{"id":316750,"date":"2026-06-23T11:53:29","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T11:53:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/316750\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T11:53:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T11:53:29","slug":"what-heat-do-next-after-poaching-giannis-antetokounmpo-is-just-as-important-hot-hot-hoops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/316750\/","title":{"rendered":"What Heat do next after poaching Giannis Antetokounmpo is just as important – Hot Hot Hoops"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MiamI(Mandatory Credit: Tomas Diniz Santos\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The Miami Heat finally captured their whale Monday night, acquiring<\/a> Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks in a six-player blockbuster.<\/p>\n

While these rumors persisted for weeks (and even months) after Miami couldn\u2019t score a trade at the deadline, the Heat\u2019s work is only just beginning. The draft begins Tuesday (Heat have No. 41 pick) and free agency begins next week. Antetokounmpo makes life a whole lot easier for Bam Adebayo and Co. But there are still plenty of holes they must plug.<\/p>\n

What do the Miami Heat have left?:<\/p>\n

\"Raptors(Photo Courtesy of the Miami Heat \/\/ Twitter)<\/p>\n

The biggest \u2014 and most consequential domino \u2014 is Andrew Wiggins\u2019 $30.2 million player option, which must either be exercised or declined by June 29. If he exercises it, he\u2019ll be playing 2026-27 on an expiring contract \u2014 pending an extension \u2014 and will be tradable. <\/p>\n

If he declines it, he\u2019d enter unrestricted free agency, where he would be able to re-sign for any amount worth up to the max. But his salary would no longer be movable \u2014 unless his next team was willing to negotiate a sign-and-trade.<\/p>\n

Miami also must navigate Norman Powell\u2019s unrestricted free agency. While the 32-year-old struggled down the stretch last season (in part due to injury), the one-time All-Star will add much-needed shooting and floor spacing to the mix.<\/p>\n

After that, they\u2019ll have Davion Mitchell, Bobby Portis (who they just acquired), Pelle Larsson, Dru Smith, Nikola Jovic (whose value is at his lowest) and Myron Gardner, among others.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a steep drop-off in depth \u2014 at every single position, too. On paper, they have nowhere near enough shooting, playmaking or shot creation to surround Antetokounmpo. And that\u2019s a big issue.<\/p>\n

Heat will have few avenues to add:<\/p>\n

The worst is the number of avenues the Heat will have to remain after.<\/p>\n

Miami will be hard-capped under the $209 million first apron. They won\u2019t be able to exceed that number under any circumstance in 2026-27. Assuming Wiggins declines and re-signs with a first-year salary of $25 million, and Powell re-signs with a first-year salary of $20 million, Giannis, Bam, Wiggins and Powell will be on the hook for $153 million combined. Factor in Jovic, Portis and Mitchell \u2014 and the Heat are north of $196.1 million.<\/p>\n

They wisely used most of their $16.8 million trade exception to absorb Portis without sacrificing Jovic or Mitchell. But in this scenario, they would not have access to their full mid-level exception ($15.0M), and it would be difficult to use both of their bi-annual ($5.5M) exception as well as their $5.6 million TPE (via Haywood Highsmith). And they\u2019re likely not going to trade any they retain \u2014 unless they\u2019re receiving multiple complementary pieces in return.<\/p>\n

There are several shooters they could target for the minimum. But Miami\u2019s guard play must also be addressed; it doesn\u2019t have a natural playmaker behind Davion Mitchell, nor do they have any sort of table setter to organize the offense. Antetokounmpo eats a bulk of the usage, but if Powell, Bam or Wiggins is your second-best shot creator, you\u2019re not in a great place offensively.<\/p>\n

Defensively, Miami has a unit that will bully teams. On some nights, their best offense will be their defense. This is a top-5 unit with Mitchell, Antetokounmpo and Adebayo at the head of the snake. But the Heat will need multiple interchangeable, two-way shot creators and floor spacers. And achieving that task will be far easier said than done, especially with limited resources.<\/p>\n

The most difficult part of forming a contender was securing a 1A talent. They have that in Antetokounmpo; they haven\u2019t had that since Wade and LeBron. Check. But what happens after is just as important, especially since this Heat front office has never built a true title contender in the two-apron economy, a more punitive environment than its predecessors.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

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