Heat Notes: Udrih, Richardson, Johnson, Spoelstra
Veteran point guard Beno Udrih wants to get past the injury that ended his season in February and the controversy that surrounded his release from Miami, relays Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald. Udrih hopes to take the court this week after being sidelined with tightness in his back. It will be his first game action since undergoing surgery for a torn plantar plate in his right foot. A week after the procedure, he agreed to a buyout, sacrificing $90K in a move that brought the Heat under the luxury tax and enabled them to sign Joe Johnson. Udrih re-signed with Miami in August and wants to prove he can still contribute despite the injuries and despite turning 34 in July. “I’m just going to be me, try to be consistent and bring some leadership, some pace to the game and maybe with that leadership and experience that I gained during the last 12, 13 years, just slow things down sometimes,” he said. “Sometimes, maybe, we play a little bit too fast.”
There’s more news out of Miami:
- Heat coach Erik Spoelstra says no timetable has been set regarding Josh Richardson‘s return from injury because the team wants to be careful about rushing him back, Navarro writes in the same story. Richardson suffered a partially torn MCL in his left knee in September and was projected to have a six- to eight-week recovery time. When he does return, the second-year guard can expect to take on a variety of roles. “That’s the strength and ultimately the necessity of this roster — ultimately it’s the versatility,” Spoelstra said. “Guys have to be able to play in different spots and different positions on the floor. We talk about it all the time, but it’s reality. J-Rich is used to that. He literally he can play anywhere — the three perimeter positions offensively and defensively.”
- Tuesday’s preseason game will give Tyler Johnson his first chance to see the Nets since they gave him a four-year, $50MM offer sheet, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Miami matched the offer to keep the 24-year-old combo guard, who is grateful to the Nets for setting his price so high. “I could tell from the get-go that they were very interested,” Johnson said. “And they were working with me very well during contract negotiations. So, yeah, I’m very appreciative of what they did and setting that price point, for sure.”
- This offseason provided the ultimate test for Spoelstra’s philosophy of moving forward, notes Jeff Zillgett of USA Today. The Heat had to deal with Dwyane Wade‘s departure, Chris Bosh‘s failed physical and a massive roster upheaval, but Spoelstra doesn’t want to use any of that as an excuse for failure. “This team that I’m coaching right now, what they deserve is my absolute full attention and commitment,” Spoelstra said. “That’s what they’re getting. … What you have is different challenges each year, and we’re in this profession to develop teams, to get players to learn how to serve and sacrifice and play for something bigger than themselves.”
Club Faces Difficult Decision On Weber
- The Heat face a tough decision on point guard Briante Weber, according to Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders. Though Weber has only played in seven NBA games, he has shown enough upside that it will be difficult for the Heat to keep him off the opening-day roster, Taylor continues. Weber also has a partially-guaranteed contract, but veteran Beno Udrih looms as the main backup point man and Josh Richardson should return during the first month of the season from his knee injury, Taylor notes. If Weber is let go, another team would snatch him up quickly, Taylor adds.
Players Who Can Veto Trades
No-trade clauses are rare in the NBA, and they became even rarer this offseason, when several players with those clauses in their contracts either called it a career or signed new deals. Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, and Kevin Garnett, who all opted for retirement, had no-trade clauses last season, and so did Dwyane Wade, who doesn’t have the same protection on his new contract with the Bulls.
Nonethless, while the list of players with explicit no-trade clauses may be dwindling, there are still several players each year who have the ability to veto trades. A player who re-signs with his previous team on a one-year contract – or a two-year contract with an option clause – is given no-trade protection, and so is a player who signs an offer sheet and has that offer matched by his previous team. Players who accept qualifying offers after their rookie deals expire can also block deals, though no restricted free agents signed their QOs this year.
Taking into account that list of criteria, here are the players who must give their consent if their teams want to trade them during the 2016/17 league year:
No-trade clauses
- Carmelo Anthony (Knicks)
- LeBron James (Cavaliers): Received no-trade clause on his new contract with Cavs.
- Dirk Nowitzki (Mavericks)
Players whose offer sheets were matched
- Allen Crabbe (Trail Blazers)
- Tyler Johnson (Heat)
Players accepting qualifying offers
- None
Players re-signing for one year (or two years including an option)
- Lou Amundson (Knicks) (waived)
- Elton Brand (Sixers) (retired)
- Ian Clark (Warriors)
- Alonzo Gee (Pelicans) (waived)
- Manu Ginobili (Spurs)
- Udonis Haslem (Heat)
- Kris Humphries (Hawks)
- Dahntay Jones (Cavaliers) (waived)
- James Jones (Cavaliers)
- James Michael McAdoo (Warriors)
- Steve Novak (Bucks)
- Marcus Thornton (Wizards)
- Beno Udrih (Pistons)
- Anderson Varejao (Warriors)
- Sasha Vujacic (Knicks)
- Metta World Peace (Lakers)
Information from Basketball Insiders and Yahoo! Sports was used in the creation of this post.
Spoelstra Still Supportive Of Bosh
Coach Erik Spoelstra continues to support Chris Bosh despite his ongoing feud with the organization, writes Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald. After failing his training camp physical over a blood clot issue and hearing from team president Pat Riley that his days with the Heat were likely over, Bosh responded with a video Friday in which he claims that he can still play and accuses Riley of not reaching out to him before announcing the news to reporters. The Heat denied Bosh’s charges, saying that Riley had called, texted and emailed Bosh and his agent in an attempt to set up a meeting. Regardless of the dispute and the pessimistic view of Bosh’s future in Miami, Spoelstra refused to criticize his former star. “I love Chris Bosh, his family. I said this so many times, Chris was very important to me as a head coach,” Spoelstra said. “With those teams, he was somebody I really leaned on. That extended outside the lines. It’s something I really have enjoyed and my hope is that relationship can continue.” Those comments were echoed by many of Bosh’s teammates, including Udonis Haslem, who said, “It’s not easy just to walk away.”
Latest On Chris Bosh
Despite failing his most recent physical and not being cleared to participate in training camp, Chris Bosh still wants and intends to continue his NBA career, though, it appears he’s resigned to the fact that it won’t be in Miami, Kurt Helin of NBC Sports.com relays. Team president Pat Riley told reporters during Miami’s media day, “I think Chris is still open-minded. But we are not working toward his return We feel that, based on the last exam, that his Heat career is probably over.” In response to that, Bosh addressed the matter in a video post today:
“Got the news. I was in disbelief for a couple seconds, then I threw my phone down and I stormed out the room… But I’m glad I didn’t break my phone. I wanted to break it, but I didn’t….I guess my career in Miami is done. My career is not done. I did not expect that at all…. That does not mean my NBA career is over. There are 29 other teams, it’s a whole league. One team does not make up the opinion of everything.”
Bosh also took a shot at Riley and the team, saying, “I want to tell everyone in Miami this is not how I planned it to be. They don’t want to hear Dwyane Wade is gone. They don’t want to hear, ‘oh yea, Chris is never going to play for the Miami Heat again.’ People don’t want to hear that. I just feel for the fans. I wanted to give them more, I wanted to give them something better. Because they deserve better than what they’re getting right now.”
The forward also penned a letter to Heat fans on his personal blog, writing:
“It’s funny how things change. All I have right now associated with basketball are my friends and memories. And I’m so thankful for those things. I remember just a few years ago when the Big 3 were together and we were having a ball playing the game we love with some of the most professional, talented guys the NBA has ever seen. I remember the fans of Miami coming out to see the show every night. The love, the compassion and the energy we felt was second to none. I want to thank the city of Miami from the bottom of my heart because things may change but the good times will last forever in my memories. Thank you!
Things are different now and Miami has incredible young talent with a tremendous upside. These are not only talented ball players but great people and friends. I enjoyed playing with those guys and doing my best to mentor them by being an upstanding role model and veteran player. It’s their time to go through the ups and downs of the game with this great city. I want to thank not only the fans of Miami but everyone around the world who has supported our team and who has supported me through this time. I see you posting with #BoshRebuilt on social media every day and I receive the love that you give me. Thank you so much. I couldn’t make it without your support.“
Contract Details: Brand, Rockets, Thunder, Pacers
With training camps underway, teams have now officially finalized the contract agreements with various camp invitees that had been reported over the past several weeks, meaning we have plenty of contract details to round up. As usual, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders has been busy reporting those details, updating his salary pages for teams around the NBA.
Because we have so many updates to pass along from Pincus, we’ll divide them up by players who received some guaranteed money from their teams, and those who didn’t. All of the links below point to the Basketball Insiders team salary pages, so be sure to click through for additional information.
Here are the latest salary updates from across the league, via Pincus:
Players receiving guaranteed money:
These players aren’t necessarily assured of regular-season roster spots. In fact, many of them likely received guarantees as an incentive to accept a D-League assignment. Still, for some players, larger guarantees should increase their odds of making 15-man rosters.
- Thomas Walkup (Bulls): One year, minimum salary. $69.5K guaranteed.
- Keith Benson (Heat): Two years, minimum salary. $75K guaranteed.
- Henry Sims (Jazz): One year, minimum salary. $75K guaranteed.
- Alex Poythress (Pacers): One year, minimum salary. $35,381 guaranteed.
- Kevin Seraphin (Pacers): Two years, $3.681MM. First year ($1.8MM) guaranteed.
- Julyan Stone (Pacers): One year, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
- Gary Payton II (Rockets): Two years, minimum salary. First year ($543,471) guaranteed.
- Isaiah Taylor (Rockets): Two years, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
- Kyle Wiltjer (Rockets): Two years, minimum salary. $275K guaranteed.
- Cat Barber (Sixers): One year, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
- Elton Brand (Sixers): One year, minimum salary. $1MM guaranteed.
- Derrick Jones (Suns): Three years, minimum salary. $42.5K guaranteed.
- Alex Caruso (Thunder): One year, minimum salary. $50K guaranteed.
- Kaleb Tarczewski (Thunder): One year, minimum salary. $75K guaranteed.
- Chris Wright (Thunder): One year, minimum salary. $100K guaranteed.
Players receiving no guaranteed money:
The following players all signed one-year, minimum salary contracts with no guaranteed money. Many of these deals are “summer contracts,” which won’t count against a team’s cap unless the player earns a spot on the 15-man roster.
- Jabari Brown and Jaleel Roberts (Bucks)
- Markel Brown, Dahntay Jones, Cory Jefferson, Eric Moreland, John Holland, and Jonathan Holmes (Cavaliers)
- Dorell Wright (Clippers)
- Chris Crawford (Grizzlies)
- Ryan Kelly, Will Bynum, and Richard Solomon (Hawks)
- Perry Ellis (Hornets)
- Eric Dawson (Jazz)
- Julian Jacobs and Travis Wear (Lakers)
- Quinn Cook (Pelicans)
- Joel Anthony and Nicolas Laprovittola (Spurs)
- Gracin Bakumanya, Derek Cooke, and Shaquille Harrison (Suns)
- Rasual Butler (Timberwolves)
Josh McRoberts Recovering From Broken Foot
- Josh McRoberts revealed today that he broke his foot during Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals in May, according to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter link). Before McRoberts made that announcement, Winderman had examined the potential role this season for the Heat forward, who is limited in camp as his foot continues to recover.
Heat Notes: Riley, Bosh, Whiteside, Waiters
While some teams won’t admit they’re in rebuilding mode, Heat president Pat Riley didn’t mind using the R-word on Monday, as Ethan Skolnick of The Miami Herald tweets. Comparing the current roster to recent Heat teams, Riley noted that the franchise was “tweaking” the roster during the Big Three era, “retooling” it after LeBron James returned to Cleveland, and is “rebuilding” now. With Dwyane Wade gone and Chris Bosh unlikely to suit up for the Heat again, it will be interesting to see if the team goes into full-fledged rebuilding mode this year, perhaps shopping veteran point guard Goran Dragic.
Here’s more on the Heat:
- Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald passes along a couple more comments from Riley, who said he has yet to “hit send” on an email he wrote to Wade, and added that he’s had thoughts about “moving on” from his role with the Heat but still gets excited by the prospect of a new season.
- Asked about losing Bosh, Dragic admitted that it helps to have some certainty about what the roster and lineup will look like, but said he’d prefer to have the “small chance [Bosh] could be back,” per Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. “It’s not the prettiest situation right now.” Dragic said. “But we need to clear our heads and have one focus, one goal to get better as a team, get to know each other and try to build that chemistry we are going to need this season.”
- Tom Ziller of SBNation.com makes a case for why the Heat should waive Bosh, rather than keeping him on the roster.
- After being one of the league’s most underpaid players in recent years, Hassan Whiteside now has a maximum-salary contract, but he won’t let the new deal make him complacent, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.
- Winderman and Jackson have each published pieces on Dion Waiters, with Winderman writing that the Heat’s new shooting guard won’t be thinking about filling Wade’s shoes, while Jackson notes that Waiters opted for happiness over money when he chose to sign with Miami.
Pat Riley: Chris Bosh’s Career With Heat Likely Over
Although Chris Bosh pledged this weekend to continue working toward a comeback after his latest health setback, it doesn’t appear as though he’ll return to the Heat. Team president Pat Riley said today that the Heat are no longer anticipating Bosh to get back on the court for the franchise, according to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.
“I think Chris is still open-minded. But we are not working toward his return,” Riley said. “We feel that, based on the last exam, that his Heat career is probably over.”
Asked whether or not he feels that Bosh’s NBA career is also over, Riley suggested “that’s up to him,” according to Winderman. The veteran big man has had to deal with blood-clotting issues and failed a recent physical with the Heat, whose doctors weren’t comfortable clearing him to play.
Riley and Bosh’s camp have disagreed on how much support the team has provided the 11-time All-Star as he has dealt with his health issues. While Riley says the Heat have worked hard to help Bosh get back on the court, Bosh’s camp says he received little help from the team, and had to find his own doctor to get a program that would allow him to play, per Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter links). Riley and Bosh reportedly haven’t spoken in months — Riley said today that he has reached out to Bosh, but didn’t receive a reply, tweets Ethan J. Skolnick of The Miami Herald.
“His health, playing and economics — it’s been health, health, health,” Riley said today. “Whatever the cap ramifications are, they are there, but we never ever thought about that. … Contrary to how this thing has been perpetuated in the media, we have worked very, very hard with Chris. We headed down the road very excited to a point where we thought it would work. And then the physical couldn’t clear him to the next step.”
The Heat would have multiple options to increase their cap flexibility if Bosh is unable to return to the court this year. Miami could apply for a disabled player exception worth about $5.6MM that would allow the team to sign or trade a player for no more than that amount. Alternately, as of February 9, the club could potentially remove Bosh’s remaining cap hits from its books if a doctor jointly approved by the NBA and the NBPA rules him medically unable to return.
Eastern Notes: Wade, Young, Siakam, Wright
Now that the shock waves have died down over his move from Miami to Chicago, Dwyane Wade wants to prove he can still be an elite player in a new environment, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. After a contract standoff with the Heat, Wade surprised the NBA in July by agreeing to a two-year, $47MM deal with the Bulls. When Chicago opens camp this week, it will be the first time Wade has been with a team other than Miami in his 13-year career. “When I don’t have anything else left to prove, then I don’t need to play the game of basketball,” Wade said. “I want to prove I’m out of my comfort zone. I’m in a totally different environment, a totally different system. This is a challenge for me, at this stage of my career. Leave it up to me to put myself in a challenge and not just fade to black in the comfortableness of Miami.”
There’s more tonight from the Eastern Conference:
- James Young is ready to battle for a roster spot as the Celtics open camp, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Boston has 16 players with guaranteed contracts, and the competition for the final slot is expected to come down to Young, second-year guard R.J. Hunter and rookie forward Ben Bentil. Young, a 6’6″ shooting guard, has been with the Celtics for two seasons but has played in just a combined 60 games. He will make more than $1.8MM this season, but may be in the organization’s dog house after being benched during summer league for his poor play. “I’m not thinking about contracts or the next year,” Young said. “I’m just staying in the present right now, gotten a lot better, still getting better. And there’s a lot better for me to come, so I’m not even thinking about the future, who they got coming up or what’s going on. I’m staying right here in the present.”
- Rookie forward Pascal Siakam will be ready when the Raptors open training camp on Monday, tweets Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun. Siakam, the 27th pick in this year’s draft, suffered a left MCL sprain in summer league and missed all but one game. Wolstat adds that Delon Wright, the 20th pick in the draft, is making progress but won’t return to action for a while. Wright had arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder August 1st and was expected to need at least four months to recover.