Was Kyrie Irving Ever Really An Option For Miami Heat?

The Miami Heat are among the most often teams mentioned in the NBA in terms of trades and free agency.

They have been one of the most successful at landing big names in the last 30 or so years. First, there was Alonzo Mourning and Tim Hardaway. Then Shaquille O'Neal. And then LeBron James and Chris Bosh. That was followed by Goran Dragic. And then Jimmy Butler. 

And now Giannis Antetokounmpo and Klay Thompson. 

So, naturally, the Heat were considered one of the suitors for the Dallas Mavericks. It was all speculation but Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra were listed among the frontrunners to land Irving at some point this season. 

Those hopes were probably squashed when a report from NBA insider Marc Stein claimed the Mavericks have intention of trading Irving this season. While it's surprising to see the Mavericks willing to keep Irving, did the Heat ever have a real chance of making it happen? 

We know Riley is known as "The Godfather" around the league. He has proven in the past he can attract top-tier players. We also know Miami is among the top destinations for players in the NBA. The lure is there, the weather, no state taxes. It's a no-brainer for most guys in the league. 

In this case, the Heat would have a difficult time in acquiring Irving. They gave up so much in the Antetokounmpo trade over the trade. Gone are Tyler Herro, Kasparas Jakuncionis, Kel'el Ware and Jaime Jaquez, who were all supposed to be key cogs for the Heat this season. 

The Heat already have a thin roster, with not much on the bench behind Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins. Who could they possibly give up to make room for Irving?

Without giving up one of their vital players, the only real options are Pelle Larsson and Nikola Jovic. Not sure if either of them are enough assets to reel in a player like Irving. 

It just seems like this is the final roster for the Heat this season. And it's not like that's a bad thing. They have started slow but that was expected after acquiring so many new players. 

We will learn a lot about the Heat during this five-game, West Coast road trip that starts Monday against the Los Angeles Lakers. This is not ruling out a potential Irving trade but the chances of that happening seems unlikely.