The Miami Heat's solid season could make them buyers at the trade deadline. With stars such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, LaMelo Ball and Ja Morant potentially on the trade block, Miami has the opportunity to drastically improve their roster.
Bleacher Report named the top three trade assets for every NBA franchise. The first asset listed for Miami is their 2030 first-round draft pick.
"The Miami Heat can deal a 2029 first-rounder conditional upon next year's obligation to the Charlotte Hornets expiring," the article wrote. "Kicking the can to 2030 allows them to guarantee the pick, and it probably has more upside unless you think they'll stumble into a superstar before then."
Along with their future first-round pick, there are two young Heat stars who were named among the likeliest trade assets. The first is 2024 first-round pick Kel'el Ware, who had an impressive rookie campaign and is having a strong season thus far but has had trouble co-existing with Bam Adebayo on the court this season.
"Ware officially looks more like an actual player rather than a tantalizing concept," the article added. "His threes are falling, and the defensive instincts seem better. As an added bonus, he hasn't been aggressively called out by head coach Erik Spoelstra for months. Plural."
Ware is averaging 11.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks this season. The biggest development of his game has been his shooting. He is shooting 53.3 percent from the field and a strong 40.7 percent from three-point range. Pat Riley was reluctant to move Ware this past offseason for Kevin Durant but if any superstars are legitimately on the trade market, he may have to part with the young center.
The final trade asset named is 2025 first-round pick Kasparas Jakucionis, who has not seen the court much this season.
"Bumping Kasparas Jakučionis off the board is tough," the article concluded. "He is very much a mystery box after playing in just a single game, but he might be Miami's best passer. Jaime Jaquez Jr.'s third-year renaissance is ultimately too strong to bounce for a stab in the dark. It remains to be seen how his game translates to a team that doesn't afford him endless agency on bullying drives, but his downhill juice is both a useful scoring and playmaking vessel."
Jakucionis was viewed as a draft steal when Miami snagged him with their No. 20 selection and his playmaking is a big reason why. However, Jaime Jaquez Jr. has seen real growth as a playmaker in the backcourt and could make the first-rounder expendable by the deadline. It seems unlikely for Miami to part with a young player this quickly but some players will have an expensive cost on the market. Jakucionis could be valuable to other franchises.