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Miami lose tomorrow night, don't make the playoffs, and after a good look at the roster Pat and Spo decide that this iteration of the Heat is done and decide to fully blow it up in Miami and tank + rebuild for the future.
What kind of moves would you do if you are Pat Riley in this situation?

First of all, you keep Bam Adebayo because he is an absolute stud on both ends of the court.

The problem you run into isn't moving Butler--a player a team trying to win would still pay top value for if they believed it put them over the top--but Herro and Rozier deals. Two undersized, "not good enough to be a lead guard" scorers likely don't have a ton of value and finding a specific team who wants either of them isn't easy.

Given Miami's current cap situation, it makes some sense to run it back one more time, as Jaime and Jovic inch closer to their prime [Both should eat up minutes next year]. But, I see where this thread is at, and if Miami signals for a re-tool around Bam Adebayo, now is a good time with the value of their players, specifically Butler, at a relative high.

1) Philadelphia 76ers

This makes sense given that Jimmy loves Embiid, Philadelphia can eat Butler without sending much [if anything] back in terms of salary.

2) Utah Jazz

Spend some of the pick(s) along with Collins/Keyonte/Clarkson if Utah is serious about getting competitive. I don't think they are, but making a move on Butler makes a dynamic inside/out duo with Lauri Markkanen.

3) New York Knicks

Julius Randle + Bogdanovic + Pick(s)

Maybe the fit with Hart isn't good but I think this could vault the Knicks up the totem pole out East close to--or in--the Celtics tier of Championship contender(s). Jimmy re-unites with Thibs who will finish off what's left of his knees.

4) Brooklyn Nets

Jimmy could help build the culture around Mikal + Young guys. Their defense would look great while Cam Johnson + Pick(s) can help Miami stay competitive around Bam.

5) Golden State Warriors

Upgrade talent for the final year [or two] of this run. Curry/Butler/Draymond is an excellent big 3 on both ends of the court while Wiggins + Pick(s) + Kuminga can help Miami now and in the future.

go easy, unoriginal...trade Buttler to the West for the best prospect+savings...not very interested in future picks, get younger and free up space so that the next star to reach FA heads to the Heat to be a couple with Bam+...

(try to place Rozier, although I don't see any positive value returning) Rozier for THJ+Powell both expiring..? Would the Magic take him to their space?

some ideas for Butler?
my favorite..
Butler to HOUSTON for J.Smith+Whitmore?

Herro/Whitmore/Jazquez/Smith/Bam

something with the Kings and KMurray?..

The Warriors for one last run and make Jimmy happy (Kuminga/Podz..)

They are not blowing it up until after the pick owed to OKC is conveyed imo

Astaluego wrote:go easy, unoriginal...trade Buttler to the West for the best prospect+savings...not very interested in future picks, get younger and free up space so that the next star to reach FA heads to the Heat to be a couple with Bam+...

(try to place Rozier, although I don't see any positive value returning) Rozier for THJ+Powell both expiring..? Would the Magic take him to their space?

some ideas for Butler?
my favorite..
Butler to HOUSTON for J.Smith+Whitmore?

I wouldn't trade Smith Jr for Butler. I think Smith Jr still holds too much value and Houston has 10+ positive assets they can use instead to bridge the value.

something with the Kings and KMurray?..

Same as Smith Jr. Barnes/Huerter/Filler/Picks.

The Warriors for one last run and make Jimmy happy (Kuminga/Podz..)

Kuminga + Wiggins + Picks

Godaddycurse wrote:They are not blowing it up until after the pick owed to OKC is conveyed imo

They have enough talent with Bam to always be a Top 10-11 seed.

But sunken cost fallacy shouldnt matter.

Godaddycurse wrote:They are not blowing it up until after the pick owed to OKC is conveyed imo

As long as they remain blown up by 2027-2028 all is good then?

We're not blowing it up with Pat Riley in the front office. We're going to retool, and that, to me, means you trade Jimmy and Herro in the offseason. I'm personally open to moving Jimmy, but I think it would likely need to be a three team deal where a team who feels they're close give up rebuilding assets, send them to a third team looking to tear things down, and everyone moves on happily ever after.

I can't see them rebuilding or even trading Jimmy. If anything, I see them going after whatever star(s) become available this summer.

BBallFreak wrote:We're not blowing it up with Pat Riley in the front office. We're going to retool, and that, to me, means you trade Jimmy and Herro in the offseason. I'm personally open to moving Jimmy, but I think it would likely need to be a three team deal where a team who feels they're close give up rebuilding assets, send them to a third team looking to tear things down, and everyone moves on happily ever after.

I would love to have Jimmy in Orlando. He has always been one of my favorite players even going back to his first few seasons in Chicago. Shooting would still be an issue, but I have faith in Paolo and Franz improving. Do you think they can get it done without including Suggs, Franz, Paolo, Isaac and WCJ?

Residual-Heat wrote:

BBallFreak wrote:We're not blowing it up with Pat Riley in the front office. We're going to retool, and that, to me, means you trade Jimmy and Herro in the offseason. I'm personally open to moving Jimmy, but I think it would likely need to be a three team deal where a team who feels they're close give up rebuilding assets, send them to a third team looking to tear things down, and everyone moves on happily ever after.

I would love to have Jimmy in Orlando. He has always been one of my favorite players even going back to his first few seasons in Chicago. Shooting would still be an issue, but I have faith in Paolo and Franz improving. Do you think they can get it done without including Suggs, Franz, Paolo, Isaac and WCJ?

Not at all. You can't take your top five assets off the table and expect to get a player of Jimmy's caliber from a team in the same division as you!

Locking this because they won.

But also just want to mention top 5 assets is meaningless if you still have the value available. OKC for instance(I know not in the division but I think that matters way less than fans think) could keep their top 5 assets and easily have Jimmy Butler value with stuff left over.

Not to mention WCJ and Isaac definitely aren't top 5 assets in Orlando. Orlando could trade for him while keeping those 5 players(in theory. Miami is very unlikely to trade him, but they could get to the value for sure).