Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Multiple Teams Interested In JaVale McGee

March 6th, 2015 at 10:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

10:06pm: Teams that are still interested in signing McGee also include the Rockets, Raptors, and Heat, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports tweets.

FRIDAY, 8:48pm: The Mavericks are still interested in McGee, but other teams that could offer the big man more playing time could be more appealing, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. Dallas is unable to offer McGee more than a minimum salary contract for the remainder of the season, Sefko adds.

11:48am: There’s “no way” the Raptors would cross the $76.829MM tax line to sign McGee in spite of GM Masai Ujiri‘s affection for him, tweets Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. The Raptors have a team salary for tax purposes of $76.096MM, as I pointed out earlier. A prorated minimum-salary contract until season’s end for McGee would only cost the team $231,503 if he signed today, after he clears waivers at 4pm Central time, so presumably the club can still bring him in and avoid the tax. So it follows that the Raptors won’t engage in a bidding war, Wolstat adds (on Twitter). However, the Raptors may be closer to the tax line than it appears based on incentive clauses in player contracts, which aren’t always fully reported.

WEDNESDAY, 10:10am: The Raptors are thinking about pursuing McGee, Stein tweets.

5:27pm: The Warriors have expressed major interest in McGee, and view him as an insurance policy for Andrew Bogut, Chris Broussard of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 3:59pm: The Mavericks are “seriously interested” in JaVale McGee, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com, but the sense is he won’t rush to choose a team should he clear waivers as expected on Wednesday, Stein adds (Twitter links). Plenty of other teams are interested, Stein notes, echoing a Monday report from Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports indicating that no less than 10 teams are in the mix. It’s nonetheless somewhat surprising to see Dallas emerge as one of them, since the Mavs earlier today committed their final open roster spot to a contract through season’s end Bernard James.

The teams that are in the mix for McGee reportedly envision him as a third-string center and won’t offer the big man more than the league minimum to sign. The Heat are among those interested in the oft-injured veteran, Stein tweets. While the remainder of the teams considering making a run at McGee are not yet known, the Wizards are not one of them, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post notes.

The 27-year-old appeared in just seven contests for the Sixers after being acquired from Denver, averaging 3.0 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per contest. In 382 career games McGee has averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocks. His career slash line is .540/.200/.587.

Southeast Notes: Dragic, Heat, Hornets

March 6th, 2015 at 3:00pm CST by Zachary Links

There were a flurry of trades at the deadline nearly three weeks ago and a deal that was overlooked by many may prove to be the most impactful, Scott Lauer of Hornets.com writes. There wasn’t a ton of fanfare surrounding the Hornets‘ acquisition of Mo Williams, but in seven games the guard has been playing at a high level, averaging 21.6 PPG and 8.9 APG. Here’s more from the Southeast Division..

Goran Dragic hasn’t been in Miami for long, but he already knows that he wants to stay long-term. At a shootaround Friday morning, he reiterated his desire to stay with the Heat beyond this season. “That’s my wish,” said Dragic, according to Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. “Right now I’m focused on doing as much as possible this season and make the playoffs, but of course this first 10-15 days here has been a great feeling for me. Unbelievable.” Dragic says he’ll decline his $7.5MM player option no matter what, but he’ll have no need to look elsewhere if Miami gives him a suitable offer.
The Heat will have to fight to retain Hassan Whiteside when he hits unrestricted free agency in 2016. In today’s mailbag, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel discussed how the Heat can try and sell him on Miami between now and then.
Hornets coach Steve Clifford has said that Lance Stephenson is the victim of unrealistic expectations and Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated agrees to some extent. Stephenson thrived off of playing in the Pacers’ system, Mannix writes, as he played off of David West and enjoyed the attention paid to Paul George and Roy Hibbert. Now in Charlotte, Stephenson is having to settle for pull up jump shots. Stephenson is in year one of a three-year, $27MM deal and the Hornets were unsuccessful in their attempts to move him in mid-season.

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Miami Heat

Pacific Notes: Dragic, Frye, Whiteside, KG

March 5th, 2015 at 2:12pm CST by Zachary Links

Goran Dragic likes “everything” about the Heat, but he’ll still consider all options, including the Lakers, when he’s a free agent in the summer, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News writes. Dragic did speak highly of the Lakers organization and their history of winning, but he was also highly complimentary of Miami. “I’m really comfortable. I feel great,” Dragic said. “Miami is a nice city. People are nice. The system is good. I like coach. I have all good words for them.” Here’s more from the Pacific Division…

Channing Frye agreed to a four-year, $32MM deal with the Magic in July when the Suns could not commit to him as they pursued the likes of LeBron James and Chris Bosh. Later, Suns owner Robert Sarver said in an interview that the 31-year-old only gave him three minutes to match Orlando’s offer and Frye takes exception to that, as Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic writes. “We’d been talking for months ahead of time,” Frye said. “I don’t know where that came from. It didn’t go down like that. I just don’t do business like that. That doesn’t even make sense in the realm of business. Orlando did a good job of selling me on the future and showed that they wanted me.”
After the Heat topped the Lakers 100-94 on Wednesday night, big man Hassan Whiteside took the opportunity to remind everyone that his breakout season could have gone down in purple and gold. “I worked out for the Lakers. I thought they could use me. I guess not,” Whiteside said, according to Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post (on Twitter). Whiteside has become so valuable for Miami that he was made untouchable in trade talks around the deadline along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
Clippers coach Doc Rivers would have loved to coach Kevin Garnett again, but he’s happy to see him back in Minnesota, calling the reunion “awesome,” Arash Markazi of ESPN.com writes.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Walker, Heat

March 5th, 2015 at 1:10pm CST by Zachary Links

Hornets guard Kemba Walker has been cleared to resume all basketball activities, moving him closer to a return from knee surgery, as The Associated Press writes. “I’m excited. I’ve been anxious,” Walker said. “I’ve been working hard trying to get back to competing with my teammates. And I got some great news, so I’m excited.” Coach Steve Clifford said the team will practice again Saturday and Walker’s return to action will depend on how the knee responds to an increased workload. Here’s more from the Southeast Division..

Lance Stephenson is having a poor first season in Charlotte, but Clifford thinks that the 24-year-old needs some more time to adjust to his new surroundings, Tim Bontemps of the New York Post writes. ““I think first of all, in some ways expectations were a little out of whack,” the Hornets said of Stephenson, who inked a three-year, $27MM deal with Charlotte over the summer. “I think secondly, he’s a young player, and unlike a guy like Mo Williams, who has played for seven coaches, seven systems and is used to adapting to new teammates and new cities, this is the first time.” The Hornets shopped Stephenson at the deadline but they were unable to find a suitable deal.
Jarell Eddie, who has inked a 10-day deal with the Hawks, took a path similar to Danny Green on his way to the NBA, Lorne Chan of Spurs.com writes. Green carved out a role for himself by knocking down shots from long range, but also doing the little things well. Eddie is now the third member of the Austin Spurs to reach the NBA this season after JaMychal Green and Bryce Cotton.
David Pick of Basketball Insiders looked at the unusual path taken by Henry Walker, who just inked his second 10-day deal with the Heat.
In today’s mailbag, a reader asked Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel if he believes the Heat will take advantage of the $2.65MM exception they have as a result of Josh McRoberts‘ knee surgery. Miami has until March 10th to use it, but Winderman doesn’t see them veering into tax territory to aid in a fight for the No. 7 or No. 8 seed.

Goran Dragic On Suns, Heat, Wade

March 5th, 2015 at 12:12pm CST by Zachary Links

Goran Dragic expressed regret earlier this week about his comments regarding the Suns prior to the trade deadline, calling them “too harsh.” The guard regretted his comments so much that he reached out to Suns owner Robert Sarver to apologize.

“We had a good conversation—he was always there for me and my family,” Dragic told Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report. “He knew that I was not going to re-sign with them, so I wanted to do something before the trade deadline and hopefully they could get some players or some picks. I really appreciated what he did—trading me.”

Dragic spoke with Zwerling about a wide range of topics this week and the Bleacher Report scribe wrote a lengthy piece from the guard’s perspective going over his time with Phoenix and his transition to Miami. The entire article is worth a read, but here’s a look at a few of the highlights:

On how the Heat tried to acquire him years ago

My No. 1 wish was to go to Miami, who I found out later had tried to get me a couple of years ago when I was in Houston. Miami offered everything—a great market, great players, their championship mentality. They always want to do well, and I think that it was a good fit for me. I was pushing for this situation, but I still didn’t know if the Suns were going to send me there. I was in a tough spot, but things worked out in the end.

On his relationship with Dwyane Wade

I felt that right away when D-Wade texted me as soon as I landed in Miami. He is just unbelievable. He’s a future Hall of Famer and he’s such a nice guy, humble guy. I already have a close bond with him and spend a lot of time talking to him about basketball. I didn’t have a player like that in Phoenix.

On Chris Bosh

After my first game against the Pelicans, which we lost, I sent Chris a text message, “You were missed tonight. Looking forward to playing with you. We’ll do our part here, and when you’re back, we’ll be ready to go.” I haven’t had a chance to talk to him; he’s with his family. I’m looking forward to meeting him in person. I played a lot of games against him and he always gave us problems.

Eastern Notes: Marble, Dragic, Brooks

March 4th, 2015 at 5:40pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Devyn Marble has suffered a detached retina in his left eye and is expected to miss four to six weeks of action, the Magic announced in a press release. The rookie has appeared in 16 games for Orlando, averaging 2.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 13.0 minutes per contest. Marble has also appeared in six games for the Erie BayHawks, the Magic’s D-League affiliate, logging 13.0 PPG and 5.2 RPG in 30.3 minutes per night.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Heat have assigned Zoran Dragic to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. This will be Dragic’s first trek of the season to the D-League.
The play of offseason signee Aaron Brooks will be vital for the Bulls with all of the backcourt injuries the team has endured this season, Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com writes. “I shouldn’t overlook him,” said Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau. “He had a tough matchup and I thought he hit big shots for us. He’s a big shot maker in the fourth quarter. We’re asking him to do a lot and I think he’s more than capable.”
Khris Middleton is providing the Bucks with a level of stability at shooting guard that the team has lacked for some time, Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. Middleton has become an important part of the team’s future and Milwaukee would like to re-sign him this summer when he will become a restricted free agent, Gardner notes.

Ray Allen Says He Won’t Play This Season

March 4th, 2015 at 1:46pm CST by Chuck Myron

Ray Allen will not play this season, as he says in a statement released through agent Jim Tanner and the Tandem Sports and Entertainment agency. He’s not ruling out a return for 2015/16 but adds that he’ll take rest of this season and the offseason ahead to decide about that, suggesting that it’ll again be a long wait before we know if, much less where, Allen will play again. The 39-year-old has languished as the most sought-after free agent since the start of training camp, though the Cavs, long the front-runner for the friend and former teammate of LeBron James, recently appeared to drop out of the running. They were one of of 14 teams who expressed serious interest, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).

“Over the past several months, I have taken a lot of time to deliberate what is best for me,” Allen said in the statement. “I’ve ultimately decided that I will not play this NBA season. I’m going to take the remainder of this season, as well as the upcoming off-season, to reassess my situation, spend time with my family and determine if I will play in the 2015/16 season.”

The Grizzlies, too, appeared no longer to be in the Allen sweepstakes as of this weekend, not long after executives around the league reportedly began losing faith that he’d sign. The Warriors, Wizards, Spurs, Heat and Hawks were keeping in touch with Allen’s camp as of early February, and Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said at about that time that he’d recently spoken to him.

Just about every playoff-bound team reportedly reached out to Allen at some point this season. The Wizards were apparently the most aggressive suitor as of January, though LeBron visited Allen’s home in Miami to woo the sharpshooter while the four-time MVP was in town for rehabilitation.

The Bulls were another suitor, though a trip he made to Chicago earlier this season wasn’t basketball-related, Tanner said. Tanner batted down reports that indicated his intentions regarding one team or another all throughout the process that began when he became a free agent in July. Allen said over the summer that it would take a “perfect storm scenario” for him to play this season, and he pointed to a desire for a veteran coach and more than the minimum salary.

Allen was seemingly leaning toward retirement in late December, though he indicated during the middle of last season that he wasn’t planning to retire so soon. If he doesn’t return, he’ll walk away as the NBA’s all-time leader in three-pointers made and career earnings in excess of $184.356MM, according to Basketball-Reference.

Southeast Notes: Beasley, Webster, Mo Williams

March 4th, 2015 at 12:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

Michael Beasley has promised to reform in the past, but he knows there’s a decent chance his 10-day contract with the Heat represents his final opportunity in the NBA, observes Shandel Richardson of the Sun Sentinel. The former No. 2 overall pick’s deal expires at the end of Saturday.

“I’m still the same guy, but it’s desperation for me,” Beasley said. “This is my last chance, my last shot. It’s either play or sit down and I’m not ready to play at `The Y’, not ready for open gyms. I’m playing to eat right now, and I got kids. It adds that much more.”

While we wait to see if Beasley’s third career contract with the Heat will lead to a fourth, here’s more from the Southeast Division:

The Nets would have had to take Martell Webster if they’d traded Jarrett Jack to the Wizards at the deadline, and the deal would have involved the teams swapping future first-round picks, Grantland’s Zach Lowe tweets. Those Jack proposals appeared to be contingent on Brooklyn’s failed Reggie Jackson-for-Brook Lopez talks, as Lowe points out (on Twitter).
Mo Williams says he took his time on successful Cavs teams earlier in his career for granted and is grateful for last month’s trade that sent him from Minnesota to the Hornets and gave him a chance to compete for a playoff berth again, as he tells Jessica Camerato of Basketball Insiders. The soon-to-be free agent signed with the Wolves knowing they wouldn’t be contenders, but it seems his focus has changed. “I just want to win. It’s as simple as that — just win,” Williams said. “I’m at the point at my career where I’ve made a lot of money, been an All-Star, and one thing I haven’t experienced is playing at the highest level and that’s winning a championship. That’s everybody’s goal.”
Re-signing Trevor Ariza would have helped the Wizards better overcome their recent struggles, but that was a sacrifice the franchise was willing to make to save cap flexibility for a shot at Kevin Durant in the summer of 2016, as Ben Standig of CSNWashington.com examines.

Southeast Notes: Frye, Heat, Wizards

March 3rd, 2015 at 9:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Channing Frye has struggled to live up to the four-year, $32MM contract he inked with the Magic last July, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel writes. “I think the first half [of the season] was a little tough,” Frye said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself to just automatically get acclimated to what was going on.” In 60 appearances for Orlando this season Frye is averaging 7.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 26.9 minutes per game.

Here’s the latest from the Southeast Division:

Frye also acknowledges that he had some difficulty acclimating to former Magic coach Jacque Vaughn‘s system, Robbins adds. The veteran is finding things much improved for him under interim coach James Borrego, especially on the defensive end, the Sentinel scribe notes. “Overall, I love the city,” Frye said. “I love this opportunity to play with these guys. After the [coaching] change, I think it’s really for me, in my personal opinion, been a breath of fresh air with J.B. I’m not saying that it wasn’t awesome before. But I’m just saying the way his philosophy is a little different, it’s a little bit more my style.”
When discussing the Heat‘s D-League affiliate in Sioux Falls, Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said, “it was responsible of us to invest in the D-League,” Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post relays (Twitter links). Spoelstra acknowledged that the distance between South Beach and South Dakota doesn’t make for the most convenient arrangement, but the most important thing is that the ownership and culture was aligned, Lieser adds.
The Wizards are being patient about filling their lone remaining roster spot, which was created when the team waived Glen Rice Jr., Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post writes. Washington is currently considering various options including players from overseas and the NBA D-League, Castillo adds.

Heat Re-Sign Henry Walker To Second 10-Day

March 3rd, 2015 at 11:35am CST by Chuck Myron

TUESDAY, 11:35am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

MONDAY, 5:29pm: Walker confirmed that he’s signing another 10-day deal, as he informed reporters, including Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post (Twitter link).

12:01pm: The Heat and Henry Walker have reached agreement on a second 10-day contract, as Shams Charania of RealGM reports (Twitter link), and as a source confirms to Hoops Rumors. His first 10-day deal with the team is up at the end of today. Miami has been carrying Walker as well as Michael Beasley on 10-day contracts that occupy what would otherwise be the team’s only two open roster spots.

It’s no shock to see the Heat keep the 27-year-old Walker around after he started and played 26 minutes in Saturday’s game. He’s averaged 11.8 points in 27.8 minutes per game in his four appearances with Miami, his first NBA action since the 2011/12 season. That’s slightly more playing time than he’d seen with the Heat’s D-League affiliate, for whom he’d averaged 27.7 MPG in 17 games earlier this season.

A decision of greater consequence looms regarding another deal between Walker and the Heat, since players can only sign two 10-day deals with any one team during a single season. Miami would have to re-sign the Mike Naiditch client through at least the end of the season next time around.