What the Heat will try to do now after the first wave of free agency. Asking and answering

Asking and answering a six-pack of Heat questions more than a week into free agency:

▪ What’s the organization’s plan moving forward after a first-round loss to Boston and a relatively quiet first week of free agency, which included re-signing Kevin Love, Haywood Highsmith and Thomas Bryant; losing Caleb Martin; and adding skilled three-pointer shooter Alec Burks at the minimum?

The plan now is for patience and prudence, to wait for an opportunity to pounce when a player the Heat really likes becomes available in the trade market, with the hope that the other team likes Miami’s assets.

The Heat does not look at this as a situation where it absolutely must change its roster by the start of the season. While the Heat would like to upgrade, the Heat sees that opportunity being available all the way up until the Feb. 6 trade deadline. That’s how it’s being viewed internally.

▪ So why is Miami OK with keeping together a team that was the eighth seed the past two years?

The Heat still believes in Jimmy Butler and a core that made three deep playoff runs, and two Finals appearances, in five years.

Those playoff runs carry more weight, in Miami’s view, than the fact that the Heat finished with a top-four seed only once in the past five years (fifth, sixth, first, eighth and eighth).

Though the Heat knows an impactful addition from outside would be helpful to make the team a more serious title threat — and will continue to seek one — the organization decided there’s no need to blow up the roster, trade Butler at this time or make a lateral move simply for change’s sake.

The Heat’s belief is that health and game availability — not a serious talent deficit — is what mostly has held Miami back. That conclusion did not change during an offseason evaluation, even with an acknowledgment that more is probably needed to win a title.

▪ Is the Heat in the mix for any of the players bandied about publicly in trades?

As of early this week, nothing was imminent.

There doesn’t appear to be any aggressive pursuit of Hawks guard Trae Young, and the Hawks might keep him because they have no incentive to tank in light of the Spurs owning their first-round picks in 2025 and 2027 and owning the right to swap first-round picks with the Hawks in 2026.

And if the Hawks wanted to rebuild, Miami wouldn’t be a good match, because the Heat has only one tradeable first-round pick and couldn’t replenish Atlanta’s draft pick treasure chest.

“The market” for Trae Young “is as chilly as it’s ever been,” ESPN’s Zach Lowe said. Two national outlets reported this week that Young is unlikely to be traded.

Lowe reported the Heat is among several teams with interest in Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, and a source did not dispute that. But Utah traditionally has sought a bevy of draft picks in trades, and Miami has fewer to offer than any of the other teams linked to Markkanen.

For example, Golden State can offer three futures firsts; their talks with the Jazz so far have gone nowhere.

The Kings have four available firsts; the Pelicans have six and the Spurs seven. All have been linked to Markkanen.

Markkanen is on a team-friendly $18.4 million expiring contract and can sign for five years and $270 million with Utah if he extends Aug. 6 (his first day of eligibility) or after that, or he could sign a four-year max deal for $200 million elsewhere next summer.

There’s an interesting timing issue with Markkanen: He must sign the extension on the first day he’s eligible in order to be traded this upcoming season.

And if he signs the extension on that day (Aug. 6), he is then eligible to be traded only on Feb. 6, the day of the NBA trade deadline. He could not be traded this season if he signs the extension after Aug. 6.

As for the Pelicans’ Brandon Ingram, the big issue is the fact he wants a max or near max extension (meaning an average of about $50 million annually) when he’s eligible for free agency in 12 months. He has a $36 million salary and 15 percent trade kicker in 2024-25.

Despite Ingram’s talents, that’s a lot to pay for a player who appeared in just 61, 55, 45 and 64 games the past four seasons.

“The reason the Pelicans want to trade Brandon Ingram isn’t because he’s not a good player,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst told ESPN Cleveland this week. “It’s because he wants a $200 million extension and they don’t want to give it. Any team that trades for him inherits the same situation — a player who wants a $200 million extension.”

This new labor agreement makes it very difficult to have three players earning max money or close to it. The Heat already has two in Butler and Bam Adebayo. Acquiring Ingram would mean sacrificing most of the Heat’s depth.

Meanwhile, ESPN reports there’s no trade market whatsoever for Bulls guard Zach LaVine, who has two negatives: lack of durability and a contract that includes a 15 percent trade kicker on top of his bloated salaries of $43 million, $46 million and $49 million.

▪ So who else could shake free in the months ahead?

The NBA seemingly never goes more than several months without a surprise name popping up in trade talks. But it likely won’t be Kevin Durant, who this week made clear he’s happy in Phoenix.

The Athletic’s John Hollinger, the former Memphis Grizzlies executive, mentions Washington’s Kyle Kuzma and Portland’s Jerami Grant as players who could become available, though Grant’s contract (four years, $133 million remaining) is burdensome for a player who has never been an All-Star.

Hollinger said Brooklyn could move “Dennis Schroder, Dorian Finney-Smith and Cam Johnson “if the price is right. Ditto for [Malcolm] Brogdon and [Kyle] Kuzma in Washington, Jordan Clarkson in Utah and Grant and Deandre Ayton in Portland.”

But most of those would be unlikely targets for Miami. Kuzma would be interesting because his contract is unusual in that it descends in salary the next three seasons: $23.5 million, $21.5 million and $19.4 million. He has a 15 percent trade kicker.

Hollinger said “the Heat will take all your calls on Tyler Herro [and] the Lakers will see what D’Angelo Russell can fetch.”

Herro was in play for Durant and Damian Lillard in past offseasons and nobody would suggest he’s untouchable. But there’s no indication that Miami is looking to dump him for peanuts.

▪ Is the Heat’s roster stagnancy a money issue?

It is not. With a $187.4 million payroll, Miami would be in line to pay about a $33 million tax next summer, per the NBA Luxury Tax Calculator Workbook.

▪ With the Heat just $1.5 million under the $188.9 million second apron, what can the Heat do and not do?

It cannot sign another player to a standard contract this summer and remain under the second apron. Miami is determined not to surpass the second apron because of competitive consequences of doing so.

It cannot take in more money than it sends out in a trade, unless the Heat’s payroll stands below $178.1 million after the completion of the trade.

It can aggregate salaries in a trade as long as Miami remains under the second apron. Exceeding the second apron would prevent the Heat from trading three players for two, or one for four, and so forth.

It can sub out two-way players. If Miami wishes, it could give Cole Swider a two-way contract in place of one of the players currently with two-way deals (Dru Smith, Keshad Johnson, Zyon Pullin).

It cannot sign Swider, Smith, Johnson, Pullin or any player to a standard contract and remain under the second apron.