How the Heat could have 5 first-round draft picks in Miami by 2020

The process for the Miami Heat could lie in looking forward to the summer of 2020, when the salary structure becomes more favorable, per spotrac.

By then the three most expensive contracts, Hassan Whiteside’s, Tyler Johnson’s, and Goran Dragic’s, all naturally fall off the books.

The Heat will have a first-round draft pick from 2019 on their roster, plus their 2020 first-round pick.

The only other contracts on the books for the summer after next will be Dion Waiters, James Johnson, Kelly Olynyk, Bam Adebayo and Josh Richardson, and all of them, expect for Richardson’s, are expiring ones.

The Heat also have Justise Winslow’s contract extension to decide on, which may bring him into the mix going forward.

To sum it up, Miami could have 8 contracts on the books, with 5 players still in their 20’s being first-round draft picks, on their roster in 2020.

Add perceived busts such as Mario Hezonja and Jahlil Okafor to the Heat development program, Miami’s coaching staff might polish 7 first-round draft picks into contenders for the championship.

With three players on rookie pay scale, Miami would have enough cap space to lure a max-level talent to the mix.

Making no rash decisions, in the next month or two, may be the best decision this time around.