Miami Heat forward Andrew Wiggins has been linked to multiple teams in trade rumors this offseason, and it now sounds like the Los Angeles Lakers shouldn’t be written off as a possible landing spot for the veteran.
Per The Athletic’s Dan Woike, the Lakers view Wiggins as a “more desirable” player now, seemingly because his contract situation is less of an issue to L.A. at this stage after the team was able to lock down star guard Luka Doncic for the foreseeable future.
“According to team and league sources, the Lakers’ stance on roster improvements heading into this season has shifted because of the start of this new chapter together,” Woike wrote.
“While the Lakers had resisted scenarios in which the team would take on contracts that lasted beyond the 2025-26 season earlier this summer, Dončić’s multi-year commitment has nudged LA’s priorities in more aggressive directions.
“One area the team is focused on is upgrading the wing, where it needs more two-way talent. A player like Miami’s Andrew Wiggins, whom the Lakers weren’t interested in earlier this summer, is now a more desirable player, provided the price is right.”
Wiggins is under contract this coming season at about $28 million and has a player option for the following season at about $30 million. He is maybe the best player the Heat acquired as part of the blockbuster trade that dealt star forward Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors.
Wiggins played only 17 games with the Heat last season after he got traded to Miami but was arguably the team’s premier scoring option at the wing in that span, as he averaged 19.0 points per game while shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from 3-point range.
For the Lakers, a deal for Wiggins certainly would take some scoring pressure off the team’s top options such as Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves.
Whether or not the Heat will be willing to trade Wiggins for a price that would satisfy the Lakers isn’t clear, however. Miami probably isn’t looking to trade Wiggins just for the sake of getting off his contract, as he certainly has value and a very tradable deal. He is also capable of helping the Heat on the floor this season.
Maybe a trade package centered around Lakers youngster Dalton Knecht would be enough for the Heat to ship Wiggins to Los Angeles. Knecht just had an up-and-down rookie season with the Lakers, but his ability to space the floor from behind the 3-point line is undeniable.
It still seems within the realm of possibility that Wiggins has already played his last game in a Heat uniform in the wake of Woike’s report, but the 30-year-old has already survived a lot of noise this offseason, so he may simply stick with Miami.