Well, you are with the Truth Network Podcast.
The Truth Network. Welcome back. Recently as yesterday, the name of Julius Randle has been bandied about. Wiggins is thrown around.
What piece would actually help the Heat? What's been wild in this mess is that while all the names that we've heard from Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kamake and Golden State, whether it's a Bruce Brown and an expiring deal, now obviously the talk of the year and Fox and the Heat get as unlikely as it seems. The one thing that transpired in the last month is that their own player, Colell, where a kid that they got in the first round this year has developed into a working-year candidate. I mean, the kid's been a double-double machine. He's coming off another double-double, 1910 in the win against Orlando.
He's in the starting lineup now. It's as the norm with Ben at a buyout, two-week mint with Colell at the five. It's changed kind of the idea of what this team is going to be. Like, okay, so do you just get expiring contracts?
Do you get deals and draft picks? I think the one thing I could feel pretty comfortable saying, JR, is that they do not want to get any contracts that go past 2026. Pat Riley and his organization, they want to line things up to the big free-aging class, whether it's Luca, whoever it may be, to make sure they have financial flexibility. And I think they feel more comfortable doing that given Tyler Herold playing at an all-star level, giving Bam what he's done before, starting to hopefully turn the corner on offense.
He struggled a bit this year. And then the development of Colell Ware, a kid that looks to be a really good force at the center position for them for now and the future. Oh, well, all things considered, given where the Miami Heat are at right now, where they'll be next Friday, this is a team in transition. I mean, the next the rest of this season, next year, we might as well just, you know, clasp our hands and wait, huh? And that's the thing is that the Heat don't think that way. Look, I've been around this organization a long time.
I love it. You know, I love covering the Heat. But the one thing you will learn from day one is that they don't settle. They don't think of the short term as far as like, oh, it's rebuilding. They always have competing and playing for a championship in mind, no matter how the roster may not look capable of dealing with a Boston, dealing with the teams out west. They feel they can compete.
So I think in the short term, yeah, you want to kind of line things up where these young players play and get experience and build. But I also think that the Heat don't normally think that way. They want to be able to, whatever move is made next, don't keep the eyes on now and the future thinking they can compete with anyone. It's just the way they do things. They're not a team that's just going to concede and say, OK, these teams are better. We're not going to compete.
That's not the way they function. Will Mansell is here with us covers the Miami Heat, WPLG-TV down in Miami. When you think about how Pat Riley showed up and has changed the organization since he showed up about almost 30 years ago, we've seen we've seen the changes here. Has Jimmy Butler damaged his standing in his historical space with the Miami Heat?
I know it's crazy to think about right now. He's still on a team and he wants out. But has he kind of burned this bridge into the future when it's time to celebrate his career?
No, unless he wants to, unless he doesn't want anything to do with his organization in the future. The one thing the Heat have shown that they're capable of throughout the years is to forgive and forget, you know, and to move on. And we've seen it. We've seen it with some of their all time greats. I mean, there have been falling outs and issues with Alonzo Mourning, who's now an executive with the team, works at the front office.
The most obvious cases will happen all the way. The greatest player in franchise history. And now he's obviously got a statue and his number retired. And he's always going to be a big part of this organization. I think there's going to be a day where no matter what happened at the end with LeBron, LeBron's jersey is going to be hanging here.
There's going to be a banner at the arena. They will make up with Jimmy. And this, I think, will be looked at as a great period in Heat history where he came here for five, six years, had some phenomenal moments. Now, that's, to me, the balls of Jimmy's court. If Jimmy sours on this organization, doesn't want anything to do with him and doesn't, you know, doesn't want that, then he doesn't get it. But I think as time heals and time goes on and you reflect on what this time with Jimmy was. Yeah, I think the Heat will welcome him back with open arms and embrace them.
I think fans will as well. It's just unfortunate to get ugly at the end. But the riot itself was worth it. Like, there's no one that could tell me otherwise that the Jimmy Butler might be wasn't a success.
It absolutely was. It's just an ugly ending, which unfortunately is kind of the MO for Jimmy and all his stops. Yeah, I think at this point in time, Will, I'd wish he just got shot out to Mars. I mean, this is it's just a blatant money grab. I find it surprising just a little bit that you say the fans were on his side. I mean, he's a thirty five, thirty six year old player at this stage of his career. He wants a contract extension. He has a contract to finish out this year. He has an option for next year. He's not playing for free. And the fact that he would go this far, I'm just a little surprised that the fans would just go, I'm on his side. What do you want to pay him until he's forty five?
You can't even legally do that under the cap. It's just a little surprise. And the fans took that approach. And that's where business and personal mix, right? The fans are thinking from a fan emotion perspective.
How are we thinking about the business? You know, I mean, he did it with the way the greatest player in franchise history. You sure as heck know he's doing with Jimmy Butler, too, as far as thinking of it from a business perspective.
I know that that's rough. I know that Jimmy's been great here. But like you said, you have to think big picture.
He's not as private about the year Fox situation where you're getting a player in his pocket trying to figure out you're getting whoever gets Jimmy next is getting a player who probably has one last run of this postseason, maybe next postseason, to give you that level of basketball to pay him beyond that is probably not a smart business move that the Heat want to make. Yeah, not at all. Hey, well, I'll say it. The fans are not smart. I said it, not you. Don't worry about it.
They will. Luckily, the fans are not running teams. They always say like that they you let them equate what you do is that you don't have a job or you could be the New York Jets. You could let your teenage son run the team. So exactly that you're really in trouble.
Different strokes with different folks. Hey, well, thank you so much for the time. Where can people in South Florida, where can people all over the country keep up with you, your work and the coverage of the Heat?
Easy enough on social media at my name at Will Mansell. And for those in South Florida, I work at the ABC, but I also get the cover of the broadcast of their team. So if you watch games locally or whatever on NBA Pass, all that stuff. But it's always my pleasure to talk to me.
Basketball. Hey, well, thank you so much. And hopefully this this this chapter closes soon and everybody can move on. Appreciate your will. Anytime. My pleasure.
