Did the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade ruin the Heat's future?

Every team in the NBA is trying to find the perfect balance of winning now but also setting yourself up for the future. Now obviously teams are more willing to sacrifice some of their future if they believe they have a chance to win it all in that season. Even in those moments though, the future is still considered.

The Miami Heat made the biggest move of the offseason by adding in Giannis Antetokounmpo in exchange for almost all the Heat’s assets. These assets included quality young players on rookie contracts, a young All-Star and multiple future draft picks.

It was a good package for a star, and it almost certainly will be worth it for Miami, but it does raise the question of whether the Heat are going to fall victim for the trade in future years.

One outlet sees a bleak future

Bleacher Report has released a list ranking each teams future of the next three years and has the Heat at 16th. This feels low when considering it is only focusing on the next three seasons.

In these next 3 years, Miami will have Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo under contract. They also still boast quality players such as Andrew Wiggins, Pelle Larsson, and Davion Mitchell. The pieces of a contending squad will be here.

Those names do not even mention the fact that they added another former world champion, in Klay Thompson. He only furthers the championship mentality in the locker room. This team is littered with players under contract for multiple seasons. The core will stay the same.

This team might not have many assets for the future after the Antetokounmpo trade, but when you get a player that is no worse than the 5th best player in any given season you deserve to be higher than 16th.

Looking past three seasons

When looking past three seasons, this is where the argument can be made. Teams that are paying two players massive lumps of the salary cap need to be able to find cheap talent to supplement. Many teams do this through the draft, as you get a cost controlled player under team control for several years.

Like previously mentioned Miami did get rid of almost all of their draft capital, so doing it through the draft might be a little more challenging. This is where the Heat’s ability to find players comes in clutch.

No team in the NBA is as good at developing players and getting the most out of their players than Miami. To know this just look at how many Heat player careers go after they leave Miami. Many of them go from respected players to fighting for their NBA lives or not living up to the hype of their contracts.

Miami might not have the assets that others boast, but they still have a championship core and a front office that has an argument for being the best in the league. When you have these two things, I find it hard not to be optimistic about the years to come.

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