The Miami Heat evidently did not believe Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro had a fair chance to lead the team in 2025, which prompted the massive trade for guard Norman Powell.
Miami’s front office is indicating that it wants to give the Herro-Adebayo duo a drama-free chance to thrive. While Powell is an exceptional scorer who came close to making the All-Star Game last season, team president Pat Riley may be considering adding more proven players.
One Heat social media account forecasts that the Heat will acquire regressing forward DeMar DeRozan in a three-team trade with the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings. The complete proposal details are as follows:
Lakers acquire Andrew Wiggins and Devin Carter.
Kings get Terry Rozier, Jaime Jaquez Jr., and Dalton Knecht.
Heat obtain DeMar DeRozan, Rui Hachimura, and Gabe Vincent.
The Lakers and Kings’ rationale for making this move is simple. L.A. requires a two-way forward to complement LeBron James, while Sacramento can continue to bolster their young core with Jaquez Jr. and Knecht.
However, it is far more difficult to explain why the Heat would want DeRozan. The obvious thinking is that he is a six-time All-Star who averaged 22.2 points in 2025, but he is unlikely to push Miami over the top, and he has two guaranteed seasons left on his three-year, $73 million contract.
It’s difficult to picture DeRozan being deserving of that contract by 2027, as some already believe it’s an overpayment.
It’s also worth noting that numerous reports suggest Wiggins will return to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for star forward Jonathan Kuminga. If that is a viable option, the Heat should avoid trading the former No. 1 pick in exchange for DeRozan. Unless the asking price for the 35-year-old Kings forward is extremely low, Miami should search elsewhere for win-now players.
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