Miami Heat insider Greg Sylvander predicted the final trade package that he believes the Heat will give up for Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard.
Sylvander expects Miami to part ways with a ton of draft capital in the deal, sharing that the team would move four first-round picks and three first-round pick swaps.
Heat insider @GregSylvander predicts what a final trade package for Damian Lillard would look like:
Tyler Herro
Duncan Robinson
Nikola Jovic
First-round pick
First-round pick
First-round pick
First-round pick
First-round pick swap
First-round pick swap
First-round pick… pic.twitter.com/rZG8Lo8Jkn— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 16, 2023
It was previously reported by a Blazers insider that the team would be looking for four first-round picks, one to two young players and salary filler in exchange for Lillard. Sylvander’s predicted package lines up well with those demands.
The Heat would part ways with former Sixth Man of the Year Tyler Herro in the deal, but he’s arguably the best asset that the team would be willing to trade in a Lillard deal.
Herro, 23, was the No. 13 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by Miami. During the 2022-23 regular season, he averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 43.9 percent from the field and 37.8 percent from beyond the arc.
However, the Heat didn’t have Herro for the majority of their playoff run after he broke his hand in Game 1 of the first round against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Jovic, the team’s first-round pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, only appeared in 15 games during the regular season for Miami. He has a lot of potential, but the team didn’t seem to think he was ready to be in the rotation last season.
Robinson, the final player in Sylvander’s predicted package, helps make up the salary in this deal, but he was also an effective player for Miami in the playoffs in the 2022-23 season. Robinson shot 44.2 percent from beyond the arc in 23 playoff games.
Losing Robinson would hurt since the team also parted ways with sharpshooter Max Strus in a sign-and-trade this offseason.
Regardless, acquiring Lillard would give Miami one of the best trios in the NBA. Lillard, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo should be enough for the Heat to contend for a title as long as they stay healthy.
Lillard was great for the Blazers last season, but the team failed to make the play-in tournament in the Western Conference. He requested a trade from the franchise this offseason.
The seven-time All-Star averaged 32.2 points and 7.3 assists per game while shooting 46.3 percent from the field and 37.1 percent from beyond the arc in the 2022-23 season.
It will be interesting to see if Miami’s package for Lillard – if a deal is made – ends up being along the same lines that Sylvander predicted.
