Latest Miami Heat Surprise With No. 15 Overall Pick, Get A ‘C+’

The Miami Heat could not follow up their stunning run to the Finals from the Play-In a year ago with a similar effort, falling in five games to the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs. Now they enter an offseason where Jimmy Butler extension talks loom over everything, although chatter has cooled about him pushing his way out in a trade if an extension doesn’t materialize.

The Heat are always hellbent on acquiring star talent, but they don’t have a ton in the way of great assets to make big moves — as evidenced by last year’s failed run at Damian Lillard. They have locked up Bam Adebayo long-term on what looks to be a team-friendly extension (even at $55 million per year on average), but it’s not clear if there’s a big swing available to the Heat. If not, the 15th pick in Wednesday night’s Draft figured to be an important spot to land a potential contributor, similarly to what they did last year with Jaime Jaquez Jr.

There were some intriguing names on the board when the Heat ended up on the clock, but they took a surprising path with Indiana big man Kel’el Ware a bit earlier than most projected.

Kel’el Ware (No. 15 Overall), C+: Candidly, I was surprised by this pick. Ware has tremendous measurables and skills, which aligns with a pick in this range. If the whole package comes together, Ware can become a starting center or better. But his concerns with motor and attentiveness don’t scream “Miami Heat,” so it was a bit of an off-the-radar choice, especially on a team with Bam already entrenched at center. Still, there is clear upside with Ware.