Forward John Collins of the Atlanta Hawks is a target for the Miami Heat.
The Miami Heat want to obtain a superstar this summer. Despite their efforts, the Heat have not yet been able to sign either Kevin Durant or Donovan Mitchell. Now that it seems like none of those superstars are headed for South Beach, the Heat could decide to return to one of their original offseason targets.
Keep in mind that before beginning their aggressive push for Durant and Mitchell, the Heat reportedly had trade talks with the Atlanta Hawks about acquiring big man John Collins.
For a while, they shelved the Collins talks, but now, it makes sense to circle back to it.
Report: Miami Heat could revisit previous trade talks with Atlanta Hawks regarding John Collins https://t.co/avkzgq8eD1
— Heat Nation (@HeatNationCom) July 29, 2022
Going back to pushing for John Collins is sensible for Miami because the Layton, Utah native can help out the Heat, especially on offense.
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The perfect trade Heat must offer Hawks for John Collins
Hawks Get: Duncan Robinson, Max Strus, Markieff Morris, 2023 first round pick
Jazz Get: John Collins
Collins is exactly the kind of offensive power forward who would be a great fit right next to Bam Adebayo.
As good as Adebayo is on the defensive end, being a big-time scorer is something he hasn't been able to consistently do in his career so far. Adebayo certainly doesn't stretch the defense, but Collins can do exactly that.
Having an Adebayo-Collins frontcourt tandem would make a massive impact for the Heat, especially after they lost P.J. Tucker this offseason. Sure, Collins doesn't fill the void on D, but he brings a different dimension offensively. That could be huge, especially as the Heat push for title contention. After all, they don't want to waste Jimmy Butler's peak years for yet another season.
Keep in mind that in 54 games during the previous season, Collins averaged 16.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per contest. Despite not being known for his defense, Collins is also surprisingly a reliable rim defender. He has averaged at least 1.0 blocks per game in all but one of his seasons in the NBA.
One thing to remember is that John Collins committed to a $125 million deal with the Hawks last summer. That locked him down through the 2025 season and gave him a player option for the following year (2025–26).
The 24-year-old has played his whole professional career for Atlanta after the Hawks selected him with the 19th overall choice in the 2017 NBA Draft.
Next year, he will play in his sixth NBA season.
He has seen multiple rebuilding seasons with the Hawks, but during the past two seasons, they have advanced to the NBA Playoffs. To be specific, they advanced all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021 before falling to the Milwaukee Bucks in a best-of-six series. In the first round of the playoffs last year, the Heat defeated the Hawks in five games.
This summer, the Hawks acquired All-Star guard Dejounte Murray in a major trade with the San Antonio Spurs this summer. They gave up a lot of draft assets in that deal, and now the Hawks want to make up part of what they lost with this potential transaction.
The Miami Heat and the Atlanta Hawks could reopen old discussions about a John Collins trade.https://t.co/0mn9d99IGV
— Heat Nation (@HeatNationCP) July 29, 2022
Aside from that, the Hawks would also get an additional perimeter threat in Duncan Robinson. Max Strus is also a valuable asset as a 3-and-D guy. Lastly, Markieff Moriss is a bargain PF who can partly fill the void Collins will leave behind.
This could be a win-win deal for both the Heat and the Hawks. It would certainly be a good look for John Collins, too.
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