MIAMI — Having sat back on the NBA trade market since last week’s agreement to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Miami Heat hardly have been disinterested bystanders.
It is the moves that have been made and are being made by others that next could impact the composition of the Heat’s 2026-27 roster.
While a favorable free-agency decision from LeBron James would trump all for Pat Riley and the Heat front office, there remain roster spots to be filled on the cheap.
And those roster spots could come courtesy of other people’s money.
Hard-capped at the first apron of the luxury tax because of the mechanisms utilized to complete the Antetokounmpo acquisition, it means the Heat do not face the first- and second-apron restrictions on acquiring buyout players.
That, along with James’ destination deliberations, could put some of the Heat’s roster reconstruction on hold.
Technically, the deadline for teams to utilize the “stretch” provision on waived players is not until Aug. 29. But teams seeking to move off onerous money amid their own roster renovations figure to act sooner.
For the discerning and the patient, there are potential bargains to be had with buyout candidates, possibly all the way down to the league minimum, considering the money
Klay Thompson: This is not what Thompson signed on for when took his three-year deal in the 2024 offseason to leave the Golden State Warriors and join Luka Doncic with the Dallas Mavericks. With Doncic long gone, the next question is whether Thompson, at 36, also will seek to move on from the Mavericks’ youth movement.
Thompson is due $17.5 million this season on the final year of his contract, with Dallas with the ability to stretch that amount over three seasons.
Thompson might not be what he used to be while playing alongside Steph Curry, but has shown he can thrive as the beneficiary of roster talent.
Zach LaVine: Yes, LaVine opted into the $49 million final season on the five-year contract he signed while with the Chicago Bulls. But it seems as if a divorce from the directionless Kings could be inevitable.
Whether it is LaVine giving something back or the Kings stretching the owed money over the three seasons, a parting would not be shocking.
For a Heat team lacking much if anything in the way of shot creation, it could mean revisiting a player previously considered on the trade market.
DeMar DeRozan: Another player stuck in Sacramento purgatory, only $10 million of the $25.7 million on the final season on DeRozan’s contract is guaranteed.
This could be a case of both sides viewing a parting as a victory, the Kings saving $15 million-plus, DeRozan, at 36 getting the opportunity to again play in meaningful games.
And yes, the Heat have been linked numerous times over the years to DeRozan, with his shot-making something the Heat could use at the moment.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope: With the Memphis Grizzlies tearing it down to the studs, a parting with Caldwell-Pope, who opted into this season’s $21.6 million final season on his contract, seems inevitable.
It has been a rough go lately for the 33-year-old, but the Heat also could find value in a player who twice won NBA Finals at the Heat’s expense.
D’Angelo Russell: Some might have forgotten that Russell still was in the league, considering how he was mothballed after being acquired by the Washington Wizards from the Dallas Mavericks at February’s trade deadline, never dressing out for the Wizards.
That makes this year’s $6 million salary with the Wizards practically moot.
Still, just three seasons ago, he was an 18-point scorer for the Lakers. There could be a buyout bargain there.
As with all the aforementioned potential buyout candidates, it comes down to patience or a lack thereof.