Heat Reportedly Eyed Giannis Trade, Would've Offered Package Without Bam Adebayo
In their search for a superstar player, the Miami Heat were keeping tabs on Giannis Antetokounmpo's status with the Milwaukee Bucks throughout the summer to see if he would become available.
Per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, the Heat were prepared to make an offer to the Bucks that did not include Bam Adebayo if Antetokounmpo requested a trade.
There's no indication that Antetokounmpo ever thought about Miami as he was deciding on what direction he wanted to take with his career over the summer.
ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Tuesday that the New York Knicks were the only team Antetokounmpo seriously considered playing for other than the Bucks.
"The Bucks picked up the Knicks' call on Antetokounmpo, and the sides engaged in conversations for a window of time in August, league sources said, but the teams never got traction on a deal," wrote Charania.
Even though Miami is always in the business of superstar shopping, the idea of trying to build a trade package without Adebayo would seem to be very difficult. Jackson even noted it's "unlikely" any offer that didn't at least include Adebayo would even be considered by the Bucks.
Of course, it's easy for the Heat to say now they wouldn't put Adebayo on the table knowing that Antetokounmpo never really became available. If he does formally request a trade out of Milwaukee, there would presumably be a race of teams building the best possible offer for the two-time NBA MVP.
The Heat aren't in a great position right now in terms multiple high-level young assets and draft picks to build an offer for a superstar player. Nikola Jović and Kel'El Ware are very promising talents under the age of 23, but they have yet to prove themselves as impact players.
There's also a belief that the Heat want to keep their cap sheet clear for the summer of 2027 when players like Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokić, Anthony Davis and Donovan Mitchell could all become free agents.
It will be interesting to see how aggressive the Heat look to act either during the season or next summer if they struggle once again. Their 37-45 record last season marked just the third time in Erik Spoelstra's 17 years as head coach they finished under .500.
