The Miami Heat are having a subpar regular season but aren’t pressing the panic button just yet. According to franchise insider Barry Jackson, the team’s front office won’t make any massive moves on trade deadline day on Thursday. They will retain their core of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Tyler Herro until at least the end of this season. In his column covering the Heat’s trade deadline day plan, Jackson wrote,
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“If the Heat’s self-described ‘Big Three’ [of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Tyler Herro] is broken up at some point, it seems unlikely to happen before Thursday’s trade deadline, barring something unforeseen.”
The trio have been together in Miami for the last five seasons. Miami has fielded inquiries for Adebayo and Herro in the past but drove them away with their lofty demands of multiple All-Star caliber players and a mountain of draft capital. Butler has never been made available in trade talks and will likely never be. The Heat have faith in the trio that has been part of their last two trips to the NBA Finals.
The Heat rarely make any massive moves during the season. They already bolstered their squad last month with the addition of guard Terry Rozier from the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Kyle Lowry and their 2027 first-round draft pick. Miami’s front office hasn’t called other teams and made significant trade offers since acquiring the former Hornets star. They could eye a bench player or two but will likely remain inactive on trade deadline day.
Heat trusting Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Tyler Herro for now
The Heat are currently 27-24 (THEY ARE PLAYING RIGHT NOW AGAINST THE SPURS) and are seventh in the Eastern Conference standings. That’s not ideal for a team with championship aspirations and four players on the roster earning between $23 million and $46 million. However, they were in the same spot last season.
The Heat finished seventh in the standings with a 44-38 record and lost their first play-in game against the Atlanta Hawks. They qualified for the playoffs as the eighth seed after beating the Toronto Raptors in their second play-in game. Their poor regular season form and loss to the Hawks dented people’s trust in the roster.
However, Butler, Adebayo, and the team shockingly made it to the NBA Finals after beating the #1 seed Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs, the New York Knicks in the Conference semifinals, and the #2 seed Boston Celtics in the Conference championship. They fell short in the Finals against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets but earned everyone’s admiration for their arduous journey to the championship series.
The Heat also made it that far without Herro, who was limited to only one game in the playoffs due to a fractured hand.
Butler, Adebayo, and Herro have one more shot at ending the Heat’s 11-year wait for an NBA title. However, Pat Riley must look to bolster the roster beyond just Terry Rozier if this team is to truly win it all this year. So, while the big three may be untradeable, every other asset in the lineup may not share the same status.
Given the swings that the Miami Heat have pulled in the past, it will be interesting to see what they will pull off next.
