The Miami Heat reportedly have been mentioned as a potential landing spot for Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell if the team decides to move him, according to the New York Post’s Marc Berman.
“Miami has been mentioned by league sources as a smart landing spot for Mitchell with [Dwyane] Wade’s strong connections to his beloved Heat,” Berman wrote. “However, [New York] Knicks president Leon Rose was Wade’s agent in the later stages of the guard’s career. Rose postponed his start with the Knicks to arrange Wade’s retirement ceremony in Miami.”
Earlier on Friday, The Athletic’s Tony Jones reported that the Jazz are committed to building around Mitchell.
It’s hard to see the Jazz moving on from the three-time All-Star, but they could certainly use some kind of tweak to the roster after getting knocked out in the first round of the playoffs this season.
During the 2021-22 regular season, Mitchell averaged 25.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 44.8 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from beyond the arc.
However, he did see those numbers take a hit in the playoffs, especially from an efficiency perspective.
The former first-round pick shot just 39.8 percent from the field and 20.8 percent from beyond the arc in the playoffs this season. He still averaged 25.5 points per game, but the Jazz were eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks in six games.
It’s unclear what Miami would have to give up to bring in Mitchell, and if the team makes a deep playoff run this season, it’s hard to see Pat Riley messing with the roster much in the offseason.
The Heat are set to play the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference.
