Image: Kasparas Jakučionis, the Miami Heat's 19-year-old first-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, dribbles in a summer league game
Let's see what 19-year-old Kasparas Jakučionis, the Heat's 2025 first-round draft pick, can do on the court.
After years of win-now thinking, the Miami Heat is shifting its approach to playing the long game.
In a recent Miami Herald column, Barry Jackson quotes "people with direct knowledge" who told him the Heat plans to "let our young guys show what they can do" now that Jimmy Butler is gone and first-round pick Kasparas Jakučionis is onboard.
Naturally, fans who've grown up accustomed to collecting free "White Hot Heat" merch at home playoff games aren't feeling the future-thinking pivot.
But with the gap between the Heat's roster and the rest of the league rapidly widening — and the Heat getting younger and more unproven — the front office's decision to pass on selling the farm for players like Kevin Durant is smarter and more strategic than it looks on the surface.
Below are five reasons Miami's decision to sit out this offseason is the smart move.
They Aren't Good Enough (And That's OK)
First things first. Not only is Miami's roster not a Kevin Durant away from competing for a title against the likes of the Oklahoma City Thunder or Cleveland Cavaliers, but the addition of Durant may not have even catapulted the Heat to a top-four team in the Eastern Conference. That assumes perfect health for an entire season, something multiple teams in the NBA with stars who are lost to injury for the entire upcoming season can attest to, but it is no sure thing.
Competing in the NBA is about capturing magic in four-year windows. This is not Miami's window. The more the Heat can do now to capitalize on the upcoming opportunity to win a title makes the most sense, not selling off assets to be five wins better in the regular season.
The League is Shifting — And the Heat Need to Prepare
The best teams in the NBA right now aren't merely talented. They're young, deep, and athletic. Those are things nobody ever says about the Miami Heat.
Yet.
Just look at the Oklahoma City Thunder: Their core of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren is homegrown, under 26 years of age, and surrounded by a war chest of talented up-and-coming young players and even more first-round picks. And OKC is far from alone. Even a team like Orlando, which finished last season at .500, boasts Paolo Banchero, the Wagner brothers, Desmond Bane, Jalen Suggs, and more on the way. Let's go ahead and stipulate that the Heat's current long-term prospects of competing for a playoff run are hovering between slim and none.
Bottom line: The Heat need to discover their young stars, not play musical chairs with Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, who, let's face it, would be glorified role players on a true championship-caliber team. It may hurt to say that out loud, but the truth hurts.
LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul — and even the Paul Georges and Joel Embiids of the world — are retiring soon. Who's in line to fill the gap and compete against teams led by players like Anthony Edwards and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has already been determined. The Heat's best bet is to plan for two or three years down the road, not the day after tomorrow.
The Youth Movement Needs Minutes (To Increase Trade Value)
The Heat wants to get younger and has done so. So what does that look like? Here is a breakdown of what can be considered the young side of Miami's roster:
Haywood Highsmith (28), Bam Adebayo (27), Davion Mitchell (26), and Tyler Herro (25) can be considered the old heads on the roster. But Jaime Jaquez Jr. (24), Keshad Johnson (24), Pelle Larsson (24), Nikola Jović (22), Kel'el Ware (21), and the aforementioned Kasparas Jakučionis (19) are where the rubber hits the road.
That's a lot of potential to share one basketball. But the hidden value in getting those players on the court is that with minutes comes tape, and with proven performances on tape comes increased trade value when a player (such as Giannis Antetokounmpo) becomes available via trade.
Think it's unlikely? Ask yourself who the Miami Heat traded for Shaq, or what teams that trade superstars are looking for in return. Hint: It's not your favorite $15 million role player you wished the Heat added to their roster this summer.
Flexibility Isn't a Dirty Word — It's a Genuine Advantage
Heat fans have a running joke that the team has been trying to maintain cap flexibility to land a superstar since LeBron James left more than a decade ago. The sad part? The joke is gospel. And while it hasn't exactly panned out yet, the strategy remains: You don't need to get ready if you stay ready.
How did the Heat land the Big 3 in the same summer? It didn't happen overnight. It took months, if not years, to ensure that the summer of 2010 was filled with cap space and possibilities. This year is no different. The Heat didn't want to pay Jimmy Butler $50 million a season through 2028 and haven't committed to Herro's $33 million beyond the 2026-27 season for a reason: options.
It's a terrible idea until it's the best idea. For now, the Heat can toss young, up-and-coming players onto the floor and figure out who can best surround that future star. That strategy trumps pretending the current roster is one All-Star away from the title.
Have You Said 'Thank You' Once?
Heat fans are spoiled. Look around the landscape of the rest of the local teams, and you'll realize a few down years in the name of reloading for a true championship run — not a manufactured 18-month window — is a spit in the ocean compared to what the other teams have put you through.
Heat fans act like a 37-win season is a ten-win season, when in reality, half the teams in the NBA would consider that a great starting point toward future contention. Records deserve context. All are not created or judged equally. If the Heat have a youth movement this season and win 40 games but have seen clear development in young stars like Ware and Jović, the vibes will take a 180-degree turn.
Are you a Miami Dolphins fan under 40? Congrats. You've not witnessed a single playoff victory since high school (at best!).
Are you a Miami Marlins fan? Congrats, you'll be clinging to the past longer and harder than the Dolphins do their 1972 undefeated season.
Are you a Florida Panthers fan? Congrats on the sex. You were a virgin until 2024. You put up with plenty of subpar years to get here.
Deal with it, Heat fans. You're entitled, armchair-Twitter GMs. Winning in the NBA isn't always cupcakes and rainbows, even if the twentysomething fans of today only know it to be such.
The Heat will be back. It's not if, it's when.
Being realistic and plotting your attack is part of the journey. If you're unwilling to endure it, a new bandwagon is leaving every hour. Hop on that.