Athlon Sports first reported that the Miami Heat were rumoured to be the destination of the NBA All-Star Jazz scorer. In an attempt to push the team back towards the top of the Eastern Conference standings, the Miami Heat will be pursuing elite players this offseason.
It may be challenging for team president Pat Riley to bring in another superstar to complement the Heat’s youthful All-Star team of Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, but the team may become a top destination for a number of alluring players. Indeed, recent rumours have suggested that the Heat would watch a particular forward from a weak Western Conference team.
Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report speculates that Miami may disregard prudence and trade a number of advantageous assets to the Utah Jazz in order to obtain their 2023 Most Improved Player winner.
Exchange “Lauri Markkanen proved he could be a big-time scorer during the last three years in Utah, and Jimmy Butler left this roster in dire need of one,” Swartz tweeted on Wednesday.
Swartz went on to mention the amazing variety of lineup combinations Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra could use if Markkanen were to join the team. “We could see a huge front line in Miami with Markkanen, Kel’el Ware and Bam Adebayo,
giving this roster a good mixture of outside shooting and defensive versatility.” In addition, Markkanen’s arrival might give the team a much-needed source of shot-creation in return for two first-round draft selections, Terry Rozier, Duncan Robinson, and Nikola Jovic.
Markkanen has only made 47 appearances for the Jazz this season, scoring 19.0 points and shooting 34.6% from beyond the arc.
His 2022–2023 season, in which he averaged an incredible 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds while making 39.1% of his shots from beyond the arc, is undoubtedly a far cry from this.
Even if he didn’t produce much in 2024–25, he can certainly improve if given the opportunity to play alongside Herro and Adebayo in 2025–26 and beyond.
