Stephen A. Smith Thinks Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Heat Could Be The Biggest Threat to Knicks

Stephen A. Smith believes the Miami Heat will be a real threat next season thanks largely to Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Stephen A. Smith Thinks Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Heat Could Be The Biggest Threat to Knicks

Stephen A. Smith on Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Miami Heat (Image credits - LA Times and Yahoo Sports)

The Miami Heat are coming off an impressive summer after bolstering their roster with Giannis Antetokounmpo. Since reaching the NBA Finals in 2023, the Heat have struggled to make any noise in the East.

After consecutive first-round exits, the Heat faced pressure heading into the 2025-26 campaign. Unfortunately, they finished at 10th place in the Eastern Conference standings and missed the playoffs for the first time in seven years.

Following their early exit, the alarm bells were ringing in Miami. The Heat front office needed to make big changes to their roster if they had any chance of competing in the East.

With some big acquisitions in the summer, ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith believes that the Heat can be a threat to the New York Knicks next season.

I’m not sleeping on Miami, they’re a real threat. I believe in them.

Stephen A. Smith on First Take

Stephen A. Smith is a huge fan of the Knicks since his childhood days. The journalist has been on cloud nine ever since his team lifted its first championship in 53 years last season.

However, the road to the championship through the Eastern Conference will be a lot harder next year. The Heat made one of the biggest acquisitions in the offseason by trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks.

With Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo leading the way, the Heat possess arguably the best frontcourt duo in the league at the moment. They made another valuable addition by signing Klay Thompson in free agency.

Their two big acquisitions have championship DNA and will bring in some much-needed playoff experience into the locker room. With the Knicks as the favorites heading into the new season, Smith believes the Heat can pose a serious threat to the defending champions.

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The Eastern Conference has gotten a lot more competitive this summer

The Knicks deserve to be the favorites heading into the 2026-27 campaign. They have retained their core players in Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart. However, they saw the exit of Mitchell Robinson in the summer.

Meanwhile, the Heat kickstarted the summer by acquiring the ‘Greek Freak.’ It was a sign that a number of changes were going to be made as they built their squad around Giannis Antetokounmpo. While Thompson may not be the player he once was, he has a point to prove, and his signing has generated a lot of excitement among Heat fans.

But the biggest summer belongs to the Philadelphia 76ers. After getting clean swept by the Knicks in the second round of the playoffs this year, the 76ers have completely changed their roster in the offseason. They traded for Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics before signing LeBron James as a free agent.

The Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks are expected to be a lot more competitive as well after acquiring former champions Kawhi Leonard and Lu Dort, respectively. Historically, the Western Conference has been more competitive, but the talent seems to have shifted to the Eastern Conference this summer.

Giannis Antetokounmpo could be an MVP candidate with the Miami Heat

There is no doubt that Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the best players in the league. The Greek star has struggled to make a deep postseason run since winning the championship in 2021.

Giannis Antetokounmpo
Giannis Antetokounmpo (Image credits – Yahoo Sports)

He is coming off a disappointing 2025-26 campaign as he missed the playoffs with the Bucks and missed a significant number of games due to injury. However, despite the Bucks’ poor season, Antetokounmpo still averaged 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists in just 36 appearances.

A respondent on ESPN believes that the 31-year-old is a strong MVP candidate heading into the new season.

Another respondent expected Antetokounmpo to regain his MVP status. He continued to put up MVP-caliber numbers last season. He will enter his first with the Heat needing to prove he is still in his prime and can stay healthy. If both are true in 2026-27, Antetokounmpo will remain one of the very few players capable of averaging 30 points and 10 rebounds while also leading his team in assists.

A respondent on ESPN

Expectations for the Heat are very high. Two of the big questions heading into the new campaign are whether Giannis Antetokounmpo could regain his status as the best player in the league and whether he can lead the Heat to a championship next year.

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