The Miami Heat should pass on these three guards if Giannis hunt fails

Going small again is not the answer for Pat Riley's team

Dec 23, 2022; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat team president Pat Riley looks on during the game between the Miami Heat and the Indiana Pacers at FTX Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Since the Miami Heat will not gut their roster for Giannis Antetokounmpo, there’s a strong possibility their package gets eclipsed by another squad.

Combine that with the Milwaukee Bucks not wanting Tyler Herro, and it gets dicier, so they need a contingency plan, and it should be Kawhi Leonard if the hunt for Giannis Antetokounmpo fails.

Leonard, being a two-time Finals MVP who has dealt with injury concerns, is much safer to go after than Trae Young, Ja Morant and De’Aaron Fox. And at age 34, Leonard was a superior player to all of them and was in more games in 2025-26 than Morant and Young, while Fox played in seven more regular-season outings.

In fairness, those three guards are good players, but there is a ceiling with them if there isn’t another star around. Morant has never been out of round two as the guy, and one of the other concerns is his body slowly breaking down.

It’s not ideal for a guard whose game is based largely on athleticism. On top of that, Young had one worthwhile playoff trip in 2021 and Fox recently lost in the Finals with the San Antonio Spurs, and he was maybe their fourth-best player.

Investing in a small guard, even for a one year rental, is risky and in Miami’s case, even more so because they would need him to be the best player the way the roster is constructed.

Trae Young is reportedly a backup option for the Miami Heat if they miss out on Giannis Antetokounmpo, per @JakeLFischer

“I've been told by various sources that — in addition to the LA Clippers' Kawhi Leonard and Memphis' Ja Morant — Wizards point guard Trae Young has emerged… pic.twitter.com/7FilUSvCUr

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 16, 2026

Interestingly, The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer reported Young would be a backup option for the Heat if they missed on Giannis. There’s no doubt he’s hearing that, but it is at odds with how the Heat have viewed him in the past and that’s as a defensive minus who holds the ball too long and is not a real threat off-ball. Using one of those is not coach Erik Spoelstra’s style, and it would take lots of hiding, even with Young upping his effort on defense.

Considering reputations, Fox, in part because of his past connection with Bam Adebayo, would seem like the most appealing to the Heat, but he was not a big-time player in the postseason. In fairness, he did suffer an ankle injury that kept him out of two Western Conference Finals games, yet that only tells the story on his physical limitations and not the poor basketball IQ displayed.

Fox is a decent playmaker for others, but not a great one. He would need to turn into Jalen Brunson for it to work in Miami, and he's not that. Furthermore, if the Spurs are smart, they'll try to move him this summer so that Dylan Harper can take his place in the starting lineup, but having Rich Paul as an agent may not allow that.

For the Heat, versatile size is important because defense and rebounding are more important ingredients to winnning championships than scoring. Leonard can still be one of the best when dialed in on defense.