Despite the intrigue surrounding the Miami Heat's new offense, they still desperately need a superstar player to build around heading into the future. There's reason to believe Lauri Markkanen could be another realistic potential target for the Heat heading into the NBA Trade Deadline.
The Heat's 4-4 start to the season is stellar, but if they truly want to be considered among the championship contenders in the Eastern Conference, they need to make a bigger splash at some point soon. If the Heat isn't open to the idea of going all-in for Ja Morant, perhaps Markkanen could be their prime target.
Now that Walker Kessler is slated to miss the entire season due to an injury, you can't help but wonder if the Jazz could be open to trading away their star forward in an attempt to position themselves better for the future.
As one of the three best players on the roster, losing Kessler for the season could be the first shoe to drop before this year begins to fall apart for the Jazz. They've already lost four of their last five games, and it's difficult to see how they're going to significantly change the current trajectory of their season without Kessler in the lineup.
If Utah is at least open to the possibility of gutting their roster down even more with Markkanen on the trade block, in an attempt to lean into tanking, the Heat should be one of the few teams interested.
Lauri Markkanen could be the perfect fit next to Bam Adebayo
Especially as the Heat has remained underwhelmed by both Nikola Jovic and Kel'el Ware so far this season, Markkanen would solve a lot of the team's continued questions in the frontcourt.
Markkanen would be able to fit alongside Bam Adebayo in the starting 5 at the power forward position, or could even play some small forward if the Heat wanted to roll out a bigger lineup. Either way, with his offensive scoring prowess, Markkanen would give the Heat a lot of what they need on the wing.
Over the course of Markkanen's last few years in Utah, he's proven that he has what it takes to be a legit No. 1 option in the NBA. It may not have translated to many wins with the Jazz, but with a significantly better supporting cast and a proven coaching staff, there's reason to believe that could be a much different story in Miami.
If the Heat is looking to bring a superstar wing into the fold, Markkanen may be the real trade candidate they should be keeping a close eye on. He could be exactly what the Heat needs.