Report: Heat’s Duncan Robinson is name to watch on the trade market

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Miami Heat forward Duncan Robinson has spent the entirety of his pro career to this point in Miami, and he’s consistently been one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA ever since he enjoyed a breakout season in the 2019-20 campaign.

For his career, Robinson is shooting 39.7 percent from deep on 7.2 attempts per contest. But according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, he is a name to keep an eye out for on the trade market with the trade deadline less than two months away.

“Another veteran to watch in Miami is sharpshooter Duncan Robinson,” Marks wrote. “Has he shown enough value in the starting lineup to justify him staying on the roster? Robinson has a partially guaranteed contract next season.”

Robinson is playing a large role for the Heat once again so far this season. He’s started more than half of the 23 games he’s played in and is averaging 11.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game in his seventh year in the NBA.

In 12 games as a starter, he has seen his scoring average rise to 12.3 points per game while shooting 38.2 percent from 3-point range.

Theoretically, there wouldn’t be a shortage of suitors for Robinson if the Heat make it known they want to trade him. The 3-point shot is a fundamental aspect on the offensive end of the floor in today’s NBA, and few players are better than Robinson at scoring the ball from deep, especially off the catch.

It would make sense for a title contender in need of some additional floor spacing to take a flier on Robinson, even with his current contract situation. The Orlando Magic — who have been one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference this season — stand out as a squad that could benefit from acquiring a shooter of Robinson’s caliber.

The current No. 4 seed in the East has been one of the worst 3-point shooting teams this season. Orlando makes just 11.5 3s per game, which ranks in the bottom five among the 30 teams in the league. The Magic’s 3-point percentage of 30.8 percent is also the very worst in the NBA.

On top of that, getting traded from the Heat to the Magic seemingly wouldn’t mark a difficult transition for Robinson. After all, the two teams play in the same state, and Robinson would still be playing for a playoff-caliber team.

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Jesse is a 23-year-old sports journalist with extensive experience covering the NBA.