Gone are the days of superstars regularly hitting unrestricted free agency at the perfect time for the Miami Heat to sign them. Perhaps there will be exceptions to that rule, but the path of a big-name player has changed dramatically in recent years.

With extensions and forced trades taking precedence over unrestricted free agency, Heat team president Pat Riley must find a new way to keep his superstar tradition going.

Miami has utilized free agency as well as any franchise in the NBA when it comes to bringing in top-end talent. It’s famously signed players such as Chris Bosh, Jimmy Butler, and LeBron James, all of whom have played definitive roles in the team’s past 15 years of consistent success.

Unfortunately, the nature of free agency has changed from an inevitability to an outcome that both players and teams hope to avoid. Per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line:

“We speak often in the modern NBA about veteran players increasingly opting to sign extensions rather than test free agency. According to…ESPN’s Bobby Marks, 53 players have already signed veteran extensions during the first three summers of the NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement. There were 74 such extensions across six seasons in the previous labor deal, per Marks’ math, but 44 of those 74 extensions took place during the final two seasons of that deal (2021-22 and 2022-23).”

The point Fischer makes with the help of Bobby Marks’ data is clear: Free agency is no longer the goal for players looking to change teams.

Heat can no longer rely on free agency to land a superstar

Miami is admittedly in a better position than the average franchise. It has two All-Stars in Bam Adebayo, 28, and Tyler Herro, 25. It also has a top-tier sharpshooter in Norman Powell, a defensive menace in Davion Mitchell, and a productive veteran wing in Andrew Wiggins.

The Heat also have an abundance of promising young players, including Kasparas Jakucionis, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jovic, and Kel’el Ware—and Jaquez, 24, is the only listed player older than 22.

Compounded by the guidance of a Hall of Fame head coach in Erik Spoelstra, Miami has ample reasons for optimism. In saying that, the franchise’s three championships and seven NBA Finals appearances under Riley’s watch have been built on the ability to acquire superstar talent.

With players seemingly prioritizing stability with contract extensions and later pursuing trades if dire situations fail to improve, cap space simply doesn’t appear to be a sufficient asset.

In turn, the Heat will soon need to accept a harsh reality. Either they’ll continue to build in the manner they are, balancing two All-Stars who are both under 30 with a core of promising young players with untapped potential, or they’ll need to part ways with valued assets in a blockbuster trade.

Unless the tide turns in free agency, there doesn’t appear to be another realistic option for Miami to consider as far as acquiring a superstar is concerned.

It’s an unfortunate truth, as the Heat have built a team that’s perfectly suited to add a superstar and instantly contend. Adebayo is a five-time All-Defense honoree whose offensive is blooming, Herro is a dynamic offensive threat, and the supporting cast is flush with potential.

Unfortunately, if Riley dreams of adding another superstar to the Heat’s long line of high-profile players, then he’ll need to reconcile with the limited options in free agency.