While the Miami Heat appear to be pretty focused on acquiring Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers, that hasn’t stopped them from being linked to other players.
Big man Christian Wood is apparently on the Heat’s radar, according to Yahoo! Sports’ Jake Fischer.
“For potential external targets: Christian Wood continues to be mentioned by league personnel as someone on the Heat’s radar,” wrote Fischer.
Wood undoubtedly would fit well next to Heat center Bam Adebayo as a floor-spacing big man. During the 2022-23 season, the 27-year-old recorded 16.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while knocking down 51.5 percent of his shots from the field and 37.6 percent of his attempts from 3-point range.
There were high expectations for Wood coming into this season, his first with the Dallas Mavericks, but his role kept changing throughout the campaign, and he wound up only starting in 17 of his 67 games and playing 25.9 minutes nightly.
Last year, the Heat expressed interest in Wood when he was still a member of the Houston Rockets. Therefore, it makes sense as to why they might target the California native once again.
Not much is known about what type of contract Wood might demand on the open market, but it’s important to note that the Heat don’t have much room to maneuver in regards to the salary cap.
Perhaps Wood is open to taking a one-year, prove-it deal with a contender like Miami in hopes of rebuilding his value. Erik Spoelstra would surely be able to find ways to properly use his offensive versatility.
This past season, Wood averaged 1.44 points per possession as the roll man in pick-and-roll situations. He also excels shooting from downtown in pick-and-pop scenarios.
Kinda crazy how well the top Pick&Pop 3PT shooters shoot. The top in 3FGA are at least 40%
(Um, seems like teams should be hunting this WAY more) pic.twitter.com/FPsEw6CP6v— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) June 27, 2023
Only time will tell what ends up happening. The Heat reportedly have decided to “wait patiently” for Lillard, who has yet to request a trade and wants to see what the Trail Blazers do in free agency.
Free agency is set to get started on Friday evening, and Heat fans will surely be paying close attention to any moves involving the team.
