NBCSports.com’s Dan Feldman is grading every team’s offseason based on where the team stands now relative to its position entering the offseason. A ‘C’ means a team is in similar standing, with notches up or down from there.
Midnight nears for the Heat.
Tyler Johnson’s salary will more triple (to $19,245,370) next summer. Miami owes the Suns two future first-round picks – one top-seven protected in 2018 and unprotected in 2019, the other unprotected in 2021.
Unable to roll over cap space and rebuild, the Heat at least locked in a respectable roster before turning into a pumpkin.
James Johnson (four years, $60 million), Dion Waiters (four years, $52 million) and Kelly Olynyk (four years, $51 million) were expensive. Even keeping Wayne Ellington ($6.27 million) required paying the Mavericks $5.1 million to take Josh McRoberts.
Those long-term deals all come with significant risk.
It just might not be wise to get a couple contract-year players into the best shape of their careers then reward them with multi-year deals. Waiters’ attitude concerns didn’t disappear overnight, and remaining motivated might not be enough for Johnson, who’s already on the wrong side of 30.
Will Olynyk Olynyk thrive at power forward? He creates the most matchup problems at center, but Miami has Hassan Whiteside and No. 14 pick Bam Adebayo there.
Adebayo provides nice upside, and Justise Winslow returning from injury will keep the Heat from becoming too stale. They also hope their 31-10 finish (after a 10-31 start) last year forebodes a stronger full season.
Miami doesn’t look like an Eastern Conference power – not now, not later. LeBron James’ Cavaliers are still favored, with Boston trying to prove a thorn in their sides. The Wizards are the potential bridge team with the Celtics, 76ers and even Bucks on the come up.
The Heat’s window to crack through is narrow, their chances higher of falling out of the playoffs completely the next few years. But even if they peak as a mid-tier playoff team, that’s OK.
It was understated how perilous their position was entering the summer, the picks owed to Phoenix and Johnson’s raise posing major complications. Miami didn’t land a whale like Gordon Hayward, but considering the circumstances, this outcome isn’t half bad.
Offseason grade: C+