The Miami Heat made a move on Tuesday to part ways with Dewayne Dedmon, and some feel that the move was made to potentially prepare for a bigger trade prior to the trade deadline.
Based on a recent report, the Heat may have their eyes on talented youngster P.J. Washington.
“[Terry] Rozier’s name has been mentioned in various concepts, particularly with the [Los Angeles] Lakers and [Minnesota] Timberwolves, and [Charlotte] Hornets forward P.J. Washington has his share of interested teams, such as the Miami Heat, sources said, after Charlotte did not find an extension for the 24-year-old this past fall,” Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports reported. “However, the Hornets have been averse to significant midseason deals in recent seasons.”
Washington would be a really interesting addition for the Heat, and he would immediately help their frontcourt out in a big way. He would likely slide in as the team’s starting power forward, which would put him alongside All-Star center Bam Adebayo.
Washington is arguably having the best season of his career and is putting up 14.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game on 43.2 percent shooting from the field and 34.0 percent shooting from deep.
With all that in mind, his lack of size could be a bit of a complication for Miami if he were to become the team’s starting power forward. He is listed at just 6-foot-7, which is on the smaller side for a power forward.
If the Heat were to add Washington, it would be interesting to see how head coach Erik Spoelstra would integrate him into the current lineup.
At the moment, the Heat have just a half-game lead for the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 29-25. They’re 3.5 games back from the No. 5 seed.
Though the playoffs (or at least the play-in tournament) seem very likely for the Heat at this point in the season, there are still major questions about whether or not the current roster has what it takes to replicate — or exceed — the playoff success that the Heat enjoyed last season.
As fans know well, the Heat were just one win away from advancing to the 2022 NBA Finals. They fell just short against the Boston Celtics.
