Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Notes: Wade, Babbitt, DPE, Jones

March 3rd, 2018 at 6:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat are missing three shooting guards because of injuries, but coach Erik Spoelstra won’t consider using Dwyane Wade as a starter, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Just as he did in Cleveland before being traded, Wade has become the leader of the reserves and his coach doesn’t want to take him out of that role.

“I want [Wade] to get as comfortable with that second unit as possible,” Spoelstra said. “That to me is a dynamic, game-changing lineup that I want them to continue to gain confidence in, get more comfortable with.”

Wade agrees with Spoelstra’s decision, saying he needs to get used to working with his new teammates. He is averaging 13.6 points in seven games since returning to Miami.

There’s more Heat-related news to pass on:

The team still hasn’t determined the best fit at power forward to complement center Hassan Whiteside, Jackson adds in a separate story. Justise Winslow, James Johnson and Kelly Olynyk have all been tried in the starting lineup, but none has excelled in that role. Luke Babbitt is getting the start tonight, and the Heat were 21-14 last season with him in the starting lineup. However, Spoelstra doesn’t seem to consider him a long-term solution. “Luke is a guy we all like having on the floor, not for big minutes,” Spoelstra said. “But he helps your best players out there. He’s smart. He knows how to play off of guys. He knows how to be in the right spot defensively. But I am not looking for anything from last year. This team is totally different.”
The Heat are missing two important ingredients to attract players who agree to buyouts, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Most free agents on the buyout market are looking for guaranteed playing time on a team with the potential to make a long postseason run. The Heat already have a crowded roster and currently hold down the final playoff spot in the East with a 32-30 record. Miami has nine days before its $5.5MM Disabled Player Exception expires, but Winderman doesn’t expect the team to use it. He adds that the Heat are considering Rodney McGruder, who recently returned from surgery on a stress fracture in his left tibia, to be their buyout addition.
Two-way player Derrick Jones is active tonight, cutting him down to just five NBA days left on his 45-day limit, Winderman tweets. Once he hits that mark, Jones can’t be with the Heat until the G League season ends, unless he is signed to a rest-of-the-season contract or a 10-day deal.

Poll: Who Will Make The Eastern Conference Playoffs?

March 3rd, 2018 at 4:56pm CST by clarkcrum

The Raptors and Celtics are eight and seven games ahead, respectively, of the third-place Cavaliers, making it unlikely either team will fall below the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with only about 20 games remaining in the regular season.

Along with the top two teams in the East, the aforementioned Cavs and the Wizards and 76ers also have a 99% chance or higher of making the postseason, per FiveThirtyEight, with the remaining Eastern Conference teams’ chance of making the playoffs as follows:

Indiana Pacers (94%)
Miami Heat (89%)
Milwaukee Bucks (88%)
Charlotte Hornets (20%)
Detroit Pistons (12%)

And despite the discrepancy in percentage between the Pacers, Heat and Bucks as compared to the Hornets and Pistons, only 7.5 games separate the five teams, with the eighth-place Heat and ninth-place Pistons only separated by three games.

Moreover, Charlotte and Detroit have the 29th and 25th hardest schedules remaining, while Indiana, Milwaukee and Miami have the 2nd, 18th and 26th hardest remaining schedules, per tankathon.com.

For their part, the Pacers still have to face the Warriors and Raptors twice each (home and away for both), in addition to one more game in Boston, while the Hornets’ toughest remaining game is in Toronto. Accordingly, the race could come down to the final days of the regular season, where the Hornets and Pacers finish off their schedules with a home-and-home on April 8 and 10.

So what do you think? Which three teams will join the other five likely contenders from the Eastern Conference? Will the Pacers, Heat, and Bucks hold on to their playoff spots or will the Hornets and/or Pistons bump one of them from the postseason? Vote below in our poll for three teams and then jump into the comment section to share your thoughts!

Who Will Make The Eastern Conference Playoffs?

Milwaukee Bucks 33.56% (538 votes)

Indiana Pacers 30.38% (487 votes)

Miami Heat 24.52% (393 votes)

Detroit Pistons 7.61% (122 votes)

Charlotte Hornets 3.93% (63 votes)

Total Votes: 1,603

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/27/18

February 27th, 2018 at 5:00pm CST by marksuleymanov

Here are Tuesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA.

The Spurs recalled rookie guard Derrick White from the Austin Spurs, according to a team press release. He has averaged 16.1 PPG, 4.7 RPG, and 2.8 APG in 15 games with Austin.
The Heat have recalled guard Rodney McGruder from their G League affiliate, the Sioux City Skyforce, the team announced in a press release. McGruder has not appeared in a regular season game after undergoing surgery on a left tibia stress fracture in mid-October. He appeared in two G League games last week.
The Jazz assigned center Tony Bradley and guard Naz Mitrou-Long to their affiliate in Salt Lake City, according to the team’s Twitter feed.

Dwyane Wade Unsure Whether He’ll Play In 2018/19

February 27th, 2018 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Dwyane Wade is currently on a one-year contract, meaning he’ll hit unrestricted free agency again in July. Wade will be just 36 years old at that point, but he’s not ready to say with 100% certainty that he’ll sign a new NBA contract and continue his playing career, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

“I have told everybody around me that I am taking it after this season and go from there,” Wade said. “It’s the first year I’ve ever went into the summer with that mindset. I always went into it as a free agent or opting out of a deal to get another deal. This is the first summer I can say I’m just going into the summer and see how I feel and see the position this organization is in and go from there. I’m not really concerned with it, honestly. I’m cool with whatever I decide to do. It will be my decision.”

Admitting that he’ll have to determine after the season whether or not he wants to keep playing, Wade said there are a lot of factors to consider. Those factors range from wanting to reach certain milestones to taking into account the best interests of his family. Of course, Wade’s health and his drive to continue will also be key considerations.

“Do you want to put that same grind in again? As you get older, it’s a different kind of grind to get ready for games, to get your body ready,” Wade said. “[And] can you mentally go through another year and give it your all and not be checked out in the middle of that season?”

While Wade isn’t certain about his future beyond the 2017/18 season, he feels rejuvenated by his return to Miami, as Michael Lee of Yahoo Sports details. Admitting that he “had a little depression that last couple of days in Cleveland,” Wade said that the death of longtime agent and friend Henry Thomas was a turning point. Wade saw Heat president Pat Riley at Thomas’ funeral, and the encounter helped make him realize that he wanted to return to Miami.

“It sounds simple. But it’s like, sometimes, as a kid, you just need that embrace from your father,” Wade told Lee. “[Riley] coming to my agent’s funeral, a very vulnerable time for myself and [Udonis Haslem, who was also represented by Thomas], meant a lot to me. Just that warm embrace meant a lot to me as well. You know the business can get in the way. I understand that. I made the decision I made [to leave], but at the end of the day, I know that guy [Riley] would run through a brick wall for me. And this organization would. It felt right. I think that had a big thing to do with this trade happening to bring me back at this time.”

Based on those comments, and all that’s happened since Wade first left Miami, the future Hall-of-Famer seems unlikely to leave the Heat again this summer if he does decide to continue playing.

Florida Notes: Wade, Johnson, Isaac

February 25th, 2018 at 3:53pm CST by marksuleymanov

Dwyane Wade said the Heat can make a strong push toward postseason success if the team relies on its big men to be aggressive offensively, Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel writes.

In his lone season with the Bulls and half a season with the Cavaliers, Wade did not have the luxury of a dominant presence in the paint. In Chicago, Robin Lopez was the primary center; in Cleveland, Kevin Love was more of an outside player. If the Heat bigs can play with the presence of past Wade-led teams in South Beach, he expects good results.

“When you got bigs like Hassan [Whiteside] and you got bigs like Bam [Adebayo] rolling to the basket, when they’re setting screens, you’re going to get into the paint,” Wade said. “Either all the way to the rim, some guys floaters, some guys pull-ups and lobs. Me, especially, I’m just getting back comfortable with it.”

Check out other news and notes from Florida’s NBA teams:

Tyler Johnson has played well since the Heat returned from the All-Star break, In two games back, Johnson posted 15 points in a loss to the Pelicans and 23 points in a win over the Grizzlies. He is 12 for 22 from the field in that stretch. Johnson admitted his struggles before the break were due to pressing for results, per the Sun-Sentinel. “I think before the break, I was settling for too many jumpers and trying to shoot my way out of a funk instead of doing what I do best [and] being an attacker,” Johnson said.
Jonathan Isaac has seen limited action in two G League contests with the Lakeland Magic as he resumes his comeback from an ankle injury. NBA.com’s Josh Cohen writes that Isaac is happy to shake off the rust with Lakeland before returning to Orlando. “I think it’s great, just getting back into things,” Isaac said. “I don’t take this time that I’m here for granted. I can still see I’m rusty. I missed some reads and stuff like that on defense and not being 100 percent there. Definitely will take this time for what it is.”

Examining The Heat Possibly Landing A Top Free agent

February 24th, 2018 at 9:40am CST by marksuleymanov

It has been three years since the Heat acquired an All-Star caliber player (Goran Dragic) and seven years since the team assembled LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in South Beach. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald looks at the future and Miami’s chance of landing another top free agent.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/22/18

February 22nd, 2018 at 6:24pm CST by marksuleymanov

Here are Thursday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA.

The Cavaliers have recalled rookie center Ante Zizic from their Canton affiliate, the team announced on its website. In 15 games for the Charge, Zizic has averaged 15.7 PPG and 8.9 RPG.
The Magic assigned forward Jonathan Isaac to their Lakeland affiliate, according to Orlando’s PR Twitter. Isaac will attend Lakeland’s practice but he is expected to be recalled back to Orlando before the team faces the Knicks on Thursday. Isaac, who has missed almost three months with an ankle injury, is expected to see his first game action tomorrow for the G League squad.
The Heat have assigned guard Rodney McGruder to their G League affiliate, the Sioux City Skyforce, the team announced in a press release. McGruder has not appeared in a regular season game after undergoing surgery on a left tibia stress fracture in mid-October. He is expected to play two G League games on Saturday and Monday before making his NBA return, tweets Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald.
The Lakers assigned rookie center Thomas Bryant to the South Bay Lakers for their upcoming two-game road trip, according to the G League team’s Twitter feed. Thomas has averaged 19.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and 1.6 BPG in 27 games with South Bay.
The Timberwolves have assigned rookie center Justin Patton to the G League’s Iowa Wolves, according to the team (Twitter link). Patton has yet to make his NBA debut but has averaged 11.9 PPG for Iowa in 25 games.

McGruder Getting Close To Return; Wade To Stay In Reserve Role

February 21st, 2018 at 9:54pm CST by Arthur Hill

Heat guard Rodney McGruder is getting closer to his season debut after participating in a second full-contract practice Wednesday, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. McGruder has been sidelined since having surgery in mid-October to fix a left tibia stress fracture. He is hoping to be ready when the Heat resume play Friday in New Orleans, but coach Erik Spoelstra hasn’t commited to that.

Dwyane Wade plans to come off the bench for the Heat for the rest of the season, Jackson adds in the same story. Because of the All-Star break, he has only been in Miami for four days since being acquired in a trade two weeks ago and needs time to get used to playing alongside new teammates Wayne Ellington, Bam Adebayo and James Johnson. “It’s definitely going to continue to be a work in progress, but the biggest thing is getting to know them personally,” Wade said. “On the court, it comes. You practice together, you play together, that’s going to come. Getting to know each other on the personal side helps even more. That builds trust and on the court you need that trust.”

Olynyk Incentive; Youngsters Happy Wade Is Back

February 20th, 2018 at 6:58pm CST by clarkcrum

When the Heat signed Kelly Olynyk to a four year, $50MM contract this offseason, the team had to structure bonuses into his contract as a means to fit his first-year salary within the rules of the CBA. So with a current cap hit of $10.6MM, Olynyk could actually see his salary increase to $11.6MM if he reaches a $1MM bonus for playing at least 1,700 minutes during the regular season.

Per Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel, Olynyk only needs – barring injury – to average 18.2 minutes per game for the remainder of the season to reach the bonus, well below his 23.4 per game season average. And while it may be difficult for Olynyk to keep that pace given the emergence of Heat rookie Bam Adebayo and the recent focus of more playing time for Hassan Whiteside, he doesn’t seem to mind too much.

“I mean, it’s obviously nice to get,” he said. “But it’s not something that you’re stressing about or striving toward. You want to be able to play minutes to help the (Heat) succeed, to help the team win, and whatever comes with that, comes with that.”

Dwyane Wade is back in Miami, and for four of the Heat’s youngest players, this is welcome news, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Josh Richardson, Tyler Johnson, Justise Winslow, and Whiteside all have fond memories of their time with Wade the first time around, and they reveal what they learned most from Wade when asked how he most helped their game/career.

Johnson's Contract Will Be Tough To Move

February 19th, 2018 at 8:12pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Heat are expected to seek offers for combo guard Tyler Johnson as early as this summer but his contract provisions will make that difficult, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald explains. Johnson will make $19.2MM in each of the final two years of the backloaded deal, plus Miami would have to pay a $3.2MM trade kicker, Jackson continues. Any team trading for Johnson this offseason would have to take on the additional $1.6MM cap hit in each of the next two seasons. Miami matched the Nets’ offer sheet for Johnson during the summer of 2016.