NBA Mock Trade: Heat Trade for Nets’ Sharpshooter

NBA Summer League is over, and teams now have a better idea of how rookies will fare in a professional setting. Albeit one much less generally talented than the NBA.

The Nets rolled out their record five first round picks, while the Heat gave burn to point guard Kasparas Jakucionis. While Brooklyn has a clear plan in developing their younger prospects for the future, Miami has a more patchworked roster.

Below, we’ll evaluate a mock trade that could give more direction to the Miami Heat, while helping Brooklyn land even more youth:

Brooklyn Nets get: Terry Rozier, Nikola Jovic

Miami Heat get: Michael Porter Jr.

In the proposed deal, Miami offloads veteran guard Terry Rosier and young forward Nikola Jovic in exchange for forward Michael Porter Jr.

The Nets recently acquired Porter Jr. in an essential one-for-one swap with Denver for Cam Johnson. While he’s a talented player — recently averaging 18.2 points on 50% shooting just last year, and having been an impactful contributor on a championship team — Brooklyn has little need of his talents long-term. 

Miami could certainly use another talented scorer, one slightly more proven than Jovic, who could flank the likes of Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins and more.

The main draw for Brooklyn is Jovic, who at 22 averaged 10.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game in just 25 minutes per game. At around 6-foot-9, he’s gotten better each season, and could very well be added to the Nets’ core for the foreseeable future given his trajectory.

Rozier — having seen a down season for Miami last year — is needed to make money work, and could be another flippable asset for Brooklyn. The Heat certainly need as much backcourt help as they can get, but the open minutes could be granted to Jakucionis to get his bearings in Year 1.

If the deal feels lopsided for either team, future draft capital could be added to even things out.