The Miami Heat got one of their most coveted players to re-sign with them this offseason, and that was Udonis Haslem, who recently announced his intentions to return for his twentieth NBA season. Re-signing Haslem was a top priority for the Heat, and they made sure he knew it when they met with him just after the NBA free agency window opened. Aside from Haslem, the Heat were known to be interested in adding stars this offseason, and their name was included in the recent discussions with the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant and Utah Jazz for Donovan Mitchell.
While they were said to be in negotiations for Durant for most of the summer, recent reporting from Shams Charania of The Athletic shared that Miami had never actively pursued Durant this offseason and hadn’t had conversations with the team since summer league.
“The last time, Stugotz, the Heat called the Nets was right around Summer League or even maybe even before that,” Charania said on an appearance on the STUpodity podcast. “… They never really aggressively pursued a deal because I think at the end of the day, they knew they would have had to gut multiple players.”
While they may not have been calling about Durant, the team definitely seemed interested, and it seems clear that team president Pat Riley is looking to add a star this season to take some of the pressure off of Jimmy Butler. With Durant off the table, the team may look to other stars. They have been linked with the Jazz all offseason for Donovan Mitchell, but one trade proposal has the Heat interested in another player Utah may be looking to trade, Bojan Bogdanovic.
Heat Linked to Bojan Bogdanovic
If the team isn’t able to land Kevin Durant or Donovan Mitchell, perhaps they will look to fill another need, and that is replacing PJ Tucker in their starting lineup. Currently, Caleb Martin looks to be the one slotted to fill that role but they may want a more proven veteran to slide into that starting role, and Bojan Bogdanovic could be that guy.
In an August 29, article from Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report the Heat were linked to Bogdanovic in a proposed deal that send Duncan Robinson to the Utah Jazz.
Miami Heat Receive: PF Bojan Bogdanovic
Utah Jazz Receive: SF Duncan Robinson, C Omer Yurtseven, 2028 second-round pick
The Heat would get an instant starter and only give up Robinson, who may be on the block anyway and Omer Yurtseven. Yurtseven is a player that the Heat brass do like and he was recently named one of the league’s best-kept secret, but they get back an instant scoring threat in Bogdanovic.
Does the Deal Make Sense?
For the Jazz, who are known to be shopping pretty much every player on its roster the deal makes sense. They love shooting and get back a major shooter in Robinson. Yurtseven is a piece with tremendous upside and the team would also get a draft pick in the deal.
For Miami, the deal depends on how you feel about Martin and his fit in the power forward role for the Heat. If you think he could step in then this deal may not make the most sense. If you worry about the Heat having another scorer they can count on, then a deal for Bogdanovic makes sense. He can hit threes, create his own shot, and plays well offensively, and could be a good fit into the Heat’s system.
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Heat Linked to $73 Million Sharpshooting Forward in Proposed Duncan Robinson Trade