The Miami Heat officially secured the No. 13 pick in next month’s draft after a mediocre season, marking the first time the franchise will select inside the lottery since drafting a little-known guard named Tyler Herro in 2019. Their most recent lottery pick prior to that is also a little known player, Bam Adebayo. With those two players, the Heat have established a strong pedigree of lottery picks and they can continue that impressive stretch next month. With this year’s class considered especially deep, several notable prospects are expected to still be available when Miami is on the clock.
Bleacher Report unveiled their latest first-round mock draft and in this mock, the Heat use this pick to help improve the backcourt by selecting Alabama Crimson Tide guard Labaron Philon Jr.
Philon led the Crimson Tide to a strong season and averaged the 12th most points in the nation as a sophomore. Alabama finished the regular season inside the AP Top 25 rankings at No. 18 with a 23-9 record before clawing their way to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament. The guard averaged 22 points, 3.5 rebounds and five assists while shooting 50.1 percent from the field and 39.9 percent from three-point range. Philon was viewed as a four-star recruit in the class of 2024 ESPN recruitment rankings. He was the No. 32 ranked prospect in the nation.
There is a scenario where the Heat use this pick in a potential deal. All eyes continue to point at Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. A deal for him would almost certainly command one or more first-round draft picks along with a few current players on the roster. After the Damian Lillard saga, the Bucks could certainly use another point guard and Philon could fit into their unit as well.
With the consistent issues in Miami's backcourt over the past couple seasons, Philon could slide right into a sizable role. Norman Powell is hitting unrestricted free agency and Herro only has one more season under contract and may be viewed as a trade piece this offseason. Davion Mitchell, Kasparas Jakucionis and Pelle Larsson all showed strong sparks this season but adding another guard to the mix can't hurt, especially while all the two latter guards are still on the younger side as well. Adding a guard could become a must for Miami this offseason especially if Powell and Herro are both not on the roster by October.
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