Goran Dragic (Heat) (Photo : Getty Images)
The Miami Heat is on the hot seat with their "Heat Lifer" Dwyane Wade.
The team is expecting their resident superstar to take one for the team again when in fact, Wade has already given up millions of dollars to keep the team competitive.
It doesn't help the situation that Miami is publicly chasing Kevin Durant and has also offered Hassan Whiteside the maximum contract starting at a whopping $23 million.
The caveat is that Wade is definitely an integral part of the Miami Heat pitch to Kevin Durant. How can anyone, even the great Pat Riley sell the Miami Heat as contenders if Wade isn't there?
Apparently, the master plan is to wait for Durant to respond, then Pat Riley makes his moves to bring a Wade, Whiteside, Durant and Bosh (if healthy) foursome to topple the King in the East.
One of the moves that the Heat has to make is to trade away starting point guard Goran Dragic for cap space. This was mentioned by Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
"I would not let Dragic's cap space stand in the way of Durant being able to fit into the Heat's payroll."
However, Winderman further discusses the Dragic trade and toyed with the idea that Dragic could be moved even if Durant doesn't choose South Beach.
"But if Durant isn't coming, then I believe you move forward with Goran, at least for next season, and try to recapture the magic that had the Heat playing so well over the second half of this past season. Still, it does appear that the Heat will need at least some additional cap space. So that could come down to whether it has to be Goran's or something closer to the relief that could be realized by moving the $5.8 million owed next season to Josh McRoberts."
The Heat found other options at point guard, though hardly at the level of Dragic-as of now. Josh Richardson, Briante Weber and Tyler Johnson are hardly household names, but somehow they contributed to Erik Spoelstra's system.
It would be hard to imagine the Heat trading Dragic especially for cap space if Durant isn't coming. Luol Deng and Joe Johnson, two veterans who could possibly be the beneficiaries of the created cap space, have already agreed to deals with the LA Lakers and Utah Jazz respectively.
If Dragic is traded, the most likely destination is the Philadelphia 76ers. Hardly a player for free agents, the team has set themselves up for salary dump trades. They have also missed out on the free agent point guards and would definitely take someone like Dragic with open arms.
The only other way for the Heat to keep the team together without trading Dragic is for Wade to take the veteran's minimum, according to Palm Beach Post.
"Wade could then sign for the minimum (about $1.6 million) for one year and then sign a big contract next summer, when the cap is expected to jump to $110 million, to make up for the money lost," Anthony Chiang proposed. But it's highly unlikely considering how disgruntled Wade is right now because of the Heat's alleged lowball offer.
