Dallas Mavericks forward Christian Wood continues to be mentioned by NBA personnel as someone on the Miami Heat’s radar, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
Wood becomes an unrestricted free agent on June 30 and the Mavericks don’t plan to re-sign him, according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
“Wood is bound for unrestricted free agency with the Mavericks, as I reported here April 9 and have subsequently reconfirmed this week, not expected to make him an offer to return,” Stein wrote. “The Mavericks, sources say, have moved on and are looking to remake their center rotation.”
The 27-year-old Wood appeared in 67 games for the Mavericks this past season. He averaged 16.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 51.5% from the floor, 37.6% from beyond the arc and 77.2% from the free-throw line.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Christian Wood, Dallas Mavericks & Miami Heat Updates
A UNLV product, Wood has career averages of 14.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists with the Philadelphia 76ers, Charlotte Hornets, Milwaukee Bucks, New Orleans Pelicans, Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets and Mavs. It will be fascinating to see where the California native is playing next season.
The Heat lost to the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 NBA Finals in five games. It will be interesting to see if Miami adds Wood, who averaged a career-high 21.0 points in 2020-21 with the Rockets. He’s a talented scorer and dunker who has All-Star potential if he’s engaged for 48 minutes.
Hall of Famer Pat Riley could be very busy this summer. He’s hoping superstar point guard Damian Lillard requests a trade from the Portland Trail Blazers so he can acquire him. Lillard and Heat All-Star center Bam Adebayo are close friends.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Christian Wood, Dallas Mavericks & Miami Heat Updates
Riley also wants to re-sign point guard Gabe Vincent — who becomes an unrestricted free agent on June 30 — and find a way to part ways with veteran guard Kyle Lowry. The former Toronto Raptors star is due $29.7 million next season in the final year of the three-year, $85 million deal he signed with the Heat in 2021.
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