After the Heat made a run to the NBA Finals, losing to the Lakers after losing Goran Dragic for the series, Bam Adebayo for a couple of games, and with Jimmy Butler and Jae Crowder playing on injuries, they come into this 2020-2021 NBA season with questions on if they can make it back. They lost Jae Crowder and Derrick Jones Jr in free agency, not having been willing to offer either more than 1 guaranteed season. They were able to grab one of the better available options for them, of those that were doable financially, grabbing Moe Harkless. They also kept Meyers Leonard, and signed Avery Bradley to give them help defending the guard positions. Bradley has struggled for most of the last 3+ seasons, with exception of one half season a couple of years ago, but we do know that he brings disruptiveness defensively, and that should still fit in the right lineups, as that was an issue at times last season.
I think the biggest questions are the front court rotations, and how they decide to use their wing players, and it could be argued that they're relying even more on younger pieces than they did even last season. It should be interesting to see how that effects them, with other teams improving, and the Heat still potentially having issues with size in certain matchups. That being said, those younger players should theoretically show their own improvement, with Tyler Herro, Kendrick Nunn, and Duncan Robinson entering their 2nd full seasons, all of them continuing to improve their playmaking, and looking to be more consistent defensively; essentially first year player KZ Okpala, having changed his body and improved his skills offensively, around star big Bam Adebayo, who should continue to show his playmaking skills, as well as an improved jump shot, and the addition of rookie big Precious Achiuwa to go with them..
Bradley, Robinson, Butler, Harkless, Bam
Dragic, Iguodala, Olynyk, Herro, Achiuwa/Okpala, Nunn primary bench rotation
Okpala, Leonard/Silva depending on matchups
Achiuwa reminds me of a currently lesser version of James Johnson, so if they can help him develop some of his raw areas, that would help them in what has been an area of need, with size at the 4, for the last couple of years, and if Okpala can show what he is theoretically capable of, that would also be a huge boost at that spot.
Chris Silva is actually really good. He can do a little bit of everything, not necessarily like Bam, but he has some similarities to UD as well. He just has to cut down on the bad fouls, and make slightly better decisions a little more consistently. I think there should be minutes for him because he works hard.
Having kept Meyers Leonard, and signing Avery Bradley, as well as drafting Precious Achiuwa makes me wonder if Kelly Olynyk and Kendrick Nunn might be the most obvious potential trade pieces, or potentially, all of them could be, if it comes after February 6. Not sure if the Heat will want to disrupt their roster at that point of the season, but that is always on the table, especially when you have a team that is close to a potential championship. I would keep an eye on the addition of Max Strus as a 2 way player, and the potential the Heat could have to include a shooter in some type of trade. I could see Duncan Robinson making significant money next season, especially with some of the deals we saw this offseason, so that could end up being an unfortunate factor to consider, depending on what might be on the table at some point during this season; obviously you would think he would only be included in very extreme circumstances that likely wont actually happen.
I think the Heat will likely fight for those 2-5 spots in the East, and that gives them a chance to make another run towards the NBA Finals in the East, depending on their matchups in the playoffs. I think their matchup with the Celtics probably isnt as good as it was previously, and Philly's size still worries me. I do think they probably can still beat Milwaukee though. Will they be able to stay healthy enough to make another run?
