Pat Riley: Heat Plan to Chase 2019 Playoff Spot, Target Max-Contract FAs in 2020

Miami Heat president Pat Riley sat down with team television host and courtside reporter Jason Jackson on Wednesday and said that his team has every intention to contend for the 2019 NBA playoffs and perhaps sign two max free agents in the summer of 2020.

The 26-33 Heat have gone 2-8 in their last 10 games. They are 1.5 games behind the Charlotte Hornets for the final Eastern Conference playoff berth.

Per Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press, Riley said the following regarding the team's playoff push:

"I have never thought of anything else other than we want to be a playoff team. We want to think about the championship. I know, first hand, because I played on a team that was the eighth seed in Phoenix, that went and beat the world champion Golden State Warriors in the playoffs.

"You can't ever give up on 'make the playoffs.' I don't care where you are. You get the right matchup, you get the right player that breaks through, you get the right call, and you're on to the next round."

A No. 8 seed beating a No. 1 seed isn't unprecedented. Riley was on the wrong end of such a matchup in 1999, when his No. 1 Heat lost to the No. 8 New York Knicks in the first round.

Still, the Heat have an uphill climb just to make the top eight. Sixteen of their remaining 23 games are against teams currently in the Eastern or Western Conference top eight. Matchups with the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors, who lead the East and West respectively, notably loom.

But the Heat's 2020 potential cap space is an encouraging sign for the team's future, especially considering that they have had (and will have) fewer draft resources to work with. Miami doesn't have a first-round pick in 2021, nor was one made in 2018 or 2016.

The 2020 free-agent class has some eye-opening names, including New Orleans Pelicans big man Anthony Davis, Warriors forward Draymond Green, Philadelphia 76ers point guard Ben Simmons (restricted) and Indiana Pacers forward Domantas Sabonis (restricted).

Of course, some members of the 2020 class will likely sign long-term deals to remain in their current locations or look to maneuver toward destinations other than South Beach, but the Heat have some options.