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The Miami Heat's 2023 playoff run was nothing short of historic. Heading into the postseason, many folks wrote off the Heat and didn't think they had a chance to even beat Giannis Antetokunmpo and the one-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round. But the Heat demolished the Bucks in five games and then went on to beat the New York Knicks in six and the Boston Celtics in seven in the following two rounds to advance to the NBA Finals. The Heat became just the second eighth seed in NBA playoff history to make it all the way to the championship series. The 1999 New York Knicks are the only other NBA team to ever accomplish this feat.
Sure, the Heat's postseason run didn't end the way they wanted it to. The Denver Nuggets beat the Heat in five games in the NBA Finals, and the Heat looked flat-out outmatched for much of the series.
But if there's one positive takeaway from the Heat coming up just short of an NBA title, it's that they will have the 18th pick in the NBA Draft. There are plenty of players projected to fall around the pick-18 who'd fit like a glove in Miami, but there are also players in this range who the Heat should not draft. With all of that said, let's look at two players the Heat must avoid with the 18th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft:
2 players Heat must avoid with No. 18 pick in 2023 NBA Draft
Trayce Jackson-Davis
The Heat are in need of more talent at the power forward position. Kevin Love is a far cry from the player he was with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Caleb Martin — while he had his moments of brilliance and was better than Love during the Heat's playoff run — is too inconsistent. The Heat would be wise to draft a power forward with the 24th overall pick, but that power forward shouldn't be Trayce Jackson-Davis.
Jackson-Davis starred on the offensive end in his senior year with the Hoosiers during the 2022-23 season. He averaged 20.9 points, 2.8 offensive rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game across 32 appearances as a senior.
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But there's one glaring hole in Jackson-Davis' offensive skillset. He is a non-threat from behind the three-point arc, as he didn't even attempt a single three-pointer in his senior season. The Heat would be better off drafting a power forward who's superior at stretching the floor than Jackson-Davis.
Nick Smith
With Kyle Lowry owed $29 million next season, his future in Miami is very much up in the air right now. If the Heat plan on trading Lowry this summer to offload his albatross contract, they should really consider drafting a point guard at pick 24. But that point guard shouldn't be Arkansas' Nick Smith.
For one, Smith is a sub-par playmaker, as he dished out just 1.7 assists per contest this season. Smith is also an inefficient, score-first guard. He converted just 37.6% of his field goal attempts with Arkansas.
Only time will tell who the Heat will select with the 18th overall pick in the NBA Draft. But what's clear is that they shouldn't select Trayce Jackson-Davis or Nick Smith.
