NBA Champion Heat Forward Rumored as Lakers’ Latest Star Trade Target originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers are two organizations that will look to be active on the trade front this offseason, with the goal of competing for a title in their respective conferences next season.
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After dealing away their superstar and 2023 Eastern Conference Finals MVP Jimmy Butler this past season, the Heat could look to flip arguably the most important asset that they received in the mid-season transaction with the Golden State Warriors.
The Heat received a former All-Star and NBA champion wing from the Warriors in exchange for Butler.
Now, recent reports from The Athletic’s Jovan Buha have indicated that the talented forward could be added to the Lakers’ target list this summer, if they are willing to part with another capable forward in the process.
Miami Heat forward Andrew Wiggins (22)Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
“If the Lakers are looking to address the wing need on the trade market, (Andrew) Wiggins is a guy that I like a lot,” Buha shared during a recent Q&A livestream.
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“And you can get there, probably with some base of Rui (Hachimura) plus matching salary…”
“So I have not heard specifically Wiggins, but he is the type of target that would make sense for them.”
In just 17 regular season contests with the Heat, the 30-year-old Andrew Wiggins made a good first impression.
The two-way wing averaged 19.0 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists while boasting a solid 113 defensive rating per 100 possessions, but Miami may still gauge his value on the trade market.
If the Lakers’ Rui Hachimura were to be shipped to Miami in a Wiggins deal, he could plausibly become a major offensive contributor for the Heat in 2025-26.
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Hachimura put together a wonderfully efficient 2024-25 campaign as a Laker, boasting splits of 13.1 points and 5.0 rebounds while knocking down 50.9% of his attempts from the field and a blistering 41.3% of his looks from distance.
By prospectively pairing Hachimura with first-time All-Star Tyler Herro and 5-time All-Defensive Team selection Bam Adebayo, the pair of star-level talents would be supplied with an extremely reliable shot-maker and streaky defender.
Related: Trade Idea Sees Trae Young Land With Heat in Blockbuster Deal
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on May 30, 2025, where it first appeared.