The Miami Heat were a few points away from making their seventh appearance in the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, their season ended in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Now, it’s back to the drawing board for Miami. The Heat certainly has decisions to make this offseason. They must decide whether to make significant changes or return with last season’s core players. As history has shown, Miami always keeps an eye out for additional star talent, something Pat Riley reiterated during his recent press conference. If one decides to shake free, Miami will be in the hunt.
One player that comes into mind is Washington Wizards All-Star guard Bradley Beal, a long-time Heat trade target. Should he opt out, Beal will hit the free agency market as an unrestricted free agent. The star guard is one of the best scorers in the NBA today. While Beal has had individual success, his team hasn’t been as good.
Since Beal was drafted in 2012, the Wizards have only won three playoff series. Now, Beal will have the choice to either stay with the Wizards or play elsewhere this summer. He discussed his future with the team in a sit-down interview with Taylor Rooks from Bleacher Report.
“I know what my decision will be based off on,” Beal said. “It’s gonna be where I feel like I can win and that’s going to be my decision. If I feel like I can win in D.C., that’s what I’m going to do, and I want people to respect that. You may or may not, but I’m gonna fight my a** off. I’m gonna compete and I’m gonna try to make this team better. If it’s elsewhere, it’s gonna be the exact same commitment.”
Heat Pursuing Beal
If he truly decides to explore his options, Miami will likely call. As we saw in the playoffs, the Heat didn’t have a consistent offensive threat to help Jimmy Butler on the offensive end. Beal certainly fits the criteria as an elite three-level scorer. He’s averaged over 30 points per game twice over the last three seasons. As shown throughout his career, he can play with or without the ball in his hands. Beal’s playmaking has improved as well.
Unlike a few teams, Miami’s path to acquiring Beal will have to come through a sign-and-trade deal. Another route will be for Beal to opt in and get traded to Miami. It’s going to take a massive haul to obtain Beal from Washington as well. This likely means packaging Tyler Herro, multiple role players, and picks in a potential offer.
Even though he’s been in trade rumors the past few years, he’s always remained loyal to Washington. But Washington hasn’t built a winning team around Beal that can compete for titles. If Beal truly wants to win as he says, then Miami should be an option. Miami can’t offer him the full max contract as Washington can. The Wizards can reportedly offer him the five-year $245 million deal, which would be the largest in the history of the NBA.
However, playing in Miami allows Beal to compete for a title. Adding Beal to the Heat’s roster will take the team’s offense to another level. It will certainly ease the scoring burden off of Butler. In the end, the ball remains in Beal’s court. We’ll see what Beal decides to do in a couple of weeks.
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