Heat Trade Proposal Swaps Tyler Herro for Former Lakers Champ

Getty Tyler Herro of the Miami Heat.

The Miami Heat don’t have the money to make any significant auditions this offseason, but a trade is certainly still on the table.

After being the subject of trade rumors for the majority of last season, it’s no surprise Heat forward Tyler Herro‘s name is starting to pop up again in various trade scenarios. Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report proposed an intriguing player-for-player swap: Herro to the Washington Wizards for Kyle Kuzma.

“The Heat are having trouble relying on Herro, who couldn’t top 66 games in any of his first five NBA seasons. They might also have serious questions regarding the defensive viability of a Herro-Terry Rozier backcourt,” Buckley wrote on July 10, adding:

“Swapping out Herro for Kuzma could ease some of the defensive concerns in the backcourt (depending on who filled Herro’s starting spot, obviously) while giving Miami a 20-point scorer who previously filled a support role on a championship team (the 2019-20 Lakers, who coincidentally downed the Heat in the bubble).”

Would a Tyler Herro & Kyle Kuzma Trade Be Good for Miami Heat?

Buckley seems to think the Heat could benefit by adding the 29-year-old Kuzma, particularly on defense. “The Heat have struggled to get enough two-way players on the floor, and Kuzma is better balanced in that regard,” Buckley noted.

Herro, 24, is younger and a far superior shooter from 3-point range (Kuzma’s career shooting percentage from downtown is 33.7%, while Herro’s is 38.5%), but Kuzma is a significantly better rebounder.

Kuzma is also more experienced — he has played seven seasons in the NBA (four with the Lakers and three with the Wizards) to Herro’s five — and he has turned into a formidable starter over his three seasons in Washington. Since joining the Wizards, the 6-foot-9 forward has averaged 20.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists.

Herro’s numbers are comparable to that. Over his last three seasons with the Heat, Herro has put up 20.5 points, 4.2 assists and 5.2 rebounds per contest.

Fiscally, the Heat would save around $5.5 million by swapping Herro for Kuzma. Herro has a salary cap hit of $29 million for the 2024-2025 season (numbers via Spotrac), while Kuzma is due just over $23.5 million next season.

Considering Herro is still ascending while Kuzma is in the prime of his career, this might be a lateral move for the Heat — at best. If Herro is to be part of a trade package — and that’s a definite possibility — the Heat will likely want to package him with other players with the hopes of adding another superstar to pair with Jimmy Butler.

Heat Have Made Minimal Moves So far This Offseason

The Heat have added just one new veteran this offseason: swingman Alec Burks. Miami inked Burks to a one-year, $3.3 million deal, and the Heat don’t have much wiggle room fiscally to add anyone else unless it’s via trade.

The Heat currently have 14 players under contract, and are just $1.2 million short of the second tax apron. Considering their financial handcuffs, a trade is the only thing that makes sense if the Heat want to reshape its roster.

Miami has also made it a point to bring back vets who have been solid role players, re-signing bigs Kevin Love, Haywood Highsmith and Thomas Bryant, so running it back is another likely option, as well.