How can Heat trade for Durant and keep core?

Durant reportedly only wants to play for a Miami team with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry.

Sam Amick of The Athletic reported on a “significant obstacle” for a trade getting Kevin Durant to the Miami Heat. He would only want to play for a Heat team with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry.

Many Heat fans thought of a trade centered about Lowry, Tyler Herro and draft picks to pair Durant with Butler and Adebayo. Lowry is due to earn $28.33 million next season, which would help match salaries for Durant, who will make $44 million next season. Herro is due for an extension, but that wouldn’t kick in until the 2023-24 season.

It’s pretty much impossible for the Heat to trade for Durant without giving up Butler, Adebayo or Lowry. Miami has to give up Lowry. The Heat aren’t trading Butler or Adebayo for Durant. It appears that Durant wants to assimilate into an already-established team, as he did when he joined the Golden State Warriors in 2016. His two preferred destinations, the Heat and Phoenix Suns, were the top seeds in their respective conferences last season.

Now, Brian Windhorst said that the Brooklyn Nets aren’t interested in the Suns offer for Durant. Perhaps the Heat have some time to persuade Durant that he’d be happy joining a starting lineup of Gabe Vincent, Victor Oladipo, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.