The Miami Heat\u2019s streak of six straight postseason appearances came to an end in Charlotte in the 9 and 10 Play-In game, and now they\u2019ll have their highest pick, at least, since 2017 or 2019, in the 13 range. It would be unwise to place stock in a fortuitous jump into the top eight or better, but if it happens, then Nick Arison and the committee will have to make an offering to the basketball gods.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0When it comes to drafting, the best player available should be taken nine out of 10 times. Considering the Heat\u2019s position, and how getting back to relevancy is not a quick fix, now is the time that it would be OK to gamble on the project with tremendous upside.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s presumably no project like an 18-year-old Giannis Antetokounmpo, or age 22 Draymond Green, but fortune favors the bold. If they identified someone who they thought was two or three years away from being highly impactful, then keep on with the long game, leaning on the development of Kel\u2019el Ware, Kasparas Jaku\u010dionis, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Pelle Larsson, while this new kid improves behind the scenes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, whether they go that route or take the best available player, they need to nail this draft. Their player development program rightfully gets a lot of praise, but the scouting department, which has been good, needs to be a bit sharper. The path to star acquisition isn\u2019t what it used to be in the times before the Big Three, and deals like the one that brought in Jimmy Butler are outliers.<\/p>\n
Aside, how many teams have the infrastructure to trade a gold claim for a star and still remain a real contender? It\u2019s not many, and the Heat definitely are not one of them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So the draft is the way \u2014 it\u2019s the only way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Of course, nobody has a perfect field goal percentage when choosing prospects, but taking Precious Achiuwa and Nikola Jovi\u0107 in 2020 and 2022 are still enough to worry fans about them blowing it again. On top of that, who can forget the Justise Winslow pick? It means nada that he was expected to be around a top five or six pick — a proper evaluation would not have placed him over Devin Booker. But they don\u2019t need to feel too bad about that one because their old friend Stan VanGundy blew that one for the Detroit Pistons.<\/p>\n
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