NBA

NBA Rumors: Heat targeting Mavericks center Christian Wood

Author photo
By
James Foglio
Author photo
James Foglio Sports Editor

James is a Basketball Insiders contributor. He earned his bachelor's degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University. James enjoys watching sports and helping gamblers win money.

All posts by James Foglio
Sports Editor

Updated27 Sep 2023

NBA Rumors Miami Heat interested in Dallas Mavericks center Christian Wood

Per the latest NBA rumors, the Miami Heat are interested in signing Dallas Mavericks center Christian Wood. Last June, the Houston Rockets traded Wood to the Mavericks for Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss, Boban Marjanovic, and Wendell Moore Jr. Dallas and Houston also received a trade exception.

NBA free agency begins this Friday, June 30 at 6 p.m. ET. “Miami needs to consider how to improve around Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo while standing dangerously close to the second tax apron — especially after Victor Oladipo exercised his $8.75 million player option for this upcoming campaign,” wrote Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer.

Referring to a couple of NBA betting sites, the Miami Heat hold seventh-shortest odds to win next season’s championship in 2024. Check out which sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks.


“For potential external targets: Christian Wood continues to be mentioned by league personnel as someone on the Heat’s radar,” Fischer added. “Miami and [Gabe] Vincent, sources said, have mutual interest in keeping the UC Santa Barbara product with the Heat, particularly considering the roster’s other options at point guard.”

Bam Adebayo is locked in until the summertime of 2026. Miami adding Wood would help boost the team’s big-man depth. Wood, 27, made 17 starts in 67 appearances with Dallas in the 2022-23 season. The 6-foot-10 center averaged 16.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 25.9 minutes per game.

NBA Rumors: Miami Heat are interested in adding Dallas Mavericks center Christian Wood in free agency this offseason

In the Mavericks’ 130-110 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Dec. 16, Wood recorded a season-high 32 points and 12 rebounds in 30 minutes off the bench. He finished 11-of-17 (64.7%) shooting from the floor and 8-of-10 (80%) at the foul line as well.

Additionally, in losses to the Oklahoma City Thunder (Jan. 8) and Portland (Jan. 15), the center grabbed a season-high 16 rebounds. Despite missing 15 games during the regular season, Wood still logged 12 double-doubles in 67 games. The Heat could use his rebounding ability.

Miami finished 27th in rebounds per game (40.6 RPG) this past season, which was incredible for an NBA Finals team. The Heat beat out only three other teams: Trail Blazers (40.5 RPG), Brooklyn Nets (40.5 RPG), and Mavericks (38.8 RPG). Luka Doncic (8.6 RPG) was the one player to record more rebounds than Wood with Dallas in the 2022-23 season.

While with the Houston Rockets in the 2020-21 season, Wood averaged a career-high 21 points per game in 41 starts. The UNLV product then averaged a career-high 10.1 boards per game with Houston in the 2021-22 season.

More NBA rumors are on the main page.

NBA Betting Content You May Like