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As disappointed as the Miami Heat will be with the way the NBA Finals unfolded, there are few who would argue that they didn't get the absolute best out of the roster they assembled. They were perilously close to missing the NBA playoffs after a surprise loss in their opening play-in game to the Atlanta Hawks, but thereafter they went on to knock out two of the favorites to win the championship in the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics, all the while boasting a team which, from a talent perspective, paled in comparison to that of their opponents.
But despite significantly exceeding expectations, there is plenty the Heat will be looking to help them to not just get back to the NBA Finals next year, but to go one step further. These are three major offseason fixes they need to make in order to do so.
1. Find more shooting
In the NBA Playoffs, the Heat shot the lights out. In fact, they were ranked number one in the league in the postseason, hitting 38.0% of their three-point attempts on 33.7 shots per game.
But they can't let that paper over the fact that this is not a particularly good shooting team. They've got some lights out shooters running around, but neither of their two stars in Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo are prominent from long-range (or in Bam's case, a three-point shooter at all) and over the course of the regular season they were ranked 27th in the league in three-point shooting, hitting just 34.4% of their attempts.
Their uncharacteristically good shooting was one of a number of reasons they were able to exceed expectations and make their way through to the NBA Finals, but clearly they can't bank on that happening again next year.
What's more, though Duncan Robinson came to life in the postseason he has previously been shopped around by the Heat, and with a pretty hefty contract might be again this offseason. If he goes, it would leave an even more significant shooting hole that the Heat should be looking to fill.
2. Get a third starter to help out Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo
There was plenty made of the Heat's plethora of undrafted players during the playoffs, and rightly so. The likes of Max Strus, Gabe Vincent and Caleb Martin proved that all 30 NBA teams made an error in overlooking them with some high-level play at various points of the postseason.
But as good as they've all been at playing their roles to the absolute peak of their powers, the clear talent differential Miami faced in so many series had them seemingly with their backs against the wall all too often. Against the Celtics and Bucks they were able to overcome those issues, but not so against Denver.
Of course, it's hardly revolutionary to say that they should add another really good player – which team shouldn't? The Heat in particular, however, will have aspirations next season which probably bely the quality of players they have at their disposal. Given how well they performed with their roster in its current state, imagine what they could do if they had a legitimate third option behind Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
A quality guard in particular would be invaluable for the Heat, as would another two-way wing. Both trades and free agents could be in play, but of those who look like they will potentially be looking for new homes this offseason, the likes of Bradley Beal, Fred VanVleet, or even PJ Washington – probably in that order – could all provide some valuable assistance to the Heat's dynamic duo.
3. Find a legitimate back-up center
Perhaps the most glaring deficiency in a pretty well-rounded roster for the Heat in the playoffs was their lack of a legitimate back-up to play the five when Bam sat. After missing virtually the entire regular season, Cody Zeller was able to provide some minutes throughout the course of the postseason, but he was basically run off the floor in the NBA Finals, with his minutes from Game 1 through to Game 5 reading: 7, 8, 6, 4, 1.
With a lack of height elsewhere – the aging Kevin Love aside – this could have proved to be a bigger problem than what it was. Adebayo's minutes pretty much mirrored those of Nikola Jokic, and when the Joker sat the Nuggets were typically playing Jeff Green at the five. At 36 years of age he's hardly going to be destroying a mismatch, but against another team with a better back-up five – which many teams have – the Heat's lack of one could be a major issue.
This isn't a move which needs to break the bank for Miami, but it is something that they should look to address if they want to give themselves a chance of competing for a championship next season.
Miami went mighty close to shocking the NBA world these playoffs, but ultimately they were a long way off the pace against a very, very good Nuggets side. And as impressive as they were against the Bucks, Knicks and Celtics, there is plenty of ways this team should be looking to get better during the NBA offseason. Adding some more shooting, finding a third high quality starter and sorting out their back-up center problem would each be good places to start.
