The Miami Heat are reportedly making an “aggressive attempt” to move up in the NBA Draft to put themselves in position to draft Shabazz Napier, according to ESPN.com’s Chad Ford. That should not come as a surprise.
As you know, LeBron James recently informed the Heat that he will opt out of the final year of his contract. It’s not a coincidence that he made his decision before the draft when he had had several more days to decide. LeBron wants Pat Riley to improve his supporting cast, and one of the ways to do that will be through the draft or through trades involving draft picks.
LeBron doesn’t tweet very often, but he took to social media back in April to praise Napier and the way he led UConn to an improbable national championship.
Napier and Boatright controls both ends of the floor. Reminders of Bibby and Simon. That good!!
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 8, 2014
No way u take another PG in the lottery before Napier.
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 8, 2014
We wouldn’t be surprised if LeBron is intrigued by the possibility of playing with a young dynamic point guard like Napier, especially after the way Mario Chalmers struggled throughout the playoffs. However, it is highly unlikely that Napier will fall to the Heat at No. 26.
LeBron isn’t the only one who likes Napier. Ford also reports that Riley flew Napier out to Miami for a workout after the NBA Finals and tried to convince the former Huskies star to stop working out for teams so that he would slip through the cracks and down to No. 26. Unsurprisingly, Napier was not interested. Being drafted higher means more money.
Napier has drawn interest from teams as high as the Orlando Magic at No. 12, so the Heat know they will have to move if they want him. The problem for Riley is he doesn’t have much to offer besides a player like Norris Cole and Miami’s pick. The Heat don’t have another first-round pick until 2016.
While we’re not saying Napier is a deal-breaker in LeBron’s decision-making process, you better believe Riley is going to do everything he can to make the best player on the planet happy. I wouldn’t read too much into the whole “stay together if you have the guts” thing. Riley has to do some ass kissing whether he likes it or not.
