Is LaMarcus Aldridge A Good Fit for the Miami Heat?

There have been some rumblings about the possibility of LaMarcus Aldridge being traded to the Miami Heat.

There’s not much to dive into about contract stuff, since he’s going into the last year of his deal. I’ve discussed what that means to Miami in past articles when dealing with a guy with an expiring contract. But what I want to look at now is how he would fit with this current team.

To start off, when the Spurs were shopping Aldridge before the deadline, they saw Miami as a possible destination for him, which makes this more interesting.

The Miami Heat were one of the best three point shooting teams this past season, even with two starters that were not three point shooters.

And even though Miami seemed to be pretty dominant throughout the playoffs, teams were constantly trying to eliminate their threes. That obviously led to Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo attacking the basket.

Something I mentioned during those stretches was that Miami would need to begin to take the mid-range jumper. That is just something a three point shooting team must do to be successful. For instance, the Golden State Warriors took advantage of that mid-range when they were chased off of the three, which is why Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry improved in that area.

But what better way for Miami to improve that area than to get one of the best mid-range shooters in the game.

LaMarcus definitely gives a little flavor to Miami’s offense with that area of his game, but does he actually compliment Bam Adebayo?

I believe that Bam compliments Aldridge more than Aldridge compliments Bam. But that goes without saying since Bam compliments everybody.

Bam’s length and quickness on the defensive end could really help LaMarcus out on defense, since he’s been playing next to Jacob Poeltl, which means limited movement.

But Miami isn’t making a decision to help out LaMarcus Aldridge, they’re making a decision to help this Heat team.

And ultimately, I believe that he actually hurts Miami more than he helps them. Obviously he’s a savvy veteran who can find his spots on the floor, but I don’t believe that is what Miami needs right now.

They need a big that can stretch the floor with a respectable three ball, be active on the boards, and can protect the rim a bit. And clearly, you wouldn’t be getting that from Aldridge.

And since the league is becoming smaller and smaller by the year, you must have bigs who can at least move around. The speed of LaMarcus on the defensive end doesn’t seem to be enticing as well, which won’t be improving at the age of 35.

I do believe there’s a case to be made that he can help a bit, but I don’t think it’s the best fit, especially since there are so many options this off-season.

Miami is currently whale hunting, and I don’t believe that LaMarcus Aldridge is the biggest fish in the sea.