God, I would love this.
The Miami Heat might have just lost the 2023 NBA Finals, but the franchise could soon be sitting pretty as both Damian Lillard and Bradley Beal could be taking their talents to South Beach, according to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson.
Jackson, who is legendary in the South Florida market and very credible, reports that “there is a path to the Heat acquiring” both Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers) and Beal (Washington Wizards), and of course, with some caveats.
“It would require the cooperation of the Trail Blazers and the Wizards, as well as the two stars pushing their way to Miami,” wrote Jackson.
“Somehow get word to both Lillard (or his agent Aaron Goodwin) and Beal (or his agent Mark Bartelstein) that the Heat is trying to pull off both Lillard and Beal trades.”
From PM: How the Heat could acquire both Lillard and Beal and have a Big Four. How an organization that always things very big could again do something very big: https://t.co/r4nyegTzBg
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) June 15, 2023
Okay, so let’s break this down.
We already know that Damian Lillard wants to come to Miami, that came straight from the horse’s mouth:
The 305 has all of this hype going on right now with Lionel Messi signing with @InterMiamiCF, and then in the middle of it, we’ve got Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) bluntly saying that he wouldn’t mind being traded to the @MiamiHEAT.
Miami is becoming the new Titletown. 🏆 pic.twitter.com/9jLBEfqlx7
— Andrew Powell (@AndrewPowellDC) June 7, 2023
And Bradley Beal reportedly wants to join the Heat as well:
The Miami Heat are ‘above the rest of the league’ for Bradley Beal’s preferred landing spot, per @FredKatz
“Bradley Beal has had an eye on the Miami Heat for years.” pic.twitter.com/g1mfW2qoQC
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) June 15, 2023
So they both want to be in Miami, and they both have the Heat as their No. 1 landing spots, so we’ve definitely got that going for us. Now the question is … do we have the pieces to make this happen?
With that, I don’t think we really have a problem. Tyler Herro is definitely our best trading piece, and with how much hype our undrafted players have gotten since our magical playoff run, their trade stock has surely skyrocketed. And then you also have picks you can trade. So I think we have the pieces to make both moves happen. No problem there.
Now we get to finances … can we afford them?
The salary cap wouldn’t become a problem in this situation, rather it would be the luxury tax that would play a factor more than anything. Yeah, our owner Micky Arison (who is the owner of Carnival Cruises) could spend all the money in the world for Lillard and Beal, but he would most likely have to spend millions and millions of dollars over the tax to make it happen, especially having a Big 4 scenario with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
And that’s ultimately what I see this situation coming down to … is Micky Arison willing to spend the money?
As a Miami Heat fan, I can’t really say much to Micky, because quite frankly, he’s spoiled me with three NBA championships, seven Eastern Conference titles and 16 Southeast Division crowns. Whether Micky wants to spend the money or not, I have to respect his decision, because ultimately he’s given me a crap load of glory. (RELATED: REPORT: Gregg Berhalter To Return As US Men’s Soccer Coach In One Of The Dumbest Decisions Our Program Could Ever Make)
But Micky … for the love of God … please spend the money and make it happen.
Just imagine … Damian Lillard, Bradley Beal, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo …
Championships.