Buddy Hield, Indiana Pacers
From a strict basketball perspective, it’s easy to see why pivoting toward Buddy Hield would make sense for the Miami Heat. He is one of the more underrated offensive players in the league right now and is an elite shooter that would more than replace the production lost by the likes of Gabe Vincent and Max Strus. He’s also an expiring contract so the cost to trade for him likely wouldn’t be more than a first-round pick (you’d have to imagine).
Miami still wouldn’t have addressed the concerns and questions that the team has at the point guard position, but adding Hield would certainly give the team an offensive boost that they need. The real drawback of pulling the trigger on this type of deal is that it could limit the flexibility that the Heat could have in the future.
If the Heat were willing to make such a move for Hield, they’d have to be close to 100 percent certain that it will be enough to help them make another deep run in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Quite frankly, for as much as Hield would improve the team, I’m not sure how certain I’d be if I was Miami.