The Miami Heat haven’t been able to do much this offseason while waiting for the Damian Lillard situation to play out, but once it does, they reportedly may then turn their sights to free agent Christian Wood.
“Sources also believe that the Miami Heat could be a suitor for Wood, particularly if they’re able to pull off a Damian Lillard trade,” wrote Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times.
Wood is reportedly drawing interest from several teams now that the first wave of NBA free agency has come and gone. The Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls have been linked to the 27-year-old, who played last season for the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavericks don’t seem to be interested in bringing back Wood even though he averaged 16.6 points per game in his first season with them. They were his seventh team in seven NBA seasons since making his NBA debut for the Philadelphia 76ers in 2015.
Wood has also had several stints in the G League and never appeared in an NBA playoff game, so it is unknown how he will fit in as the Heat attempt to get back to the NBA Finals.
That title quest could be greatly enhanced if Miami can ever come to an agreement with the Portland Trail Blazers on a trade for Lillard. The sides have been linked the entire offseason, with the 33-year-old finally getting around to requesting a trade earlier this month.
It is strongly believed that Lillard will not play for anyone but the Heat, a stipulation that could be making a deal more difficult. The Trail Blazers certainly don’t want to give away their longtime franchise player for a discount, but the Heat don’t seem to be offering a package that Portland likes.
Miami reportedly is dug in on making Tyler Herro the main piece in its offer, while Portland may be balking at taking on his hefty four-year, $120 million contract. The Trail Blazers reportedly want a package of two quality players plus four first-round draft picks and are willing to drag out talks for as long as it might take to get a deal like that.
If the Heat truly are interested in acquiring Wood, this waiting game may ultimately cost them if another team is able to pounce before Miami has landed the true key to its offseason.
