With less than one day remaining before the NBA trade deadline, one knowledgable observer believes that the Miami Heat could send shooting guard Dion Waiters to another team. That’s despite a surge that’s seem them win 14 of their last 16 contests, putting them in potential position for a playoff berth.
Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel appeared on WQAM’s “Big O Show” on Wednesday and spoke about Miami’s trade possibilities. In the midst of what was nearly a 17-minute conversation, Winderman specifically noted that Waiters could be moved, primarily due to his potential free-agent status at the end of this season.
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“As far as sellers, I would keep an eye on Dion Waiters,” Winderman said. “Josh Richardson is coming back for the game in Atlanta. The Heat’s future — you and I have spoken about — is about Josh Richardson, is about Tyler Johnson in the backcourt. If they can get a first-round pick — I don’t think they can but if they could — I would trade Dion Waiters right now. If they can get an attractive package of second-round picks from a team you know will be in the top 10 of the second round going forward I also might think about trading Dion Waiters for this reason.
“He’s going to become a free agent, the Heat do not have Bird Rights for him anyway, they’re quite possibly going to lose him for nothing and as long as they have Tyler Johnson and they have Josh Richardson on this team, those are guys they’re committed to going forward, guys they’re gonna work with, guys they need to play over the final two months of the season even if it sets back to a degree their playoff chances… I think you can survive without Dion Waiters as long as you don’t have other injuries.”
Waiters, who was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers before being traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2014-15 season, has seen action in 34 of Miami’s 57 games this year. He’s averaging 15.9 points and 4.3 assists in those games but has picked up the pace when it comes to scoring in his last 11 games. In those contests, Waiters is averaging just over 22 points per game.
The trade deadline is Thursday at 3 p.m. ET, with the Heat scheduled to resume play on Friday evening with a game in Atlanta that will tip off just after 8 p.m. ET.
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