Miami has always been a favorite place for NBA players to showcase their hoop talents. The warm weather, beautiful beaches, and vibrant culture make it an attractive destination for both work and leisure. In 2016, the Heat nearly landed one of the biggest names in basketball – Kevin Durant.
In an episode of “The OGs” podcast, former Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside divulged that the Heat were putting the full-court press on the one-time league MVP to try and get him to join the Heat. In fact, Whiteside said he told Heat president Pat Riley he was willing to take less money on his contract if it meant bringing the smooth forward to Miami.
KD met with the Heat’s brass
The summer of 2016 was extra hot in the NBA as the man known as the “Slim Reaper” entered free agency. Many teams tried their luck at landing the star player, and the Heat were one of those contenders. With its sunny beaches and vibrant culture, Miami seemed like the perfect fit for Durant both on and off the court.
Whiteside said that if KD had signed the dotted line, they would have had a stellar lineup that could have contended for several NBA titles.
“Durant came, took the meeting, and I told Pat, I said, 'If KD comes, I’ll take less money.' Yeah, I’ll take less money. I mean, it was more so about winning. So I was like, 'I’ll take less money if we get him,' because we would have had Goran, D-Wade, Kevin Durant, Chris Bosh, and then me at the five,” the 7-footer shared .
Udonis thinks it wouldn’t have worked out
Udonis Haslem, the Heat’s veteran forward and the team’s undisputed moral compass, shared his take on that matter, saying that as much as he hoped KD would join the Heat, he was glad he didn’t. UD explained that “The King” LeBron James had just left the Heat in the summer of 2014 to return to Cleveland, which meant that memories of Bron’s successful stint in South Beach were still fresh in everyone’s minds. This would inevitably lead to KD being compared to LeBron every step of the way.
“If he was in Miami, everything he did in Miami was going to be compared to what Bron did when he was in Miami. They weren't going to let him live, you know what I’m saying?” UD surmised. “It just would have been a frustrating situation for KD. So I was happy he took the meeting, and I was hoping it was going to work out, but in the long run, I really didn’t think that was going to be the time that he came to Miami.”
KD eventually chose Golden State and helped lead the Warriors to two straight NBA titles. Meanwhile, the Heat went through several lean seasons before returning to the NBA Finals in 2020, this time under Jimmy Butler's and Bam Adebayo's leadership.
Related: "Lick your hand and touch as high as you can on the backboard" - Hassan Whiteside on how Pat Riley put him through the hardest workout of his life
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