2018-19 Miami Heat

2017-18: 44-38 (6th in the East, lost 1st rd)
Draft picks: (none)
Signed for next season ($147.3m): Hassan Whiteside, Tyler Johnson, Goran Dragic, James Johnson, Dion Waiters, Kelly Olynyk, Josh Richardson, Justice Winslow, Bam Adebayo, Jordan Mickey, Rodney McGruder

This summer's free agents: Wayne Ellington, Udonis Haslem, Dwyane Wade, Luke Babbit, Derek Walton, Derrick Jones
I think the plan is to bring back Ellington and Wade (although I have no idea where the money comes from to make either of those deals happen). Surely they're not bringing back Haslem, right? Good god, they should've made him an asst coach 5 years ago! Walton and Jones are on 2-way contracts.

They don't have any of the 60 picks in this draft (but still confident they can get Baker Mayfield).

After getting thoroughly worked by the upstart Sixers, they'll need to work some accounting magic to field a workable team for next year. Right now their lineup looks something like: PG Dragic, SG Waiters, SF Richardson, PF James Johnson, C Whiteside with Tyler Johnson, Winslow, Adebayo, Olynyk and McGruder off the bench. If they are able to bring back Wade and Ellington that gives them the same team that finished 6th in the East and had no prayer against the Sixers, so unless Pat Riley has a rich uncle that drops dead this summer, it looks like there are no upgrades on the way.

Pointless trade idea: Winslow, Adebayo, Olynyk for Demarcus Cousins. If Cousins doesn't recover from his Achilles' injury (that's a scary injury for any athlete but especially one of Cousins' size), then that would not work out in the Heat's favor. But they've always coveted Boogie and if he comes back and plays like he did the first half of this year, it would give the Heat a whole new look and feel (though it sacrifices all the youth they have). That would give them a lineup of Dragic, Waiters, Richardson, Cousins and Whiteside (and no bench at all). Does that sound like an upgrade? Ehh, maybe. (And how about the Pelicans rolling into next year with Rondo, Holiday, Mirotic, Adebayo/Olynyk, Davis with Moore, Miller and Winslow off the bench while saving them money....hmmmm, I kinda like that) The downside of this trade is...uh, I don't think its possible. With the Heat already over the cap, adding salary is not a thing they could do. I think they'll have to move Whiteside or Tyler Johnson (nice player but, oof!, that contract) to bring back Wade (how's D-Wade gonna feel about being left out after watching Udonis Haslem score all those years of free money?).

Whatever they do they'll still have a good coach, a reliable rim protector, an off-kilter PG and....well, the weather's nice. Riley is always capable of wheeling and/or dealing so don't write them off yet. But, man, with no draft picks and no cap flexibility we will see the depth of Riley's magic.