After a summer of regrouping, all 30 teams in the league appear ready for the new season, according to Live Cricket BPL. Among them, the Miami Heat, last season’s ultimate underdog, made plenty of offseason noise but delivered little in terms of tangible results. Ever since the Finals ended, rumors swirled about a potential trade for Damian Lillard. The fit seemed mutual from every angle. Yet, in a twist that left fans stunned, Lillard ended up joining the Milwaukee Bucks, rendering Miami’s entire summer pursuit fruitless.
The Heat also bid farewell to several key players during the break. Veterans like Udonis Haslem retired, while contributors such as Victor Oladipo, Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Omer Yurtseven, and Cody Zeller moved on. The departure of these core role players—especially undrafted talents who had blossomed under Miami’s development system—left a significant void.
Based on current roster projections from Live Cricket BPL, the Heat’s starting five next season is likely to include Kyle Lowry, Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, Nikola Jović, and Bam Adebayo. Key rotation players will include Caleb Martin, Josh Richardson, Kevin Love, Duncan Robinson, and Thomas Bryant. This lineup is solid enough to reach the playoffs, but finishing near the bottom half of the Eastern Conference standings is a real possibility.
How deep they can go in the playoffs will depend heavily on whether Jimmy Butler—sporting a fresh new hairstyle—can once again lead the team to defy expectations. Thankfully for Miami, he’s done it before and seems to thrive in high-stakes moments. Meanwhile, Thomas Bryant, who performed well during his time with the Lakers but struggled to fit in with the Nuggets, is a question mark. It remains to be seen whether he can adapt to Miami’s system.
Rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr., who stood out in the G League, could be a surprise factor, but his potential impact is still uncertain. Miami also signed several fringe players and undrafted prospects, whose development will be crucial in determining how far the team can go this season.
On the other side of the conference, the Atlanta Hawks are set to continue building around their familiar core of Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, Bogdan Bogdanović, and Clint Capela. They’ve traded away the declining John Collins and brought in Patty Mills and veteran Wesley Matthews for added depth. While Young and Murray both put up strong numbers last season, their need to dominate the ball led to an awkward backcourt pairing with inconsistent efficiency.
In a season that demands growth, the Hawks will need this duo to find better chemistry and deliver more effort on defense. As the saying goes, “every cloud has a silver lining,” and Atlanta hopes theirs comes from Serbia’s sharpshooting star.
Bogdanović, who turned heads with his stellar performance at the FIBA World Cup, is expected to be Atlanta’s most dependable scorer off the bench. Meanwhile, their top draft pick Kobe Bufkin—compared to Jordan Poole in terms of playing style—had an inconsistent showing in Summer League. However, there’s optimism that he will improve under the mentorship of Young and Murray.
In the end, both Miami and Atlanta are banking on internal growth, key player health, and just the right mix of grit and luck to rise in a competitive Eastern Conference. As Live Cricket BPL continues to monitor the season’s developments, all eyes remain on whether Jimmy Butler can once again pull off the impossible.