On Wednesday afternoon, the Miami Heat traded Meyers Leonard and a 2027 second-round pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Trevor Ariza, a former NBA champion (2009).
Trevor Ariza
At 35 years old, Trevor Ariza is a solid and experienced 3 and D player that will be of service to Erik Spoelstra off the bench. Ariza seems to be tossed around like a hot potato. He has now added on to his already absurd NBA record of most teams traded to by a single player in NBA history. That number is now 11. Ariza has not played since March 10th, 2020, when he put up 22 points as a member of the Trail Blazers. He was traded earlier on in the season to the Thunder after being apart of the Pistons. But, Ariza has not played in a single game this year.
So, he will be making his season debut when this trade goes through. This should allow Ariza to get some game action either during or after this weekend. It has already been reported that Ariza is working out in Miami, which will speed up the process of making his Heat debut.
Erik Spoelstra on Trevor Ariza, “He’s in phenomenal fitness level right now. He reminds me where Andre was last year when we got him.”
“He’s kind of like a three-and-defensive guy,” Adebayo said of Ariza following Wednesday’s loss to the Grizzlies in Memphis. “Defense helps us at the end of the day and he spaces the floor. I feel like that will go well with me and Jimmy.”
Last year, Ariza averaged 8.0 PPG with the Kings and Trail Blazers, over the span of 53 games. But in his career (1064 games), Ariza has averaged 10.5 PPG, 2.2 APG, and 4.8 RPG. The 16-year veteran is currently on a $12.8 million expiring contract.
