Miami Heat president Pat Riley said earlier this week that re-signing big man Hassan Whiteside will be the team’s top priority this offseason, but he may actually have his sights set on a slightly bigger prize.
Dan Le Batard, who has always been pretty well connected on all things Heat, said on his ESPN Radio show recently that making a strong pitch to Durant has always been No. 1 on Riley’s to-do list. Le Batard notes that the Heat even refused to sign Dwyane Wade — the face of the franchise for years — to a multiyear deal last offseason just so they could position themselves to make a run at Durant.
“What I’m telling you, no matter how much you laugh at it, is that the Heat is getting in the room with Durant,” Le Batard said, as transcribed by Dan Feldman of Pro Basketball Talk. “Now, what happens from there, who knows? But you can sit here and laugh at it all you want, but the plan, the construct is – the priority, the No. 1 thing this offseason – is get in the room with Durant.
“You do what you want with the information. All I’m telling you is priority No. 1 is not get Dwyane locked up, Whiteside locked up. No. 1 on the list is can you get the superstar that is the big get in free agency while also taking care of your people around that?”
This shouldn’t be a surprise. It’s already been established that the Heat want in on the Durant sweepstakes, and can you really expect to sign a player of K.D.’s caliber without going all-in?
If Durant does decide to leave Oklahoma City, which is no guarantee given the way the Thunder have played this postseason, the Heat will have competition from several of the best teams in the Western Conference and then some. Bringing back Whiteside is a much more realistic option, which is why Riley doesn’t want to risk offending him while courting Durant.
