Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Michael’s Latest: Wright, Nelson, Green

January 9th, 2015 at 10:39am CST by Chuck Myron

The Wizards opened a roster spot when they waived Glen Rice Jr. this week, and the team is looking at several avenues to fill it, as J. Michael of CSNWashington.com reports. The Celtics figure prominently, as we note amid the revelations from Michael’s piece:

Celtics president of basketball ops Danny Ainge has told Brandan Wright he’s on the block, though it’s unlikely that Wright ends up in Washington, in part because of the high demand for him, Michael writes. Michael doesn’t specify whether the Wizards are pursuing him. Wright went to Boston in the Rajon Rondo trade.
The player most likely to end up in Washington’s open roster spot is Jameer Nelson, another one of Boston’s acquisitions in that Rondo deal, according to Michael, who says the point guard is expected to negotiate a buyout. The Wizards will be in “hot pursuit,” Michael writes. Nelson is making $2.732MM this season and has a player option worth nearly $2.855MM for next season, and he’s upset about his playing time, even though he insists that he and Celtics coach Brad Stevens are on the same page. Nelson will once more remain on the Inactive List for tonight’s game, tweets Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe.
The Wizards have maintained “routine” contact with Ray Allen since first reaching out to him in July, sources tell Michael. The Wizards plan to keep chasing him until he retires or gives a definitive “no,” according to Michael. Still, the notion that Allen ends up in Washington sounds like a long shot, Michael writes.
Celtics forward Jeff Green is expected to turn down his $9.2MM player option for next season, according to Michael, and the Wizards would be interested in signing him if Paul Pierce also opts out, Michael adds.
The Wizards have been keeping a close eye on D-Leaguers Khem Birch and Damion James, Michael reports. Birch declined an invitation to Wizards training camp invite to instead head to the Heat‘s camp, according to Michael, and the power forward is now with Miami’s D-League affiliate. James was with the Wizards in camp and currently plays for the affiliate of the Mavs.

Eastern Notes: Williams, Deng, Thompson

January 8th, 2015 at 9:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Nets‘ Deron Williams, who is the subject of trade rumors, will be out indefinitely after an MRI revealed one of his ribs was fractured, Roderick Boone of Newsday reports. “Deron reported some soreness above this area over the weekend and as a result underwent imaging studies on Monday, which were negative,” team physician Riley Williams III said in a statement. “[Wednesday] during the game, he reported a new onset of symptoms below the prior area of soreness. New imaging studies done [Thursday] demonstrated the fracture. There is no timetable for his return.”

Here’s more from the East:

Luol Deng is rumored to be on the trading block, with the Grizzlies a possible suitor, but despite the Heat‘s struggles this season, Deng insists he doesn’t want out of Miami, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel reports. “I’ve had no issues,” Deng said. “My whole thing I’ve been saying this year is we’ve been trying to get it right, fit everybody in. It’s never that I’m unhappy or anything. Just because they’re trade rumors, I’m not the one asking for trades.“
Surya Fernandez of FOX Sports Florida examined a number of potentially available players with whom the Heat could upgrade their roster, including Andray Blatche, Samuel Dalembert, Tyler Johnson, Rashard Lewis, and Jameer Nelson.
When informed that the newly acquired Timofey Mozgov would be taking his place in the Cavs‘ starting lineup, Tristan Thompson handled the news like a true team player, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. “I’ve come off the bench most of the season,” Thompson said. “Whatever it takes for us to win. [I’ll] come out and join the bench mob again. Bring the energy with myself, Delly [Matthew Dellavedova] and all the other guys so that’s a role that I embrace and I’m trying to be the X-factor.“
One thing that J.R. Smith will miss about being with the Knicks is his friendship with Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Kernan of The New York Post writes. “I was upset that I don’t get to play with my best friend who I’ve played with for the last nine or 10 years,’’ Smith said. “We’ve been together so long and we complemented each other so well from the inside out game. Off the court too, we hung at each other’s houses.”

Celtics Notes: Green, Nelson, Crowder

January 8th, 2015 at 1:28pm CST by Chuck Myron

There’s a belief around the league that the Celtics will indeed part with Jeff Green before the trade deadline, as Ronald Tillery of The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal writes within a subscription-only piece. The discussions the Grizzlies are having regarding Green, as well as Luol Deng, are internal, a source tells Tillery, though the earlier report from Marc Stein of ESPN.com indicates that Memphis is active on both fronts. The talk had president of basketball operations Danny Ainge suggesting that Green has succeeded Rajon Rondo as the most frequent subject of Celtics trade rumors, as Ainge said this morning to Fred Toucher and Rich Shertenlieb on 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston, notes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. While we wait to see just what happens with Green, here’s more from Boston:

Ainge would like to clear the team’s logjam of big men, USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt tweets, though it’s unknown which of the frontcourt players are most likely to go.
Jameer Nelson insists that he and coach Brad Stevens are on the same page, but the point guard sat out Wednesday’s game and is upset about the playing time he’s seen since arriving in the Rondo trade, as Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald observes. Nelson, who has a player option worth nearly $2.855MM for next season, is averaging 20.2 minutes per game, which would be a career low if extrapolated over an entire season.
Jae Crowder was the only one of the three players the Celtics acquired in the Rondo trade who played Wednesday, and analytics show he’s been a boon for the team so far, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com examines.

Eastern Notes: Sanders, Dawkins, Waiters

January 7th, 2015 at 6:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Larry Sanders wouldn’t delve into specifics about his absence, but he denied Tuesday that he’s thinking about retirement, as he told reporters, including Bradford Doolittle of ESPN.com. The Bucks center hasn’t played since December 23rd, but he sat on the bench with the team for Tuesday’s game, a first since he took his leave, and he said he’s ready to start working toward a return to the court. “I haven’t said anything like that,” Sanders said of the notion he would retire. “I figure with the absence, something was going to come out like that. It’s not true. What is true is I’m in the process of trying to do what’s best for my psyche and my physical health.”

Here’s more out of the East:

The Heat waived guard Andre Dawkins so that the team could retain some measure of roster flexibility heading forward, Surya Fernandez of FOX Sports Florida writes. “We liked ‘Doc’ and the development he was making,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Right now it makes more sense for us to have some flexibility.” When asked if any players were being looked at to fill Dawkins’ roster spot on a 10-day contract, Spoelstra said, “It could be filled at any time, that’s the whole point, but nothing is imminent.”
In the moments after he was informed that he had been dealt to the Thunder, Dion Waiters said he felt “bitter” toward the Cavs, Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman writes. But once he settled down and thought about his destination he felt much better about his situation, Slater adds. “I’m just happy they sent me here to another great organization where I get the chance to play with another great player,” Waiters said. “I feel I’m in a win-win situation. So I take it as a positive thing. I get a chance to grow and learn from these guys.”
Waiters was also asked about the Cavs‘ disappointing start to the season, Slater notes. Waiters responded by saying, “Uhh, we never really played together. Of course I’d played with Kyrie [Irving], but I’d never played with Kevin [Love] or LeBron [James] or those type of guys who dominated on their opposing teams. So for them to come to Cleveland, we all had to change our game for the better of the team. Like, for instance, my scoring went down. Ky, he’s used to having the ball, but with LeBron, he’s a guy that needs the ball to facilitate and make plays. It was a chemistry thing that we was still building. Like they said, Rome wasn’t built in one day. We had to continue to figure it out day by day.“

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Dawkins, Rice, Silas

January 7th, 2015 at 5:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Hawks are the only Eastern Conference team with fewer than 10 losses, and tonight they’ll host the Grizzlies, one of three Western Conference clubs with that distinction. Atlanta’s unexpected surge to the top of the East comes against the backdrop of the sale of the team, and with several new would-be owners surfacing, there’s yet more news on the state of the franchise amid the latest from around the Southeast Division:

NBA spokesman Mike Bass made it clear today that the Hawks will stay put even as the club is up for sale, as Bass told Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). “The Atlanta Hawks are not moving to another market,” Bass said. A pair of investors reportedly want to buy the team and move it to Seattle.
The Heat have expressed interest in re-signing Andre Dawkins to a 10-day contract “down the road,” agent John Spencer told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, who writes in his daily notes column. The Heat waived Dawkins on Tuesday.
Glen Rice Jr. had trouble accepting criticism from coaches, but other Wizards players didn’t think he was a poor teammate, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Michael wrote this past weekend that Rice’s attitude was an issue that contributed to the team’s decision to cut ties.
Wizards camp invitee Xavier Silas has signed with Greece’s Nea Kifisia, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). Silas averaged 10.3 points in 19.3 minutes per game for Washington during the preseason before the team waived him prior to opening night.

Eastern Notes: Jackson, Napier, Thomas

January 6th, 2015 at 8:12pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Knicks president Phil Jackson won’t prove that he’s worth the $12MM per year salary that team owner James Dolan is paying him until he lands some meaningful free agents this summer, Ian O’Connor of ESPNNewYork.com opines. The problem for Jackson is that the top free agents are likely to stay with their current teams, O’Connor notes. The best Jackson can hope for is to possibly ink Greg Monroe and Goran Dragic, nice hauls, but not quite championship caliber players, the ESPN scribe adds.

Here’s more out of the East:

The Heat have recalled Shabazz Napier from the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel reports (Twitter link). This was Napier’s second journey of the season to Sioux Falls.
The Knicks may waive Lance Thomas to create an additional roster spot, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com reports (Twitter link). Thomas, who was acquired in Monday night’s three-way deal with the Cavs and the Thunder, was reported to be the one player whom New York was looking to retain of the three it had garnered in the deal.
With the trade market beginning to heat up, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders looks at the players who are most likely to be dealt prior to the February trade deadline. Players who Kennedy opines could be on the move include Deron Williams (Nets), Jeff Green (Celtics), Andrei Kirilenko (Sixers), and Brandan Wright (Celtics).

Heat Waive Andre Dawkins

January 6th, 2015 at 4:20pm CST by Chuck Myron

4:20pm: The release of Dawkins is official, the Heat announced.

2:02pm: Dawkins’ agent tells Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald that the team has waived his client (Twitter link), though the Heat have yet to make an announcement. John Spencer of 540 Sports and Entertainment represents Dawkins, according to our Agency Database.

12:52pm: The Heat will release Andre Dawkins before the end of Wednesday, when his contract would become guaranteed for the season, reports Shams Charania of RealGM. Dawkins was a surprising presence on Miami’s opening-night roster thanks to his impressive three-point shooting during training camp and the preseason, but he’s appeared in more D-League games than NBA contests during the regular season. His minimum-salary contract is without any guaranteed money, beyond what he’s already earned this year, though that would change if the team kept him past this week’s leaguewide guarantee date. Miami will be responsible only for the money he’s already made, though his entire salary of more than $507K would come off the team’s books if another team claimed him off waivers.

Dawkins went undrafted out of Duke this past summer, but he made 12 of 20 three-point attempts for the Heat’s summer league team, and five of eight during the preseason. He was an eye-popping 41 of 79 from behind the arc in just eight D-League games this year, but he only made one three-pointer in six tries during 22 total regular season minutes for Miami.

The 23-year-old is the only Heat player without any guaranteed money on his contract, as our roster counts show, though Hassan Whiteside has already earned more than his $100K guarantee provided, meaning he’s on a de facto non-guaranteed deal. Most of Justin Hamilton‘s minimum salary is guaranteed, and the club’s other 12 players have fully guaranteed arrangements.

Knicks To Waive Samuel Dalembert?

January 5th, 2015 at 4:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

4:45pm: The Knicks are actively trying to trade Dalembert prior to Wednesday to avoid facing the decision to retain or waive him on that day, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).

8:48am: With the Knicks’ season in a seemingly hopeless freefall, having lost 11 games in a row, and their record currently sitting at a dismal 5-31 overall, the team is considering numerous options for altering its roster. One change that could happen by this Wednesday is the team possibly waiving center Samuel Dalembert, Marc Berman of The New York Post reports.

This coming Saturday, January 10th, is the NBA’s leaguewide contract guarantee date. All players with non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts still on team rosters on that date will have the remainder of their salaries guaranteed for the season. But in order for any franchise to clear undesirable or unwanted contracts off of its books, players will need to clear waivers in advance of this deadline. This means that any players, including Dalembert, would need to be placed on waivers by no later than 4:00pm Central time this Wednesday, January 7th. This would allow the requisite two days that players remain on waivers to pass prior to Saturday’s deadline.

The reason that Dalembert’s name has come up as a possibility to be waived is that only $1.98MM of his $4.05MM contract is guaranteed, Berman notes. So New York can save itself a cool $2.07MM by releasing the big man prior to the cutoff date. Waiving Dalembert would open up a roster spot for the Knicks to add a younger D-League player or sign a veteran who was waived by another team, Berman adds. One such player that the Knicks are possibly looking to sign to a 10-day contract is D-League point guard Langston Galloway, though New York is already painfully thin in the frontcourt, something releasing Dalembert and signing Galloway would not rectify.

New York is considering every option currently, Berman reports, which means that the Knicks could retain Dalembert and try to acquire an asset by trading him to a club looking to add a defensive big man for a playoff push, the New York Post scribe adds. There are numerous teams that are desperate to add a rim protecting big man, including Cleveland, Dallas, and Miami, though I’m merely speculating on their potential interest in Dalembert.

Dalembert certainly hasn’t been setting the league on fire with his performance for the Knicks, who were hoping that he could help replace the defensive presence of Tyson Chandler, whom the Knicks traded to Dallas prior to the season, in a deal which netted them Dalembert. In 32 appearances, including 21 as a starter, Dalembert has averaged an underwhelming 4.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 17.0 minutes per game. He hasn’t fit well into the triangle offense that the Knicks are attempting to implement, though judging by the team’s record, he’s hardly the only one.

For his part, Dalembert is currently in the dark about what the Knicks’ plans for him are, Berman notes. “Maybe you know more than me,’’ Dalembert said. “I love it here. I love the team we have. Unfortunately we’re going through what we’re going through right now. It’s a great organization. I would love for my career to finish here, but it’s business. A lot of times it’s beyond your control. I’ll still see how it goes and enjoy the time.’’

Team president Phil Jackson could soon decide the best thing for the Knicks’ long-term future is playing their younger players, which could also affect Amar’e Stoudemire ’s status, Berman also notes. Stoudemire missed his fifth straight game on Sunday night, and he could also eventually be waived to open up a roster spot, Berman opines. There is no immediate deadline to do so for Stoudemire, since the remainder of his $23,410,968 salary for this season is fully-guaranteed, though March 1st is the final date that players can be waived and be eligible to play in the postseason for another team.

Eastern Notes: Whiteside, Celtics, Young

January 5th, 2015 at 4:07pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The development of Hassan Whiteside this season has given the Heat hope for the future, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel writes. “He’s learning the game,” Dwyane Wade said. “Every time he steps out there, you can see him getting more comfortable. I think as teammates we are a lot more confident, especially on the defensive end when he’s in. He’s big for us.” Coach Erik Spoelstra credits Whiteside’s growth as a player to the his tireless work ethic, Winderman adds.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Celtics have once again recalled James Young from the Maine Red Claws, their D-League affiliate, the team announced in a press release. This was Young’s eighth stint in the D-League this season, and in eight games with Maine he is averaging 22.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.5 steals in 32.6 minutes per contest.
With the trade of Rajon Rondo, the Celtics are now in full rebuilding mode, and one issue that has cropped up is that the team now has 15 players with a legitimate reason to believe they should be playing more, Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald writes. “I think everybody can make a case for having even a bigger role than they have,” president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said. “I guess that’s just part of it. I think they all have responded well, and they’re all playing hard and trying to make a case for themselves.”
It’s possible that the rotation picture will clear up once the February trade deadline passes and the players will feel a better sense of stability, notes Bulpett, but Gerald Wallace has a different take. “But I don’t think so even then because you’ve got a lot of players that are on the last year of their deal,” Wallace said. “So I think once the trade deadline passes, that’s going to probably amp things up more because guys’ lives are at stake, guys’ careers are at stake. They’re on the last year of their deal, and obviously those guys want to be able to play and want to go into the summer in a good position for contract talks. We’ll see.”

Southeast Notes: Wade, Magic, Hawks, Porter

January 4th, 2015 at 4:43pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat are focused on landing a big-name free agent in 2016 when the team will have up to $50MM in cap space, but Dwyane Wade told Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald he isn’t fully on board with that strategy. “Nobody knows what’s going to happen in 2016; 2016, to me, is so far away and I hope people aren’t waiting on it thinking we’re going to land this quote, unquote Big Fish because it might not happen for you,” Wade said. “No one knows if [team president Pat] Riley is going to wait until 2016. It’s all speculation.” Wade, who will become a free agent in 2016, took an $11MM pay cut last summer to create cap room, signing a deal worth $31MM for this season and next.

There’s other news from the Southeast Division:

The Magic can solve a lot of their problems by making Nikola Vucevic the focus of their offense, opines Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Schmitz offers several suggestions for the struggling franchise, but the main one involves getting more shots for Vucevic, who agreed to a four-year, $53MM extension with the team last October.
Former Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer has used San Antonio’s blueprint to build a winner with the Hawks, observes Jim Cavan of Bleacher Report. Cavan notes that Budenholzer has brought unselfishness and efficiency to a franchise long known for its isolation philosophy. He also credits the front office for getting the right players into the right roles. “I think that we have a system established here and we have a group of guys that understand the concept of teamwork and doing things as a team,” Al Horford said. “When you have a group of guys like that, it makes everything easier.”
After two games out of the rotation, Wizards forward Otto Porter returned to his regular role in Saturday’s loss to the Spurs, reports Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. Porter briefly lost time to Martell Webster, who returned to action recently after missing the season’s first 30 games rehabbing from back surgery. “I think Martell had a couple opportunities and he didn’t do well,” said John Wall, “and Otto came in and stayed ready. You never know what night your name is going to be called and I think with this team our guys are ready.” Porter is still on his rookie contract and is under the Wizards’ control through 2016/17.