Miami Heat: 7 Star-level trade targets to pivot to if Damian Lillard dream falls through

Chicago Bulls Zach LaVine (David Yeazell-USA TODAY Sports)
Chicago Bulls Zach LaVine (David Yeazell-USA TODAY Sports)
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LA Clippers
LA Clippers Paul George (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

Paul George, LA Clippers

It was a bit strange to see the rumor that the New York Knicks poked around Paul George‘s availability and that the LA Clippers didn’t immediately hang up on the phone. That leads me to believe that perhaps the Clippers would be open to trading George for the right price. Whether or not the Miami Heat has the “right price” to acquire PG from the Clippers remains to be seen, but there’s no question he’s exactly the level of player the Heat has been missing in their lineup.

PG is the type of two-way wing that will take a ton of pressure off of Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. A trio of PG, Jimmy, and Bam would likely be an immediate favorite in the Eastern Conference, no matter what the rest of the supporting cast would look like.

Again, Miami may not have enough trade ammo to find their way to a PG deal but he’d be a great backup plan if Miami isn’t able to close the deal on Lillard. While it would seem somewhat unlikely for the Clippers to trade PG, there are some tea leaves that suggest they wouldn’t exactly shut down conversations.