Miami Heat Trade Rumor Tracker: Dragic to the Heat
Update: Goran Dragic was traded to the Miami Heat.
Will Pat Riley and the Miami Heat be players before the NBA Trade Deadline passes on Thursday afternoon?
Many NBA insiders doubt the Heat have enough tradeable assets to make any sizeable moves, considering they're highly unlikely to trade pieces from a core that includes Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Hassan Whiteside. But that hasn't stopped the rumor mill from chirping, with Miami linked to a few fairly noteworthy perimeter players.
Below is a continually updated list of potential Heat targets as Thursday approaches. The most recent is on top.
- The latest on the Goran Dragic front is courtesy of ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, who says Suns owner Robert Sarver "has dug in and told folks he won't trade Dragic." Whether that is indeed the case, considering they could lose him for nothing this summer, is worth monitoring in the final hours before the deadline.
- Is Norris Cole headed west? According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, "if OKC completes the Brook Lopez-Reggie Jackson deal," the Thunder's next move could be for Cole.
- To clarify what Miami can offer in the form of draft picks (in reference to the bullet below), the Miami Herald's Joseph Goodman offers the following: "So, if the Suns accept this deal from the Heat, then that likely means the Heat will be sending its 2017 and 2019 first-round picks to the Suns with Philadelphia getting this year's pick. There is a trade mechanism in place that prohibits teams from trading consecutive first-round picks." Miami's first-round pick in 2015 is most likely headed to Philly, unless it's a top 10 pick (highly unlikely).
- The Miami Heat have offered two future first-round picks in a package for Suns guard Goran Dragic, reports ESPN's Chris Broussard, but Suns owner Robert Sarver "is being stubborn." Another report, via USA Today's Sam Amick, states Dragic has no interest in signing an extension with teams not on his list of preferred destinations (but have more assets to offer the Suns). Those teams include Boston, Houston, and Sacramento.
- Add the Detroit Pistons to the "list of teams" after Norris Cole, reports ESPN's Marc Stein, but he also says the Heat are trying to attach Danny Granger to any Cole deal. That could make things difficult considering Granger's lacking production and contract. He has a player option for next season of $2.2 million, according to Spotrac.... According to Real GM sources, the Wizards are another team pursuing Cole, but that "the asking price of the Miami Heat has been difficult to match."
- NBA writer Matt Moore thinks the Suns trading Goran Dragic to the Heat could "make some sense" and says Luol Deng, one of Miami's "unimpressive" point guards, and James Ennis "along with a pick might convince the Suns if they were up against the deadline," via CBS Sports.
- Should the Miami Heat look into trading emerging center Hassan Whiteside if the right deal comes along? Matt Moore thinks, although "the fans would freak," trading the Heat's 25-year-old shot-blocking machine now would be a "phenomenal 'selling high' move and would net them a big return," via CBS Sports. It's an interesting conversation, but how difficult would it be for Pat Riley to pull the trigger on Whiteside's potential unless he gets a proven young star in return?
- Adrian Wojnarowski reports the Lakers, Heat, and Knicks are among the "prefered destinations for Goran Dragic," via Yahoo Sports. Minutes earlier, Woj also reported that Dragic, an unrestricted free agent, told the Suns he wouldn't re-sign there this summer, meaning they'll be at risk to lose him for nothing if they don't deal him by Thursday's deadline.
- Kevin Pelton brings up a potential trade involving Miami and Isaiah Thomas that would make sense for both the Heat and the Suns, via ESPN: "One fascinating possibility: Swapping Thomas and Gerald Green to Miami for Luol Deng, which would solve the Heat's weakness at point guard and upgrade Phoenix at small forward."
- Adrian Wojnarowski mentions Miami's interest in Arron Afflalo but doesn't think they have enough to offer, via Yahoo Sports: "Denver guard Arron Affalo's market is still developing, but Portland remains the contender with the assets that could best make an eventual deal work, league sources tell Yahoo Sports. Several in pursuit – including the Clippers and Miami Heat – simply have too little to offer."
- Reggie Jackson's time in Oklahoma City might be running out, as Ira Winderman notes Miami could go after the Thunder guard while dangling Deng. But he questions whether sacrificing 2016 cap flexibility is worth it (if they extended him after the trade) and enough to return the Heat back to contender status, via Sun Sentinel: "the real question is whether Bosh, McRoberts, Hassan Whiteside (provided he is re-signed), Dwyane Wade and Reggie Jackson is your idea of a championship core."
Last updated: February 19, 1:26 p.m
