Miami Heat Trade Idea Lands NBA All-Star Jazz Scorer in Massive Swap originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Miami Heat may aim to be uber-aggressive on the trade front this offseason.
Team president Pat Riley and the Heat’s top brass will look to take part in a few franchise-altering transactions to return the team towards the top of the Eastern Conference in 2025-26.
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With the recent explosion of their first-time All-Star Tyler Herro and consistent production of 5-time All-Defensive Team selection Bam Adebayo, Riley and the Heat could add a third star into the equation in the coming months.
In fact, it’s plausible to believe that the Heat might contact the Utah Jazz in an effort to land their former All-Star and versatile scoring forward Lauri Markkanen for an added offensive boost.
Feb 21, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen drives with the ball against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images © Rob Gray-Imagn Images
If the Heat were to approach the Jazz to hash out the details of a Markkanen deal, the franchise could offer up a package of Terry Rozier, Haywood Highsmith, Kyle Anderson and Kevin Love to get a trade across the finish line financially.
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By prospectively acquiring the Finnish big man, the Heat could truly begin building a dark-horse Eastern Conference contender for 2025-26 and beyond.
In 47 contests this past regular season, the 7-foot floor-spacing forward contributed 19.0 points and 5.9 rebounds for a lowly 17-65 Jazz squad.
While it may seem as though he’s taken a downturn in terms of offensive output, his steep decline could be attributed purely to his situation.
If the Jazz were to ship Markkanen to a franchise with a winning culture, he could certainly return to his 2023 All-Star and Most Improved Player award-winning form, when he averaged a career-high 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds while connecting on 39.1% of his 7.7 three-point attempts.
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Markkanen’s unreal shooting ability and agility set him far apart from the typical 7-footer, and his potential partnership with Adebayo in the frontcourt could prove to be a deadly combination on both ends of the floor.
Losing out on a rising talent in the Heat’s rotation like Highsmith would surely be a tough blow to the organization, but Riley likely wouldn’t think twice about throwing the developing 6-foot-7 combo-forward into a blockbuster swap to acquire an All-Star caliber talent.
Related: Miami Heat Rumored as Landing Spot for NBA All-Star Jazz Scorer
Related: Heat May Emerge as Trade Suitors for Mavericks’ 10-Time NBA All-Star
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.