Pat Riley Continues To Live On Planet Delusion As The Heat Were Reportedly Ready To Send A Trade Offer For Giannis That Did Not Include Bam Adebayo

John Fisher. Getty Images.

With the start NBA season on the horizon, it means you're going to start seeing a few things. There will be wild overreactions to preseason games (which is part of the fun!), you'll hear quotes about how everyone looks and feels great, and like every NBA season, you're going to be subjected to more Giannis trade bullshit. Clem addressed the latest news from this morning about how the Bucks and Knicks had a conversation about a potential trade and that the Knicks are the only team Giannis is supposedly interested in

which was funny to me because no matter what Giannis himself says, Shams just won't let this go. The man has been doubling and tripling down on Giannis asking out since February, so to think he'd give up the bit ahead of the new season despite none of what he was reporting all summer actually happening is funny as an outside but I'm sure drives Bucks fans mad (and rightfully so).

And while I'm sure that's annoying, the beauty of something like this is it means we also get a bunch of follow up reports in the wake of this potential Giannia trade story, and if you've been paying attention these last few years when it comes to "almost" pulling off massive blockbuster trades, you knew that it was only a matter of time before a certain someone and a certain team would find a way to throw their name in the ring.

I'm talking of course, about Pat Riley and the Miami Heat

“If Antetokounmpo had asked out, the Heat was prepared to make an offer that did not include Bam Adebayo, according to a source. But it’s unlikely any such offer would have been seriously considered.”

Nobody, and I mean NOBODY does this shit more than Pat Riley. It's become one of my favorite running bits when it comes to NBA rumors. Not only are the Heat "reportedly" interested in every single player that could potentially hit the market only to never actually sign or trade for any of those players, this also isn't the first time we heard about Pat Riley throwing out insanely disrespectful trade offers for another team's franchise player. Remember the entire Damian Lillard trade fiasco? As bad as that way, this report is even worse.

Let's just take this from the top. If the Bucks are trading Giannis, who is by far their best overall defender/rim protector (sorry Myles Turner), why the hell would they do that and not require that type of player to come back in return? From a roster construction standpoint, that makes zero sense. 

Then there's the whole money aspect of this potential trade. Given that Giannis makes $54M, if we subtract Bam's $37M as an option, that certainly makes it a little more challenging to get to Giannis' price

You most likely would need Tyler Herro's $31M, but how many times is Pat Riley going to be told that nobody in the league wants Herro at that price? Especially when he's not even an expiring. You're out of your mind if you think the Bucks are trading Giannis for anything that includes, Terry Rozier or Norm Powell, so who is even left? Wiggins makes too much when combined with Herro to where the Bucks would also have to add to the trade, to which I would say….why? The Bucks just gave Turner $100M so they don't really need Ware, and that leaves Jamie Jaquez Jr and Jovic? Did we not just go through this same exact package for Dame, who is nowhere close to the level of player that Giannis is?

And really, this report goes a long way into explaining why the Heat are currently in the worst position to be as a franchise. They are in NBA purgatory. Not good enough to be true contenders, not bad enough to truly tank and secure high lottery picks to either keep or flip. Instead, they repeatedly win between 37-41 games, make the Play In, and then lose in the early rounds. Then, when it comes time to actually make a move that could help their team pick a direction, Pat Riley refuses to be serious when it comes to his offers. For some reason, he cannot comprehend that no team in the NBA is going to give up its franchise player for his trash. You have to give something to get something! Damian Lillard was literally begging the Heat to trade for him, and that all fell apart because Pat Riley continues to be extremely delusional when it comes to the value of the players on his roster. Especially in this new CBA world, where teams are more hesitant to take on big money than ever before! 

There's also this to consider. From a Heat roster standpoint, if they trade their floor spacers to bring in Giannis, and then surround Giannis with Bam, who does not space the floor, how is that a path to success in 2025? Two non-shooters as your main pieces is a disaster for the modern NBA. We already saw what the lack of spacing did with Bam on the roster, it's why the Heat went out and brought in Norm Powell! Sure, you'd be versatile defensively with Bam/Giannis, but I would argue that's already the case with MIA (9th defensively last year). I know we've been told for years that Bam is developing his outside shot, but I would not exactly call that a weapon in his offensive arsenal as of now. 

I find that especially funny since the Bucks themselves have learned that the best way to maximize Giannis in today's game is to surround him with tons of spacing and shooting. One would think they would know best on how to build a roster around Giannis' skillset, so the fact that Pat Riley in theory, tried to do the exact opposite would not exactly fill me with confidence as a Heat fan.

Listen, I get the idea that you can't get what you don't ask for, but we've been through this exercise so many times with Pat Riley you'd think he'd learn by now. Nobody is giving you arguably the 2nd best player on earth for Tyler Herro and bullshit. I'm not even a Bucks fan, and I'm offended that something like that was even considered.