There aren’t many things that get sports fans talking more than trades. Even if that just means toying around with hypothetical deals on the trade machine, they love the idea of playing GM and making a deal that will improve their teams. And when those fantasy trades actually happen in real life, it’s like Christmas.
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But t+here’s a side of trades that isn’t talked about very much, and that’s the human toll it takes on those involved. It’s sort of like, if your job just decided to send you to another city for a permanent relocation, forcing you to leave behind the life you knew and start fresh. NBA players may be rich and famous, but they’re people too, and being traded isn’t easy, even for them.
Andrew Wiggins has been traded three times in his career, and it has been difficult on every single occasion. The Cavs dealt him after selecting him with the No. 1 overall pick back in 2014, before he ever played a game in Cleveland. In his sixth season with the Wolves, he got dealt along with two picks at the trade deadline to Golden State for a package that included D’Angelo Russell.
Wiggins made his first All-Star team with the Warriors in 2022, and later that year he won his first ring. Things can change fast in the NBA, though, and the Warriors pounced when Jimmy Butler became available, packaging Wiggins in a five-team deal to land the Heat star.
Wiggins spoke at Heat media day yesterday about the real-world difficulties of getting traded yet again. “For me, last year, I had just had a kid like a week and some days before I got traded, so that was probably the toughest part, being away from my family,” he said.
“I got three kids, so being away from them was definitely tough,” he stressed.
Although he no doubt missed his family 3,000 miles away, Wiggins still performed at a high level for the Heat. He averaged 19 points in 17 games, a higher average than he had in any full year with the Warriors. He also increased his assists, steals and blocks.
Wiggins’ family stayed behind when he was traded in February, but they’re with him in Miami now. He has one year left on his current deal, plus a player option next year. He seems to be a great fit with the Heat, so it would be a surprise if he was traded again.
The Heat will be without Tyler Herro for the first month or two of the season as he recovers from offseason foot surgery, but the addition of Norman Powell this summer should help them weather the storm. Once Herro gets back, Erik Spoelstra’s team could be a contender in the East. They’re already strong down low with Bam Adebayo and Kel’el Ware and have a 1-2 defensive punch in Wiggins and Davion Mitchell to complement the scoring of Herro and Powell.
