Miami Heat: 3 Trades Too Risky To Make This Offseason – Kemba Walker
Arguably the least favorable choice on this list, but also the easiest to acquire, Kemba Walker would have been a good fit with the Heat had they chosen to go after him instead of Lowry. At his best, Kemba is an All-Star level point guard with the offensive skill to be an effective scorer.
On the Heat, he would have probably been the third or fourth option on offense. Similarly to Lowry, Walker would have also brought a veteran presence and taken on a leadership role to the team.
The major issue with Kemba Walker is his health. Last season, he missed a considerable amount of games due to a recovery process for his knee.
When he returned, he rested back-to-back games, which made it difficult for him to get into any kind of rhythm. Ultimately, he played only 43 games last season.
Then, he missed critical playoff games for the Boston Celtics when his knee started to bother him again. The Celtics decided it was best for their organization to move on from Walker and promptly traded him to the Oklahoma City Thunder after promoting their head coach Brad Stevens to the head of basketball operations for Boston.
Walker didn’t remain with the Thunder for a very long time, relatively. After a buy-out agreement with OKC, he is now returning home to be a New York Knick.
When healthy, Kemba Walker could have taken the Heat from a regular playoff team to a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference. His skills on the offensive end could have provided a huge boost and while he is a bit undersized as a 6’1” defender, his on-ball defense is good enough where he wouldn’t have been a liability.
Walker could have been a great addition to the Heat. However, if injured for the playoffs, it could have hurt the team to take a risk by trading for him.
The Heat are better off with Lowry leading their backcourt this upcoming season.