The Miami Heat missed Damian Lillard this summer. Pat Riley has been trying to lure the All-Star guard away from the Portland Trail Blazers all summer.
However, Lillard was eventually traded to the Milwaukee Bucks. As such, the Heat are expected to be active on the trade market as they look to upgrade their roster.According to Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix, who spoke on a recent episode of “The Crossover” podcast, the Heat could be interested in Pascal Siakam or OG Anunoby. “I expect the Miami Heat to be aggressive,” Mannix said. “Maybe that means a Pascal Siakam. Maybe this means an OG Anunoby. He’s someone who I don’t think would hesitate to pull the trigger because you could fire those guys if you live in Miami.Siakam is in the final year of his current contract. He will become an unrestricted free agent this summer. Anunoby has a player option in his contract for next season, which he is expected to decline. Toronto is unlikely to let both players know they could lose them for nothing at the end of the current season.So it makes sense for teams to keep an eye on developments with the Raptors. A team like Miami could use an athletic forward with reasonable size, length and skill to round out its starting lineup. Unlike the potential Lillard trade, Miami also wouldn’t need to move its entire roster to get a deal over the finish line. However, just because Anunoby and Siakam make sense on paper doesn’t mean they will emerge as Miami’s top targets. Riley could turn his attention to the current issues surrounding the Chicago Bulls and try to sign one of DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine or Alex Caruso from the struggling Eastern Conference franchise. However, the possibility of Siakam or Anunoby teaming up with Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler is too good to ignore, which is why we’ll likely continue to see rumors of a potential collaboration in the coming months. Whatever Miami decides to do, you can rest assured that they have done their due diligence. The Heat have built a reputation for making smart moves and finding ways to consistently stay in contention once the playoffs roll around. After all, this is a team that made its way through the play-in tournament to the NBA Finals last season. Miami knows how to win, both on the field and in the front office.
Leave a Reply