Barring a trade between now and June 25, the Miami Heat will have the 20th pick in the NBA Draft.
The NBA officially broke ties between five teams with identical records, and luck wasn’t on Miami’s side. The Golden State Warriors finished third in a tiebreaker drawing with the Memphis Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks. All three teams finished 48-34.
The Warriors, who shipped their pick to the Heat in the Jimmy Butler trade, could’ve won the first coin flip to send the Heat the 18th selection, but lost to both the Grizzlies. Memphis will convey its pick to the Washington Wizards. Golden State also lost a coin flip to the Bucks, whose selection will be headed to the Brooklyn Nets via multiple teams.
Players who could be available when the Heat select at No. 20 include Florida guard Walter Clayton, Jr., French guard Nolan Traore, Auburn forward Johni Broome and Georgetown center Thomas Sorber.
Notable No. 20 picks include Caris LeVert, Jameer Nelson and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Jaylon Tyson went 20th last June. The best recent No. 20 pick is Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (2021) out of Duke. San Antonio’s Malaki Branham and Houston’s Cam Whitmore remain with their respective teams.
Tony Mejia is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at tnyce1414@gmail.com
