With the February National Basketball Association (NBA) trade deadline fast approaching, the Miami Heat are hoping they can move some assets to free up their salary budget.
One player the Heat will likely try to shop is 37-year-old Chris Andersen, someone whom the Heat have been trying to trade off to but to no avail.
While Andersen can still play and do his usual stuff, it is his $5 million salary that is really the problem for the franchise. That plus the fact that the Heat are loaded in the front court makes Andersen pretty much dispensable.
Andersen has spent more time on the bench, which translates to money being spent but not really used. The "Birdman" got some action when Hassan Whiteside had to be sent to the bench, but everyone knows that such is only a temporary reprieve.
It remains to be seen which team could possibly be interested in the energetic slotman, although finding a suitor could be a rough one to snag. With that said, it will be interesting as well to see what the Heat plan to do with Andersen who was already believed to be on the trading block even before the 2016–17 NBA season started.
Teams plagued with injuries could be a possible landing spot, particularly the ones who have their eyes on a possible playoff spot.
A team that comes to mind are the Charlotte Hornets who sorely need a man in the middle. Al Jefferson is questionable to return and the Hornets could use someone like Andersen to revitalize the zapped Hornets.
The Los Angeles Lakers could gamble on Andersen but that pretty much makes less sense since the team is likely to tank for the rest of the season.
As it stands now, the Heat don't have much options, so whoever picks up the "Birdman" will be pretty interesting.
