Latest Rumors On The Destination Of LaMarcus Aldridge, The Heat Join The Conversation


According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, the Miami Heat have joined the LaMarcus Aldridge conversation.

This may be seen as an effort to make sure that Dwyane Wade returns to the Miami Heat after opting out earlier this week. The Miami Heat know that they cannot have both Wade and Aldridge, especially after giving Goran Dragic a five-year, $90 million deal on Wednesday, but they could pull off some kind of crazy sign-and-trade, which might not even be possible. But if Pat Riley is involved it could be possible for the Miami Heat.

Wojnarowksi also reported that the LaMarcus Aldridge will meet with the Los Angeles Lakers for the second time, after the first meeting left Aldridge wanting so much more. Aldridge will only be meeting with Mitch Kupchak (Lakers GM) and Byron Scott (Lakers Head Coach) and the main focus will be on basketball, which Aldridge said was the problem with the original meeting. Notice how Kobe Bryant will not be involved with this meeting. Aldridge clearly wants to put business to the side and talk about only basketball.

While the Lakers are getting a second chance with LaMarcus Aldridge, the New York Knicks won’t get a crack at the all-star center, according to David Aldridge. Apparently, he declined this meeting because the Knicks would like to play him at center, which he has said he does not want to do.

The Phoenix Suns completed a trade with the Detroit Pistons which sent Marcus Morris, Reggie Bullock, and Danny Granger in exchange for a second-round draft pick in 2020. This transaction was made to clear cap space as the Suns plan to pursue LaMarcus Aldridge with great intent on signing him to a max deal. This comes just one day after the Suns signed Tyson Chandler, another big man, to a four-year, $52 million deal. This leaves about $20 million for the Suns, making a maximum contract for the power forward possible.

Two teams have traded players in order to clear cap space to sign Aldridge (Suns and Spurs). The Spurs gave up much more, which was their starting center (Tiago Splitter).

The LaMarcus Aldridge news is at its peak right now, and he seems farther away from a deal than ever. The Spurs remain the frontrunners in the discussion, but with so many other teams in the conversation, the Spurs can’t be as confident as they were when the first day of free agency ended.

https://twitter.com/Adam_Klug/status/616710370686730240

[Image Source: Christian Petersen/Getty Images]

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