Report: Draft picks holding up Heat trade for Chris Paul

When trade discussions between the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder regarding Russell Westbrook reportedly reached a “stalemate,” the Thunder traded Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul and two future first-round picks.

And the Thunder apparently haven’t found much success in convincing the Heat to trade for Paul. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said that the fact that Oklahoma City owns two Heat first-round picks — an unprotected one in 2021 and a protected one in 2023 — complicates the likelihood of a trade coming together.

As I’ve mentioned, the Thunder have an incentive for the Heat to finish poorly because of those two picks. Windhorst said that the Thunder are willing to give Miami back one of those picks, but would want another pick in return. That’s laughable. I hope Pat Riley hung up on Sam Presti, if that’s how the conversation went.

Over the weekend, Candace Buckner of the Washington Post reported that talks of a contract extension for Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal are not a done deal. She quoted a source who said, “He’s out of there.” (Beal’s contract expires in 2021, but he can ask for a trade before then.) And the Heat are said to have “strong interest” in trading for Beal.

That’s the trade Miami should pursue.