I&rsquo;ll think about that later.&rdquo;
For Dallas, this is probably the move. Keep Brunson and build around the margins, particularly on the interior. Four years in, we can now say, as long as you have Luka, you have a chance. You just have to nail what&rsquo;s around him, and Brunson is someone you should want back in Dallas.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Jalen Brunson was a breakout star for the Mavericks this postseason and is now an unrestricted free agent. Where will he end up?

Examining potential free-agent destinations for Jalen Brunson

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and produced in the G League Elite Camp before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4</a>
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him, as is the case with at least 95-percent of prospects, and overall players in the league, fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work-ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him, as is the case with at least 95-percent of prospects, and overall players in the league, fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work-ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him, as is the case with at least 95% of prospects, and overall players in the league, fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work-ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him, as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall, fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work-ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him&nbsp; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall, fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work-ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him &mdash; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall&nbsp; fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work-ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him &mdash; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall &mdash; fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work ethic. He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward. <a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him &mdash; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall &mdash; fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work ethic.
He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward.
<a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gVezgX3KQus" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away.
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him &mdash; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall &mdash; fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work ethic.
He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward.
<a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
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At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away:
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him &mdash; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall &mdash; fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work ethic.
He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward.
<a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Bryan Fonseca takes a look at Kofi Cockburn's potential at the NBA level and why being a traditional big man shouldn't hold him back.

2022 NBA Draft: Kofi Cockburn insists he'll have impact at next level

In the third episode of "The Goods," our Bryan Fonseca breaks down the best squads to never make it to the NBA Finals stage. 
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KLRp0W6T1K4" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-talent-alone-doesnt-win-nba-titles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 2: Talent Alone Doesn't Win NBA Titles</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-goods-with-bryan-fonseca-the-case-for-allnba-playoff-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Episode 1: The Case for All-NBA Playoff Awards</a>
Be sure to subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/BasketballNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's YouTube channel</a>.
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Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com. <a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Bryan Fonseca breaks down the best squads to never make it to the NBA Finals stage.

The Goods with Bryan Fonseca: 5 best teams to never reach NBA Finals

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a> (with only $3.9 million is, making him a prime trade and waive candidate between now and then.
Reality is, Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade and waive candidate between now and then.
Reality is, Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade and waive candidate between now and then.
Reality is, Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
Reality is, Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
The reality is, Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
Here's the reality: Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
Here's the reality: Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, selecting a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And, given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
Here's the reality: Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, selecting a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And given their history and the potential of Simons staying, you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
Here's the reality: Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, selecting a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And given their history and Simons', you might want to look at a big.

The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery was last night, so we now have our top-14 picks!
Unfortunately, many of these teams &mdash; like the Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets &mdash; have grown accustomed to picking in the lottery year after year.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/draft22_lg.jpg" alt="" width="365" height="457" />
Of those top-14 teams, some should try to win now. And no, that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean they have to trade their first-round pick, especially after observing how Rookie-of-the-Year winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley impacted winning this season. But, for some teams, you could say that if they were better at development, they wouldn&rsquo;t be in the lottery this often.
But we digress. Here are some teams who should strongly consider using their lottery pick in a win-now trade so that they&rsquo;re not back in the same position next season in an increasingly wide-open NBA.
(Did we include specific trade ideas? No, we aren't firing up the trade machine here. It's May, and what do you want? 2,500 words? On the Lottery? During the Conference Finals?)
Sacramento Kings
The Kings, who were the only team to jump in the lottery last night, have picks No. 4 and No. 37 in the upcoming draft, <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Kings.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">along with all of their pending first-rounders</a> and many of their seconds.
Absolutely no team in the NBA needs to make the playoffs more than the Kings. The team was a perennial playoff participant from 1999 through 2006, which is hard to fathom since they haven&rsquo;t reached the postseason ever since. Their eight-straight playoff trips included four consecutive runs to at least the Western Conference Semifinals, with a Western Conference Finals trip in 2002. They have not made the playoffs since 2006; they&rsquo;ve only finished above 10th place in the West once, in 2019, when they went 39-43 &mdash; their best record in 16 years, and one of only two seasons in which they&rsquo;ve had more than 33 wins.
Last season, they made the now keystone Kings-Pacers trade, dealing Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristian Thompson for Domantas Sabonis (who represented them at the lottery), Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb and a 2023 second-round pick. With the pairing of Sabonis (26 years old) and De&rsquo;Aaron Fox (24 years old), it may make more sense to add a similarly aged starter who can help their 2022-23 presumed playoff push.
Also, expected on the roster next season is Davion Mitchell, who will enter his sophomore season but is already 23 years old and may earn an All-Rookie selection soon. Richaun Holmes saw his role take a hit once Sabonis arrived and missed much of the latter portion of the season <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/being-accused-ex-wife-domestic-010013091.html">dealing with a personal issue</a>. Otherwise, for now, Holmes, Harrison Barnes and Mitchell are among the players under contract for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-10-51-04-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="402" />
Dealing the No. 4 overall pick could land them a damn good player. John Collins, Gordon Hayward, Julius Randle, Jerami Grant and Christian Wood are among those who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may find a new home this summer</a>. Could the Utah Jazz look to move on from <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>&nbsp;in the coming months?
The Kings will have to attach players to the No. 4 pick, but imagine if Sacramento could put another win-now piece alongside Fox and Sabonis? They should make some calls to see what a package built around the No. 4 pick could return.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Despite all of the draft picks the Thunder own, they simply can&rsquo;t draft everyone. In this year's draft, OKC owns No. 2, No. 12, No. 30 and No. 34. Over the next five years, they will have 17 first-round picks and 30 selections in total. This is something you do in NBA 2K when you plan on building a dynasty, but at some point, most virtual GMs realize that you need to start having actual players on your roster to win rather than just continually flipping players for picks while toiling at the bottom of the standings.&nbsp;
At some point, Oklahoma City needs to make its run. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is about to enter the first season of his five-year, $172 million extension, which will see him earn just under $30 million next year. SGA turns 24 years old this summer and is a cornerstone for the franchise as their best player at the moment. Last year's No. 6 overall selection Josh Giddey looks like a keeper who almost certainly will be on an All-Rookie team this season. Lu Dort, Tre Mann, Kenrich Williams, Darius Bazley, Ty Jerome and Aleksej Pokusevski are all under contractual control for next season.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-44-38-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="435" />
OKC could quickly assemble a package for a high-level starter or borderline star to join SGA and Giddey, particularly with whoever else is retained. They have more than enough draft capital and could probably get close to anyone they want as a result. In terms of their roster, they just need good two-way players who fit what they&rsquo;re trying to build culturally and schematically. Literally, anything goes here.
At some point, the Thunder will have to package some of these draft picks or prospects. We'll see when Sam Presti decides to flip that switch.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers are in a tough spot with Damian Lillard, and what Lillard wants will factor in to their decision-making. He clearly wants to win but, by all accounts, he prefers to stay in Portland. It may be difficult to check both of those boxes with the Blazers as presently constructed. In the Lillard-CJ McCollum era, Portland made the playoffs every season and reached one Western Conference Finals in 2019. They were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often failed by suboptimal roster construction around Lillard and McCollum</a>, and then the elite backcourt would be unfairly blamed for the team's struggles.
With the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and the assumption that Lillard remains, what&rsquo;s their next move as they once again attempt to win with their elite 6-foot-3 shot creator? Lillard is due over $42 million next season, the second season of a four-year supermax that will include a player option worth close to $49 million in 2024-25.
Eric Bledsoe&rsquo;s $19 million and Josh Hart&rsquo;s $12 million are the only other big salaries on the books for next season. A decision awaits on dynamic guard Anfernee Simons, who is reminiscent of the aforementioned McCollum, as he is up for an extension this summer as he enters restricted free agency. <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/25/restricted-free-agent-to-be-anfernee-simons-i-100-want-to-stay-in-portland/#:~:text=signed%20a%20three%2Dyear%2C%20%2451.8,board%20career%20highs%20this%20season." target="_blank" rel="noopener">He reportedly wants to stay in Portland</a>.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-18-at-11-45-07-am.png" alt="" width="650" height="494" />
Ultimately, if the Blazers decide to package the No. 7 overall with some combination of players, could they look to include Simons via a sign-and-trade? It depends how aspirational a supposed deal could get and who they are getting in return. Only $3.9 million of Bledsoe&rsquo;s deal <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/eric-bledsoe-6900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is fully guaranteed until June 29</a>, making him a prime trade-and-waive candidate between now and the draft.
Here's the reality: Portland&rsquo;s roster requires a full rebuild, but if Lillard is going to remain, selecting a rookie at No. 7 might not be ideal. And given their history and Simons' fit alongside Lillard, you might want to look at a big.

Bryan Fonseca argues that there are three NBA teams who should look to trade their lottery pick for a win-now piece.

Which NBA Draft Lottery teams should make a win-now trade?

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden, who is in Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, who Butler had often been compared to as a byproduct of playing similar positions, did anything but those things as Butler dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden, who is in Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, who Butler had often been compared to as a byproduct of playing similar positions, did anything but lead. as Butler dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, who Butler had often been compared to as a byproduct of playing similar positions, did anything but lead. as Butler dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but lead. as Butler dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but he did anything but that. Butler, who had often been compared to Harden as a byproduct of playing similar positions, did anything as Butler dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but he did anything but that. Butler, who had often been compared to Harden as a byproduct of playing similar positions, dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but he did anything but that. Butler, who had often been compared to Harden as a byproduct of playing similar positions, dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't find him back. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but he did anything but that. Butler, who had often been compared to Harden as a byproduct of playing similar positions, dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't get back to him. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and shooting 53/36/81 splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/75iExVNvrWw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but he did anything but that. Butler, who had often been compared to Harden as a byproduct of playing similar positions, dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't get back to him. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and on 53/36/81 shooting splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players who play don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

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<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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The ball bounced twice on each side of the rim before going in.
Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s nearly impossible game-winning fadeaway jumper over the outstretched right arm of Joel Embiid ended a seven-game thriller of a 2018-19 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The series saw the Toronto Raptors escape with a 92-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, in large part due to underwhelming performances from Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris all series long. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jimmy-butler-is-a-16game-player">Those were expounded upon here just last month</a>. In fairness to Embiid, similar to these 2022 playoffs, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/07/joel-embiid-76ers-injuries-illness-timeline-history-playoffs">he was injured as hell.</a> He tried his best.
Jimmy Butler wasn&rsquo;t perfect for the Sixers that spring, but he was a hell of a lot better. He averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists in the series, with by far the team&rsquo;s best offensive rating at 118, not counting Amir Johnson who played a mere (ha, get it? Never mind) 20 minutes. Yet and still, the Sixers were right there, and had Leonard&rsquo;s shot missed, who knows if the Sixers would&rsquo;ve went on to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors as the Raptors did en route to their first NBA championship?
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Regardless, those four bounces led to Butler&rsquo;s fate: he was signed-and-traded to the Miami Heat that very summer. Instead of keeping Butler, the Sixers chose Simmons, Harris, Brett Brown and Al Horford.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Jimmy Butler: &ldquo;Tobias Harris over me.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/23K3HgaA0R">pic.twitter.com/23K3HgaA0R</a>
&mdash; Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1524965729165901824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Simmons and Harris both<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2843932-ben-simmons-76ers-agree-on-5-year-170m-max-contract-extension">&nbsp;received max contract extensions</a> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/tobias-harris-signs-sixers-76ers-contract-20190710.html">in the summer Butler was dealt to Miami</a>.
Miami was where Butler wanted to go. <a href="https://www.insider.com/jimmy-butler-wanted-join-heat-dwyane-wade-conversation-2020-9">They were his top choice</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
1. Since &ldquo;why&rsquo;d the Sixers let Jimmy Butler go?!&rdquo; is a big topic today, figured I&rsquo;d do a thread on what I&rsquo;ve put together from the past few years. Some of this I&rsquo;ve written before, some not. Figured would be helpful to put it all in one place. So👇👇👇
&mdash; Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaronWeitzman/status/1525118168754159617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Since Butler became a member of the Heat, the Sixers have still been a playoff team. In the 2019-20 season, which was obviously paused in March due to COVID-19 before resuming in the summer, the Sixers earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and were swept in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the playoffs due to injury. Those same Celtics lost to the Heat in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals, and a Butler-led Miami team reached its first NBA Finals since LeBron James&rsquo; 2014 departure. The Heat, who were a five-seed in the East and top three or four for most of the season, lost to the champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, but not without a historical postseason from Butler.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dadoOIGSkx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In 2020-21, the Sixers were the Eastern Conference&rsquo;s top seed after compiling an impressive 49-23 record in the 72-game season. Unfortunately, they were embarrassingly defeated on their home floor against the fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Round 2. Simmons still hasn&rsquo;t played since, and despite Embiid&rsquo;s play, he was once again let down by those around him.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdJyXyKYk8Q" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Butler and the Heat? Well, after a little seven-week break between the end of the NBA Finals and the beginning of training camp for the 2020-21 season (as opposed to the standard three-plus months even a Finals team would get in a typical league calendar year), the team flamed out and were swept by the Bucks.
Both teams were able to properly reset heading into the 2021-22 season, and as fate would have it, the No. 1 seeded Heat matched up with the No. 4 seeded Sixers in the semifinals. Butler vs. his old team, where Simmons and then-head-coach Brown no longer resided, but Embiid and Harris were among those who remained.
With a 4-2 lead on May 12, 2022, exactly three years after Leonard&rsquo;s four bounces ended Butler&rsquo;s Sixer tenure, he led his team, in a hostile environment that once rooted for his every move, to an emphatic 99-90 victory to end the Sixers&rsquo; season. Sure, 99-90 may not sound like much, but if you watched the game, you saw the Heat grind their way to a 19-4 run to begin the third quarter, mount nine-straight points to begin the fourth and build a 20-point lead as just five minutes remained before the Sixers cut the lead in garbage time.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTamWq3IyBQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the modern NBA, organizations seem to take on the personality of their stars, for better or worse. But Miami identified one who matched their ethos, and Butler knew it would be the place for him. A place where villains are welcomed, as <a href="https://www.slamonline.com/nba/jimmy-butler-to-joel-embiid-i-know-a-place-where-villains-are-welcome/">he once told Embiid</a>. And a place that is, in their own culture, counter to what their own city is admired for. Miami, to outsiders, is revered for partying, glamour and beaches, but the Heat are respected and occasionally mocked for a culture that is driven by blue-collar work ethic. It's an identity that requires being in &ldquo;Heat shape,&rdquo; playing defense-first, developing undrafted rookies into future rotation players and adding the occasional stars who fit into that identity.&nbsp;
The Heat are also known for their persistent fight, for being a pain in the ass for whoever opposes them and for being an overlooked team that is tailored to those who prioritize winning over highlights.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nZVMi6Mou0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
James Harden was brought to Philadelphia to lead in moments like these, but he did anything but that. Butler, who had often been compared to Harden as a byproduct of playing similar positions, dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal in a closeout game. Harden had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, taking one shot in each of the final two quarters. He said the ball didn't get back to him. That's the guy who had the Sixers' second-highest usage rate in the series. Butler is now averaging 28.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 2.1 steals and on 53/36/81 shooting splits in the playoffs.
Butler doesn&rsquo;t (yet?) have a championship. Most players don&rsquo;t, including many greats, but Butler is a winner, a leader and someone <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amof84tDBnM">Embiid's career misses dearly for good reason</a>, even while he could look at his bench and see another all-time wing in Harden beside him. But basketball isn&rsquo;t strictly about&nbsp; numbers, or strictly in between the lines, or strictly any one thing. It encompasses everything. And that&rsquo;s what the Sixers and many have failed to realize when assessing Butler&rsquo;s greatness.
But in Philadelphia, exactly three years after it all ended, he had the last laugh.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Exactly three years after Kawhi Leonard's shot ended Jimmy Butler's last game as a Philadelphia 76er, he returned -- with the organization people made fun of him for joining -- to lead the Miami Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals. And he did it in Philadelphia. Last laugh. <a href="https://t.co/Fzr3Ug73tT">pic.twitter.com/Fzr3Ug73tT</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1524925290367025172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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After falling short of postseason success with Philadelphia, Jimmy Butler showed the Sixers why it was a mistake to let him go.

In Philadelphia, Jimmy Butler gets the last laugh

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12, and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth Man of the Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring nine second half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWNoev07nSk">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWNoev07nSk</a>
Rivers alluded to adjustments needing to be made to stop Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
(That&rsquo;s not to mention that, against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, it would only get tougher than it is right now.)

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth Man of the Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring nine second half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWNoev07nSk">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWNoev07nSk</a>
Rivers alluded to adjustments needing to be made to stop Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
(That&rsquo;s not to mention that, against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, it would only get tougher than it is right now.)

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWNoev07nSk">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWNoev07nSk</a>
Rivers alluded to adjustments needing to be made to stop Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
(That&rsquo;s not to mention that, against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, it would only get tougher than it is right now.)

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
&nbsp;
Rivers alluded to adjustments needing to be made to stop Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
(That&rsquo;s not to mention that, against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, it would only get tougher than it is right now.)

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lWNoev07nSk" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Rivers alluded to adjustments needing to be made to stop Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
(That&rsquo;s not to mention that, against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, it would only get tougher than it is right now.)

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lWNoev07nSk" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Rivers alluded to adjustments necessary for stopping Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
(That&rsquo;s not to mention that, against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, it would only get tougher than it is right now.)

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lWNoev07nSk" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Rivers alluded to adjustments necessary for stopping Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lWNoev07nSk" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Rivers alluded to adjustments necessary for stopping Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
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Rivers alluded to adjustments necessary for stopping Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.

Tyler Herro hasn&rsquo;t had the playoffs that Miami Heat fans were hoping for and that many others were anticipating. Even so, the Heat have gone 7-3 in their 10 playoff games, gentleman-sweeping the Atlanta Hawks with a +60 point differential in Round 1 before going up 3-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers in Round 2.
If you comparison shop, Herro&rsquo;s playoff performance is a distinct upgrade from what he displayed last year. You could say the same for the entire Heat roster given that many of them were fatigued from the year prior, <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1517002610179461120">a point I&rsquo;ve made repeatedly about the bubble final four</a>. But Herro&rsquo;s production falls short compared to his rookie year postseason.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xs93fHglLrI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In the bubble, Herro averaged 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 43/38/87 shooting splits in 21 playoff games, logging 33.6 minutes per contest. Currently, he&rsquo;s at 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per contest, and he&rsquo;s averaging just 28.7 minutes per game in part because the Heat keep blowing teams out. (Six of their seven playoff wins have been by double-digit points, and the one that wasn&rsquo;t was a closeout win over Atlanta, in which Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry sat.)
His per-36 production is almost exactly the same: 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a rookie, and 17.8 points with the same rebounds and assists now. The difference? His shooting splits are down to 42/28 from the field and from three, and while he&rsquo;s shooting 91.3 percent on free throws, he&rsquo;s only averaging 2.9 attempts per 36 minutes, barely up from 2.8 attempts per game two playoffs ago.
Let&rsquo;s not be overly dramatic and say that Herro is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=i%27m+fighting+for+my+life+">fighting for his f*cking life</a>, but at 22 years old, he is already playing for his future. The 2019 lottery pick is extension eligible this summer, which will again be one of the most significant free agencies in Heat history regardless of how these playoffs turn out. But if Herro doesn&rsquo;t show enough in these playoffs to warrant a long-term extension, he may have to become a casualty for the team to move forward. Windows are hella fragile in #thisleague.
In the NFL, quarterbacks drafted in the early rounds have a quicker trial period than ever before, something that coincides with how little time young NBA players may have to develop while on a contender. Rookie-scale contracts in the NFL, similar to NBA first-round picks, are for up to four years at the team&rsquo;s discretion. If you&rsquo;re good enough, you&rsquo;ll play through all four years and receive an extension that would kick in immediately afterward. An NFL first-round pick typically gets a fifth-year option, which is at the heart of the controversy surrounding Baker Mayfield now.
After earning over $32 million over these last four seasons following his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, he&rsquo;s now on a fifth-year option worth under $19 million. He's still on the Cleveland Browns, even as they&rsquo;ve signed DeShaun Watson to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal, the largest in NFL history.
The point is that the Browns, after Mayfield&rsquo;s struggles, felt that they had to go through alternative means for a franchise quarterback. The Heat are nearing a similar fork-in-the-road decision this summer, in which Herro&rsquo;s current play will serve as a factor.
Here&rsquo;s the Heat&rsquo;s salary cap table going forward, per basketball-reference.com:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-12-16-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="691" height="450" />
A potential Herro extension wouldn&rsquo;t kick in until 2023-24, and chances are Duncan Robinson&ndash;a prime trade candidate in this summer&ndash;would no longer be on the roster. Herro and Robinson could depart in the same package if Miami deems that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s best going forward, but would such a trade leave the Heat with enough talent to remain contenders?
Again, we're <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/05/11/knicks-heat-are-the-teams-that-are-closely-monitoring-donovan-mitchells-status/">seeing reports about the Heat&rsquo;s interest in Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell</a>. I <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022">wrote about the Mitchell-to-Miami possibilities in late April</a> immediately following Utah&rsquo;s six-game first-round elimination against the Dallas Mavericks. If such a deal were to happen, Herro and Robinson would have to be included for financial reasons, and, well&hellip; never mind. I&rsquo;ll leave Utah alone this time.
But the door seems open because Herro has generally struggled this postseason. He also has, by far, the team&rsquo;s worst on-off plus-minus per 100 possessions. On the court, he&rsquo;s been a -5.7, while the only other player in the negative is Omer Yurtseven (-11.1), who has only played garbage minutes. Herro&rsquo;s on-off is a -39.8. Yurtseven has the second-worst, at -22.8, but again, he doesn&rsquo;t really play. Victor Oladipo, the only other notable rotation player, is a -6.1. All other key players are a net positive.
Now, in fairness to Herro, let&rsquo;s add more context. First, here&rsquo;s his playoff game log, again, per bball ref.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/screen-shot-2022-05-11-at-1-20-36-pm_lg.png" alt="" width="712" height="212" />
Game 1 was a blowout, so they didn&rsquo;t need him. Game 2 was fine, and Game 3 was one of his best, including 7 much-needed fourth-quarter points and 12 in the second. In Game 4, he was completely neutralized, largely thanks to Delon Wright, <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1516564233684721666">who guarded him for much of the series</a>. In Game 5, without Butler and Lowry, Herro was still mostly limited, even if wasn&rsquo;t "bad" by any means.
In this series, Sixers coach Doc Rivers has talked about putting an emphasis on slowing Herro, who went off for 25 points on 53/67/100 shooting splits in the opener, and so far that has worked to a degree, as Herro has been held to 13.3 points per game on 42/32/90 splits ever since.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Doc Rivers on what he told his team when defending Tyler Herro: &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s make a mistake on anybody but Herro.&rdquo; Said he&rsquo;s fine with mistakes, &ldquo;but just not him.&rdquo;
&mdash; Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1522037933146091522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

While Herro&rsquo;s struggles have been born out of respect, he hasn&rsquo;t fully adjusted. Luckily for the Heat, it hasn&rsquo;t been quite the deciding factor since Butler has been an All-NBA Playoff Performer so far. Herro has the team&rsquo;s second-highest playoff usage rate at 24.5, leads the team in turnovers due to bad passes this post-season with 12 and hasn&rsquo;t quite been his Sixth-Man-of-the-Year self. He did, however, find some offense late in Game 5 over Philadelphia after a one-point first half. He found angles and was able to get to his floater after knifing through the lane, scoring 9 second-half points before sitting because the game was out of reach.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lWNoev07nSk" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Rivers alluded to adjustments necessary for stopping Butler, who is averaging about 28-8-6 in the playoffs on 54/37/82 shooting. That could mean double teams, and that could open up things for Herro in Game 6. Maybe the Heat haven&rsquo;t needed a hero in the way Nas intended, but if Butler sees increased defensive resistance in Game 6, they might. On many fronts, it would go a long way if he took advantage, both in this series, and for his career.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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Tyler Herro may have won Sixth Man of the Year, but has he done enough to make himself a staple in Miami's lineup long-term?

Is Tyler Herro already playing for his future with the Miami Heat?

Bryan Fonseca is a contributor to BasketballNews.com. The New York City native is an award-winning independent content creator, host and writer, who has also been covering basketball since 2014. Currently, you could find his work on FanDuel, Latino Rebels, 5 Reasons Sports, and the Ain&rsquo;t Hard To Tell Podcast.
His previous stops include MSG Networks, SB Nation, SLAM and his alma mater, St. Francis College in Brooklyn. He also became a first-time author in 2021, publishing a realistic fiction novel titled "<a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B095JC2ZJZ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hidalgo Heights: The Victims Are Taking Up Space</a>." Talk to him about physical defense, international basketball, video games, and your favorite kerfuffle&rsquo;s.