The Miami Heat are shopping Mario Chalmers, Shabazz Napier and Chris Andersen this offseason and it comes after the team was reportedly interested in a Jamal Crawford trade and heading into training camp the team has some roster decisions to make, while draft pick Justise Winslow is expected to make an impact for Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Goran Dragic.
The Miami Heat missed the playoffs last season, but the team has made some improvements to the roster and they also secured key players Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic in free agency. Pat Riley added Gerald Green and Amar'e Stoudemire on contracts and that depth should be very important after the team had a short bench last season. According to Marc Stein at ESPN.com, Miami had interest in a Jamal Crawford trade this offseason along with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
UPDATE: Napier has been traded to the Magic. UPDATE again: "Celtics Acquire Zoran Dragic from HEAT: Zoran Dragic has been traded from the Heat to the Celtics." Basically these two deals were about money and the tax. Check here for more.
The Miami Herald reports that the Heat have "remained aggressive" in looking to trade Chalmers and the team has done the same with Napier. Miami has Dragic coming in to start this season and on the roster they likely are looking to have Napier and/or Tyler Johnson as the main backups over Chalmers sticking around. Moving Chalmers and Andersen would free up cap space and help with the tax and that is the main motivation along with depth on the roster.
The addition of Stoudemire helps the team with depth up front if they move Andersen and the team likes what they have seen from Johnson when he has been healthy. Chalmers is making $4.3 million and Andersen is making $5 million for this season. Green is an important addition as well, as he can give Dwyane Wade the chance to stay fresh when his minutes are managed. Wade averaged over 20 points last season and he showed that he still can be one of the elite players in the league when healthy.
The Crawford trade talk has not come up recently, but after the Clippers signed Paul Pierce and Josh Smith there is a chance he could get moved. Napier averaged 5.1 points per game last season in 51 games for Miami and he could stay if Chalmers is moved. Miami is reportedly "aggressively shopping" Chalmers and Napier in trades this summer and it comes after the team shopped both players earlier in the offseason. Zach Lowe at Grantland reported that the team was willing to "give away" Andersen and Chalmers, who both are on expiring contracts.
Miami has some roster decisions to make coming up, as they are coming in with 18 players on the roster and only 15 spots, according to the Palm Beach Post. Moving Andersen and Chalmers can help the team save millions in taxes, according to the Post.
Check here for more on the Miami Heat offseason moves, the roster options, the Jamal Crawford trade interest and more on the potential deals with Mario Chalmers, Shabazz Napier and Chris Andersen.