Bench scoring and floor spacing have been the two deadliest weaknesses for the Miami Heat this season. Fortunately, they might have just the guy in mind to help them kill those two birds with one stone.
According to a report by Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald on Sunday, the Heat are interested in Pelicans big man Ryan Anderson.
Anderson, 27, has thrived in a sixth man role for New Orleans this season. He leads all bench scorers with 16.7 points per game while also chipping in 5.9 rebounds per game and 1.1 assists per game.
But Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports is also reporting on Monday that Anderson, who is a free agent after the season, is intent on exploring his options over the summer, meaning that he could just be a rental piece for the remainder of the 2015-16 campaign.
For any NBA team interested in trading for Pelicans Ryan Anderson, source said he's very interested in exploring FA so he'd be only a rental
— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) February 15, 2016
Nevertheless, for the 29-24 Heat, who are very much in the mix of the Eastern Conference playoff picture, the incentive could still be there. Current stretch-four Josh McRoberts seems to be perpetually injured/limited, rookie Justise Winslow’s offensive game isn’t quite there yet, and relying on Gerald Green to carry the second unit scoring load every single night is akin to a game of Russian roulette.
Miami also has their own expiring contracts to worry about, namely Luol Deng, Chris Andersen, and Hassan Whiteside (whose name has been prevalent around trade scuttlebutt recently). Attaching one or more of those players to a potential deal, seeing as they’ll be free agents after the season anyway, might help make a rental of Anderson more palatable.
The former Most Improved Player is the perfect big man for today’s small-ball-driven Association, and the Heat have to at least consider a move for a player like Anderson who would immediately fill their most glaring holes.
Image Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
H/T Rotoworld
