At the conclusion of ABC’s telecast of Game 6 of the N.B.A. finals, the analyst Jeff Van Gundy made a provocative point regarding the future of the Miami Heat for pro basketball fans to contemplate over what promises to be a long, hot summer of hard labor talk after Thursday’s college draft.

In so many words, he said the Heat should consider breaking up its Big Three, even trading LeBron James, given the potential availability next winter of Dwight Howard.

“Yes, I said that, and people killed me for it,” Van Gundy said. “But you know what? If I have a chance to trade LeBron for Dwight Howard, absolutely, I’d do that.”

Between the Van Gundy brothers — Jeff, the former Knicks and Rockets coach, and Stan, the former Heat and current Orlando coach — there is seldom a shortage of fervent opinion. In this case, Jeff Van Gundy the analyst was treading on the territory of his brother the coach:

Howard is the Magic’s centerpiece, though he could be the next player to change the league’s balance of power as he enters his last contractual season.