Last night, the Heat beat Philly and finalized the Butler trade. Dennis Schroder and Kyle Anderson went other places, PJ Tucker returns to Miami from the Jazz to join Andrew Wiggins. Josh Richardson was sent to Detroit. The Heat also acquired a protected first round pick from the Warriors. PJ Tucker was then traded to Toronto for point guard Davion Mitchell.
Heat beat Philly
Herro, Jovic, Adebayo and Rozier starred in last night’s game. Kel’el Ware contributed with 13 rebounds but didn’t score. The Heat held off Philly who cut the lead down to three points in the second half, but couldn’t take the lead.
Miami outrebounded Philadelphia by 15, but committed 22 turnovers. Philly oddly enough, had more paint points and second chance points. Herro and Adebayo both shot 43% in the fourth quarter but the Heat scored only 22 points in the fourth.
Grading the trade
Sam Quinn from CBS Sports is confusing in his grades because he says that the Heat didn’t maintain cap flexibility heading into 2026. Wiggins has a $30 million player option for next year. Also, the draft pick from Golden State isn’t that valuable. Butler had a $53 million player option so there’s some savings there.
Dave Hyde from the Sun-Sentinel says that the Heat got something out of nothing in the transaction. Pat Riley and the front office could’ve capitulated to Butler and his demands, but they didn’t. PJ Tucker is 39 but after leaving Miami in 2021, never quite found the same “mojo” at other stops.
Wiggins will try to regain some “pop” with Miami after fading for the last few years in Golden State. The Heat coaching staff and trainers will help there. Kyle Anderson also came to the Heat from Golden State. He is a 6’9 power forward.
Heat putting pieces in place
In Davion Mitchell, the Heat get a true point guard and a defensive point guard. A player like this plus Kel’el Ware can open up Bam Adebayo to focus more on scoring. It remains to be seen if Tyler Herro truly develops an off-ball game similar to Steph Curry. He mentioned that a month or so ago.
The Heat front office have always sent the message to players that “they are in charge.” Pat Riley and his stars have always had a difficult relationship. The Heat now are in better position “salary cap-wise” to compete in the summer of 2026, so it is better to have a shrewd front office than an incompetent one (Dolphins, Marlins.)
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