The Miami Heat reportedly want to sign a three-point specialist in free agency this summer. Miami's moves in the offseason will depend on what happens with Goran Dragic and Luol Deng in free agency, but possible free-agent targets include Danny Green, Lou Williams, Gerald Green, Marcus Thornton and J.R. Smith.
Miami's top priority after the season is re-signing Dragic. With big-name teams such as the Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks interested in Dragic, the Heat will likely end up having to offer him a five-year max deal. The 28-year-old is worth the investment, but the resultant lack of cap space means Heat president Pat Riley must now get creative with how he adds new role players.
According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, Riley's No. 2 priority - assuming he re-signs Dragic, who reportedly prefers to stay in Miami - is to bring in a three-point shooter to help better space the floor. There're a number of soon-to-be free agents who can space defenses, but the Heat - assuming Dragic and Deng both don't leave - will be over next season's projected $67 million cap and thus only able to offer minimum contracts and a midlevel exception.
As Jackson points out, Danny Green and Williams are the two best free-agent options for Miami but are likely to seek more than a midlevel exception from a taxed ($3.4 million) or an untaxed ($5.5 million) team. Smith and Eric Gordon also fall into the aforementioned category if they choose to opt out of their contracts and test free agency.
Jackson also named Gerald Green and Thornton as possibilities, and the Heat would seemingly have a better chance of convincing either player to take a midlevel exception.
Other possible targets include Luke Babbit, Marco Belinelli, Wayne Ellington and Omri Casspi.
If Deng and Dragic stay after the season, Miami will likely be a tax-paying team. If Deng leaves but Dragic stays, Miami will still be over the salary cap. With the Heat limited in free agency either way, the team may look to upgrade its roster through other means.
"...The Heat could look to improve through trades, minimum contracts, a portion of the mid-level or through the draft (if it gets the top-10 protected first-rounder otherwise owed to Philadelphia)," Jackson wrote Tuesday. "Don't rule out the trade route; Deng, Chris Andersen, Mario Chalmers and Josh McRoberts hold varying degrees of value. The only motivation for Deng to opt out would be if he believes he can get a lucrative multiyear deal here or elsewhere."
Conventional wisdom says Deng opts out of his contract and uses free agency to seek out the security of a long-term deal, something the Heat are unlikely to offer him. The $10.1 million he is due next season, along with the lack of a market willing to pay him anything close to that, however, makes it likely Deng will stick around for another season. Although Deng reportedly hasn't thought about his future beyond this season, he hasn't been shy about expressing his love for the Heat organization.
"I love this organization," Deng said, via the Palm Beach Post. "It's been top-class and everything. I've had one of my healthiest years. It was never anything serious. I've felt great about the medical staff.
"When you've been in the league 11 years, as soon as you start putting mileage on your body, you want a group that knows your body and you're comfortable with them. The organization has been great."
