Former UCLA Bruins guard Kyle Anderson has been a stalwart piece of several NBA organizations over his 10-year career and will now join another after a blockbuster trade was announced Wedesday night.
The Miami Heat traded All-Pro guard Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors for Anderson, Andrew Wiggins, Dennis Schroder, and protected first-round pick. Anderson is heading to the East Coast for the first time in his career, playing for his fifth team.
ESPN's Shams Charania first reported the then-pending trade.
There were multiple teams involved in the deal, but the important piece is that Anderson will be heading to the Heat along with Wiggins. Multiple other players from two other franchises will be on the move, including Schroder being moved to the Utah Jazz.
Schroder has since been traded to the Detroit Pistons.
Anderson was traded to the Warriors in July of last year after spending the previous two seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The first eight years of his career were spent evenly split between the San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies before being traded three times in three years.
In 36 games this season with Golden State, Anderson averaged 5.3 points on 45% shooting from the field and 3.1 rebounds in 15.0 minutes per game. He will now join a Heat team that holds a 25-24 record in sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
The trade of Anderson is a supporting piece in the Warriors' attempt to strengthen their roster with Butler, a two-time All-NBA and three-time All-Defensive player.
As a Bruin, Anderson was an integral piece of the program from 2012 to 2014. He led UCLA to a Pac-12 regular season title in 2013, along with a conference tournament championship and Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2014.
The Fairview, New Jersey native started 70 of the 71 games over his two-year career, averaging 12.2 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists. He would be selected 30th overall in the 2014 NBA Draft by the Spurs, spending the first four years of his career there.
Anderson will join a pair of fellow former UCLA ballplayers, second-year Heat guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. And former NBA champion and veteran forward Kevin Love. The trio may have never played together in college, but there surely will be a Bruin reunion when Anderson gets to Vice City.