Playoff disaster gives Heat harsh Andrew Wiggins truth Warriors know all too well

Andrew Wiggins was an incredibly effective, valuable and much-loved member of the Golden State Warriors, having been an All-Star in 2022 and the second-best player on a championship team later that season.

Yet the former number one overall pick was never a star in the traditional sense -- someone who you could run your offense through consistently for long periods with good results. It was for this reason that the Warriors, despite their immense love for Wiggins, eventually had to make the call of trading him for a genuine offensive star which they did through the Jimmy Butler deal just before the mid-season deadline.

Wiggins' numbers after joining the Miami Heat remained fairly similar during the regular season, and a pair of 20-point games even helped his new team through the Play-In Tournament despite being the 10th-seed initially.

The Heat have come to the realization Andrew Wiggins can't be fully trusted offensively

The Canadian was nothing short of disappointing though in the Heat's first-round series against the top-seed Cleveland Cavaliers, with the lop-sided contest coming to a tame ending at Kayesa Center on Monday.

Facing the potential of a sweep on their home floor, Wiggins and Miami provided no resistance in quickly falling behind by over 20 points before collapsing to an embarrassing 138-83 defeat to the dominant Cavs.

Wiggins' awful series hardly got any better, finishing with 12 points, five rebounds and three turnovers in 22 impactless minutes. His performance certainly drew the ire of Heat fans who were not only frustrated by Wiggins' play, but questioned how Stephen Curry and the Warriors could possibly win a championship with him as their second-best player.

While there's certainly an argument that Curry's legacy should grow as a result of Wiggins' subsequent years, it's also true that the league is far too talented now to be able to repeat such heroics. Golden State knew they weren't getting back to the promised land with Wiggins (or Jonathan Kuminga) as their second-best offensive player -- heck, they probably weren't going to make the playoffs at all.

After Wiggins averaged just 11.5 points on 37.2% shooting through four playoff games, the Heat now find themselves stuck in the same predicament the Warriors once found themselves. While Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo are excellent players, they're not quite at the level where a trio of them and Wiggins can be a legitimate title threat. They can be competitive and push to make the playoffs, but that's the sort of no-man's land no team wants to find themselves in.

Miami's next move might be to do exactly what Golden State did -- trade Wiggins for a legitimate top 15 offensive talent with a history of playoff success. You already know they'll be linked to Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo, with the future of both superstars set to be major talking points this offseason.

For Wiggins, he needs to find himself on a team where he can be the third or fourth option behind a legitimate superstar or two. Ironically, he would actually be really good on the Warriors alongside Curry AND Butler. Who knows? Perhaps a reunion could be in store later down the track.