The Miami Heat rumor mill does not look like it will stop whirling anytime soon. While the team's seemingly never-ending pursuit of Damian Lillard has not resulted in anything yet, Pat Riley and company are already making plans for Lillard's presumed arrival.
The Heat are now expected to show interest in free agents Kelly Oubre and Christian Wood if they do end up figuring out a Lillard trade, per Greg Sylvander.
There are several ways to analyze this report. One would be that Miami would seemingly have a gap at the forward spot left after what they would have to give up to get Damian Lillard. Many expect that such a package would include either Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, or both. Thus, it would make sense that Pat Riley would be interested in filling that gap with a versatile wing like Kelly Oubre.
Miami's lack of center depth was thoroughly exposed in last year's NBA Finals loss to the Denver Nuggets. In the rare minutes that Bam Adebayo was on the bench, Cody Zeller simply could not compete with Denver's vaunted unit. The Heat suffered as a result, and Adebayo would often have to reenter the game on extremely minimal rest.
Christian Wood, despite his defensive limitations, would provide an immediate upgrade in that department.
While neither Wood nor Oubre would necessarily get Miami over the hump, they could both make solid contributions to a team that would be losing a lot of depth if they acquired Lillard.
However first thing's first: Miami has to find a way to get Lillard out of Portland.
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