Getty Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat coach, could use a player like DeMar DeRozan
If there is a reason that we’re seeing the level of Miami Heat trade rumors around DeMar DeRozan that we have seen in the NBA lately, it likely can be traced back to 2018. That, of course, is when DeRozan was the chief chip sent to San Antonio in the deal that brought Kawhi Leonard to Toronto. The Raptors went on to win a championship with Leonard, and DeRozan did not get the chance to play for a title.
In fact, DeRozan has not even gotten close. He played in one postseason series with the Spurs and another with the Bulls. But he has not advanced out of the first round since leaving the Raptors. And at age 34, he really wants to change that.
Erik Spoelstra could want nothing more than to make that happen. A Miami Heat trade for DeRozan would bring the coach the kind of versatile, high-scoring power forward he is lacking now. DeRozan is in the final year of a three-year, $82 million contract the signed in Chicago, making him a potentially perfect fit for the Heat, who are not seeking to add more money to their future ledger.
“Of all the player out there people are floating for the Heat, they’re not close to doing anything now, but DeMar DeRozan would be the one that has legs,” one Eastern Conference executive told Heavy Sports. “He is as close to what they’re looking for as they’re going to find. Perfect fit, really.”
Miami Heat Trade for DeMar DeRozan Would Bolster his Career
And the Heat are close to what DeMar DeRozan is looking for, too. He badly wants to chance to win a championship as a contributing player, while he still can. Over the weekend, The Athletic’s Sam Amick wrote that the Heat and Knicks were DeRozan’s preferred trade destinations. Both places would land him with a contender and with a team that could use his talents.
“I don’t think you can overestimate how much it hurt him to get traded away from a team (Toronto) that was right there for a competitive spot in the East, then you get dealt and you watch your replacement do the thing you could not do for that team. He had to watch Kawhi Leonard get them to the Finals and win it. Of course he wants his turn,” the executive said.
While he might be better off landing with, say, the Nuggets or Celtics, if he wants to win a ring, there really isn’t a deal to be made there, or a role for him. But there is in Miami. Thus, the Miami Heat trade chatter.
DeMar DeRozan is averaging 21.5 points and 4.9 assists for the Bulls this year.
Kyle Lowry on the Move?
As always with the Heat, they’re not very well built, roster-wise, for trades. They lack middling contracts that can serve as salary filler. They don’t want to move Tyler Herro because they like his talent, though they’re not crazy about the money on his contract, and they don’t want to move Kyle Lowry because they like the fact that his contract is up this season.
As an expiring deal, though, a Miami Heat trade for DeMar DeRozan in which Lowry is sent away makes a good deal of season. The Heat could bring DeRozan in, and perhaps re-sign him at a lower number next season.
“I don’t think they Bulls would do Tyler Herro’s contract for an expiring deal like DeRozan’s,” the executive said. “But if it is Lowry and a first-round pick or Lowry and Nikola Jovic, now you’re in the neighborhood where Chicago could do something, add a long-term piece.”
It is not a huge haul for DeRozan. But the Bulls, at 7-14, are not going to be in position to command a big haul for any of their trade pieces. They
Re also under no obligation to trade DeRozan to a preferred team. But if Chicago does listen to his desires, Miami will be in position to take advantage.