Retired NBA star Gilbert Arenas claimed during a live stream on Thursday that the Miami Heat tried to trade star forward LeBron James to the Orlando Magic for star big man Dwight Howard after the 2011 NBA Finals.
Gil says the Miami Heat once tried to trade LeBron James for Dwight Howard after losing the 2011 NBA Finals
“They felt the way that LeBron played against Dallas, they didn’t need him.”
What a trade that would’ve been!! pic.twitter.com/w2FL5eqFsS
— Playback (@WatchPlayback) March 14, 2025
“This is breaking news,” Arenas said. “Miami Heat, after the motherf—— Dallas, tried to trade LeBron James to the Magic for Dwight Howard. They openly was trying to trade LeBron James for Dwight Howard.
“They felt that how LeBron James played against Dallas, that they didn’t need him. … Him and Pat Riley was fighting over power from the first year. … There should be a video of Dwyane Wade and [Udonis] Haslem actually discussing this s—. I talked to the general manager, Otis Smith.”
It’s unclear if there’s any footage out there of Wade and Haslem discussing the topic. Smith, who Arenas mentioned, was the general manager of the Magic years ago, including when the alleged happenings would have gone down. Arenas was a member of the Magic to finish the 2010-11 season.
In response to Arenas’ comments, Heat insider Ethan J. Skolnick took to Discord and reported that the trade attempt “didn’t happen.”
As soon as Arenas made the claim, some viewers in the live stream started to question its truth. Some users on X were also skeptical.
I don't buy that for a second
— Stat Doctor MD (@StatDoctorMD) March 14, 2025
Complete 🧢
— p r n c (@princeofthef4ll) March 14, 2025
Gil just yapping man
— nate (@TrolledByNate) March 14, 2025
Clearly, there’s a bit of uncertainty surrounding Arenas’ reporting on the matter.
The 2010-11 season was James’ first with the Heat and marked the beginning of the team’s Big 3 era. Unfortunately, the debut season ended with a series loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.
A trade sending James away at that point would have been stunning. Because he remained with the franchise for three more seasons after that, he was able to help the Heat reach three more NBA Finals and win two championships. He won two league MVP awards during that stretch.
Howard was one of the top players in the NBA around the time of the 2011 offseason, but there are certainly no guarantees that he would have brought any titles to Miami.
James ended up leaving the Heat on his own terms in the 2014 offseason, when he opted to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team he began his NBA career with.
There’s some irony involved in this story, as James and Howard eventually ended up being teammates on the Los Angeles Lakers and even won a championship together in 2020.
James, still a member of the Lakers today, is hoping to add to his ring collection this season with an L.A. team that can’t be counted out in the Western Conference.
