5 under-the-radar players the Miami Heat could target at the NBA trade deadline
By Frank Urbina
It’s the week of the NBA Trade Deadline, so we look at five under-the-radar players the Miami Heat may target by Thursday.
Finally, the week of the NBA Trade Deadline is upon us. Thursday, Feb. 23 (at 3 pm ET) marks the last day that teams can swap players.
With the Miami Heat (25-32) winning 14 of their last 16 games, team management is now in an intriguing position. Sell high on their players and return to the cellar of the Eastern Conference to ensure a high draft pick? Or become buyers, in attempt to buoy the roster and make a run at a playoff berth?
Most expect this deadline to be a hectic one. Kevin Love’s knee injury (supposed to keep him out six weeks) gave certain teams confidence they could push the Cleveland Cavaliers in a playoff series.
The Toronto Raptors already dealt for power forward Serge Ibaka to solidify their starting 5. There is also some buzz that the Celtics may examine a deal with the Chicago Bulls for Jimmy Butler, as reported by Adrian Wojnarowski.
Although there isn’t much talk nationally about the Heat, two reputed media members in South Florida anticipate Pat Riley will be active.
On Feb. 14, Dan LeBatard mentioned the team’s interest in Ibaka. That’s obviously no longer happening, but he also said, “there is zero chance [Miami] stays quiet at the deadline.” He cited the Heat’s situation (stuck between just outside of the playoffs, but also not in the running for a top ten pick), as the primary reason why.
Later in the week, Ethan Skolnick of 790 the Ticket indicated there’s around a 40 percent chance a Goran Dragic deal takes place by Thursday.
Fascinating that two well-connected reporters are predicting opposite courses of action. (Probably means that even the Heat aren’t sure which path they’re going to take.) But for our purposes, let’s go with the LeBatard approach.