Getty Kyle Kuzma of the Washington Wizards.
With the February 9 NBA trade deadline approaching, pressure continues to build on the Miami Heat to swing a deal to improve their roster.
Two Eastern Conference players could be viable targets for the Heat, according to Keith Smith on the January 14 episode of Heavy Sports’ “Postin’ Up” podcast.
“So I think [they could] get Kyle Kuzma, Bojan Bogdanović. … If they can continue to masquerade a little bit as a four, then that’s what they need,” Smith said. “They’re Miami, so those are the kind of the guys that immediately come to mind for me because that’s that’s really all they need. They don’t even need any more wings. They don’t need any more ball handlers. They could use another big, I guess, but I think that’s, again, that’s probably something you get on the buyout market versus sort of trading for unless it’s just very, yeah, this guy is a toss-in there and we’re gonna give them you know 15 minutes a night or whatever behind Bam [Adebayo].”
Kuzma has proved to be a quality player for the Washington Wizards this season. He has played an average of 35.2 minutes, appearing in 42 of the team’s 44 games. He’s averaging 21.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists on 46.3% shooting from the floor and 33.9% shooting from beyond the 3-point arc.
Bogdanović, of the Detroit Pistons, has appeared in 44 of the team’s 47 games and is playing 31.4 minutes. He’s averaging 21.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists on 48.7% shooting from the floor and 41.5% shooting from deep. He’s in third year of a four-year, $73 million contract that was extended through 2025.
Miami Proposal Sends Kyle Lowry to the Lakers in 3-Team Blockbuster
At 6-foot-9, Kuzma would give the Heat extra size and some more shooting. But how would Miami land Kuzma, who won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020?
Heavy Sports’ Jack Simone proposed a three-team deal that would help Miami unload Kyle Lowry and his $85 million contract.
The proposed deal involving the Heat, Lakers and Washington Wizards would look like this:
Lakers receive: Lowry, Will Barton, Duncan Robinson, Taj Gibson
Heat receive: Kyle Kuzma, Monte Morris, Kendrick Nunn
Wizards receive: Russell Westbrook, Nikola Jovic, the Lakers’ 2027 first-round pick (top 5 protected) and Miami’s 2029 first-round pick (top 10 protected).
“Miami would improve its short-term and long-term outlook. Pairing Kuzma next to Bam Adebayo in the frontcourt would make for a great duo, and the Heat could re-sign him after this year,” Simone wrote on January 7. “Morris isn’t quite as good as Lowry, but he’s much cheaper, and this trade would improve Miami’s depth. They would also get to have a nice reunion with Nunn, who played his best basketball with the Heat.”
Dewayne Dedmon, Victor Oladipo Could Be Dealt
January 15 has come and gone, which means that a group of 21 NBA players are all officially eligible to be traded. Both Dewayne Dedmon and Victor Oladipo are among those who signed a deal to stay with the same team and either got a 20% raise, signed for more than the minimum, or were resigned using bird-rights or early-bird-rights.
On the season, Dedmon is a team-low -93 over the course of 29 games for the Heat. His 5.9 points and 3.7 rebounds per game aren’t exactly translating to wins. He hasn’t made an appearance since the argument with Erik Spoelstra on January 10 and the team hasn’t really suffered. They’ve lost just one of the four games where he’s been benched.
Unlike Dedmon, Oladipo does have a no-trade clause in his contract, meaning he’d have to sign off on any deal he’s included in.