The Miami Heat reportedly are among the teams that could look to make a splash by trading up to pick higher in the 2024 NBA Draft.
“One league source told Hoops Wire last week that he envisions the [Los Angeles] Lakers and Heat making a strong play for a top-five pick,” Hoops Wire’s Sam Amico wrote.
The Heat currently hold the No. 15 overall pick in the first round, but moving up further in the draft could give them a better chance to land a player that could contribute right away in the 2024-25 season.
After falling in the first round of the playoffs in the 2023-24 season, the Heat are hoping to get back to the NBA Finals (where they were in the 2022-23 season) next season. With a core of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, it could make sense for the Heat to go all in to get a young piece to take them to the next level.
Plus, there’s a chance that Miami could lose some key role players that it’ll need to replace in the offseason. Haywood Highsmith is an unrestricted free agent, and Josh Richardson, Kevin Love and Caleb Martin this offseason all have player options and could opt out to become free agents.
In the latest mock draft by The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor, the Heat are projected to take guard Tyler Kolek out of Marquette University.
“Kolek’s stock appears to be on the rise as the draft approaches, with teams viewing him as a versatile guard who can provide immediate knockdown shooting and reliable playmaking,” O’Connor wrote. “I’ve heard him connected as high as here, though perhaps if a lottery team trades down then Kolek could be a target for them too. If Miami lands him, then he would fill a clear position of need and could develop nice two-man chemistry with Bam Adebayo.”
There are other guards that O’Connor projects to go higher, including Rob Dillingham, Reed Sheppard, Stephon Castle and Devin Carter. If Miami values one of those players – or another prospect – very highly, it’s possible it could look to trade up to land him.
The Heat struck gold in the 2023 NBA Draft, taking Jaime Jaquez Jr. (a four-year veteran at the University of California Los Angeles) in the first round. While Jaquez wasn’t a high pick (No. 18 overall), he still made an All-Rookie team and averaged 11.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season.
If the Heat can find another young player that they really like, it could make sense to move up since the player would be under contract for several seasons at a reasonable price tag.
As the 2024 NBA Draft approaches, the Heat are certainly a team to keep an eye on as a squad that could make a move on draft night.