Free-agent small forward Dorell Wright has yet to play in the NBA this season, but he will reportedly join the Miami Heat after playing in China.
Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel reported the deal on Monday, noting, "Returning from China always gets interesting with international rules." Winderman added on Tuesday that Wright has yet to sign due to a FIBA clearance issue.
On April 7, Shams Charania of The Vertical first reported Miami's interest in Wright. Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald confirmed Charania's report that the Heat would meet with Wright and noted that Wright and Dwyane Wade are close friends.
Wright played for the Beikong Fly Dragons in China this season and averaged 24.3 points on 50.9 percent shooting. He told Basketball Insiders' Alex Kennedy in March what he was looking for in an NBA suitor:
People know what I bring as far as shooting and leadership and being a professional. I'd like to go somewhere I could help build something for a series of years, not just somewhere I can go for the months remaining in this season. I want to be on a team that wants me, and wants me to be there for a long time. I'd like to be able to play and showcase what I can do, so that I could be there again next year with my family.
The Heat originally selected Wright 19th overall in the 2004 NBA draft, and he spent his first six seasons with the franchise.
Wright is a career 36.5 percent three-point shooter who averages 8.4 points per contest and last played in the NBA for the Portland Trail Blazers in 2014-15. His best year came in 2010-11 with the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors, when he averaged 16.4 points per game.
As Navarro pointed out, linking to a report by the Herald's Barry Jackson, Miami has been waiting until the end of the regular season to fill the final two spots on its roster. Jackson speculated on who else could fill out the Heat's roster:
Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzzWright spent 1st 6 seasons with Heat.. Career 36.5 % on 3s... 24.3 pts, 7.5 rbs in China this yr. Other spot could go to develop. prospect.
Bringing in anyone at this late juncture threatens to disrupt chemistry, yet there's enough familiarity between Wade and Wright to make it a suitable arrangement.
Between Joe Johnson, Luol Deng and Justise Winslow, there are plenty of players the Heat can deploy in Wright's position on the wing. However, none of them are as proficient as he is from beyond the arc.
Miami shoots 33.9 percent as a team from three-point range, which ranks seventh-worst in the NBA. Amid a tight playoff race in the East, the Heat could use all the help they can get in terms of long-range scoring to help them stand out.
Acquiring Wright can't hurt as a means of addressing an area Miami is clearly lacking in.
