Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Team USA, Wolves, Rivers, Bulls

June 10th, 2013 at 12:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Last month, we heard that Mike D'Antoni and Nate McMillan wouldn't be returning to Team USA for the 2016 Olympics as assistant coaches. Today, Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press reveals (via Twitter) that Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau and Pelicans coach Monty Williams will be the new additions to Mike Krzyzewski's staff. Here are a few more Monday odds and ends from around the NBA:

Timberwolves president Flip Saunders tells Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com that every indication points to Rick Adelman returning as the team's head coach next season. Saunders also addresses Nikola Pekovic's free agency ("We plan on signing him") and Andrei Kirilenko's player option ("We don't have a gut feel [what he'll decide]") within the piece.
Celtics head coach Doc Rivers has yet to officially state whether he'll return to Boston's bench next season, telling Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe that he'd address his future soon.
In his weekend notes column for the Boston Globe, Washburn speculated that the Bobcats could be interested in trying to trade for Chris Bosh this summer, but Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer doesn't see Bosh as a fit for Charlotte.
Asked about a potential Luol Deng trade, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld tweets that he has heard the Bulls don't intend to change their core significantly this summer. With Deng and others coming off the books in the summer of 2014, the roster figures to see more turnover a year from now.
CSKA Moscow assistant Quin Snyder has officially left the team to return stateside, the club announced today (English link via Sportando). Last week, ESPN.com's Marc Stein named Snyder as a potential under-the-radar candidate for the Nuggets' head coaching job, but I think it's probably more likely that Snyder ends up as an NBA assistant somewhere.
Last June, Mike Miller's injury problems had him contemplating the possibility of retirement, but he's certainly feeling better a year later. Miller tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com that he feels like he has four or five seasons left in him.
Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today attempts to determine why there have been so many head coaching changes in the NBA this offseason, while TNT's David Aldridge tackles the same topic in his own column at NBA.com. Aldridge also examines new Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer and asks Danny Granger about being the subject of frequent trade rumors.

Heat Enter Single Affiliation Partnership With D-League’s Skyforce

June 10th, 2013 at 12:23pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat will enter into a single-affiliation partnership with the NBA D-League's Sioux Falls Skyforce for the 2013/14 season, Miami announced today in a press release. The Skyforce had previously served as the D-League affiliate for four teams: The Heat, Timberwolves, Magic, and 76ers.

"We have been working with the Skyforce for four years and feel that it is one of the most professional organizations in the NBA Development League," said Heat president Pat Riley in a statement. "It will be a pleasure working with [Skyforce owner and president] Mike Heineman to make this partnership a success for both them and the Miami Heat."

The partnership will be the sixth "hybrid" affiliation between an NBA team and a D-League franchise, allowing the NBA club to run the D-League squad's basketball operations while local ownership maintains control of the franchise. The Nets (Springfield Armor), Celtics (Maine Red Claws), Rockets (Rio Grande Valley Vipers), Knicks (Erie BayHawks) and Trail Blazers (Idaho Stampede) are the other teams engaged in hybrid affiliations.

Miami becomes the second NBA team this offseason to secure a one-to-one affiliation with a D-League team. The 76ers announced in April that they'd be taking control of a previously dormant franchise which will now be known as the Delaware 87ers.

Chauncey Billups Has Interest In Joining Heat

June 10th, 2013 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

Although injuries have kept him out of action for the majority of the last two seasons, Chauncey Billups still isn't considering retirement. Echoing what he said two months ago, Billups tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida that he's "definitely coming back this year," though it's not clear yet where the veteran guard will land.

One April report suggested that Billups was likely to re-sign with the Clippers or retire, but the 36-year-old's comments to Tomasson didn't suggest that Los Angeles has the inside track on his free agency.

"I’m wide open," Billups said. "Free agent means free."

Asked about the Heat, Billups told Tomasson that he would "of course" have interest in joining the defending champs, suggesting that he "absolutely" could be an asset in Miami. Having made $4MM this past season, Billups is likely in line for a pay cut. If he were willing to play for the minimum salary, the reigning Teammate of the Year would almost certainly draw interest from a number of contending teams eager to bring aboard veteran leadership.

While Billups hasn't played a whole lot in the last couple seasons, he was still reasonably effective when he saw the court for the Clippers, averaging 11.5 PPG and recording a 15.6 PER in 42 regular-season games with the team. When he eventually decides to end his playing career, Billups has interest in a front office role with an NBA team, as he tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com.

Odds & Ends: Grizzlies, Heat, McGrady

June 8th, 2013 at 10:40pm CST by Spencer Lund

According to Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game, the Grizzlies' current ownership is in a serendipitous position to save money by honoring a bizarre clause in some assistant coach contracts (Sulia link). Usually, the playoff winnings from the NBA are shared with a team's players and personnel after postseason success. But former owner Michael Heisley negotiated deals with some assistant coaches that awarded a flat bonus based on a small percentage of their regular salaries.

After the Grizzlies surprised many by reaching the Western Conference Finals, the resulting playoff shares are worth $70K or more, depending on how many shares the team elected to have. Under the Heisley terms, some assistant coaches are due only 1/7th of that amount.

Current Grizzlies principal owner, Robert Pera, is under no obligation to stray from the deals the previous regime negotiated, but as Bucher points out "sometimes there is a divide between what is acceptable and what is right." In the grand scheme of things, it's a paltry sum to pay for assistants who may not be back next season and who helped guide a Rudy Gay–less Grizzlies team far into the tough Western Conference playoff bracket.

With Lionel Hollins' future as the Grizzlies' head coach in doubt, a sign of good faith to his assistant coaches, who rightfully deserve a larger share of the playoff winnings than their current contract calls for, might be the move that tips the odds in favor of Hollins returning to the sidelines for the Grizzlies next season.

Here are some other links from around this quiet NBA Saturday night before the Heat and Spurs do battle in Game 2 of the NBA Finals tomorrow:

Speaking of this current Heat team, assistant coach David Fizdale is a hot commodity in the NBA’s coaching market with his team in the NBA Finals for the third straight year this June. Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel says the 38-year-old Heat assistant would consider a head coaching job despite still having a year left on his contract with the Heat.
Cheap labor is the key to the future for the Heat, writes Winderman. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh all have an opt-out clause in their contracts for the summer of 2014, so surrounding those three stars with talent that doesn’t break the bank is the key for the Heat to continue their dominance of the Eastern Conference.
Alex Kennedy spoke with Tracy McGrady about sticking around for so long and reaching his first NBA Finals as the 12th man on the Spurs despite the absence of some of his former NBA peers, like Stephon Marbury and Gilbert Arenas. Kennedy also has some terrific McGrady quotes via Twitter updates from tonight, including one about the NBA's age requirement (McGrady was drafted out of Mount Zion Christian Academy in 1997).
David Mayo at MLive believes Pistons general manager Joe Dumars deserves to pick the new Pistons head coach despite the presence of Phil Jackson as a consultant. Whomever becomes the new head coach could go a long way towards determining who is really in power for the Pistons, and with Maurice Cheeks expected to be announced as the new head coach some time this weekend, it seems Dumars' days with the Pistons may continue.
ShamSports has an update on all the available salary cap room teams have this offseason with cap holds included.
Danny Schayes of SheridanHoops.com on the inanity of all the coaching turnover this offseason.
Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee says new Kings owner Vivek Ranadive hasn’t met face-to-face with mercurial star DeMarcus Cousins. (Twitter links)
Mary Schmitt Boyer in her mailbag column for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, answers how all the Cavs’ offseason salary cap moves will affect the team.

Shane Battier To Retire After Next Year

June 8th, 2013 at 4:02pm CST by Zachary Links

As he gets ready for Game 2 of the 2013 Finals against the Spurs, Shane Battier is thinking quite a bit about his future in the NBA. The veteran forward indicated to Alex Kennedy of USA Today that he probably has one more year of basketball left.

"I think I have one more year," Battier said. "My contract is up next year, and I'll reassess where I am, but we'll see. It's a good possibility, a good possibility. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, and everything in this league is negotiable, but at that point I'll be 36 and it may be time to do something else."

Battier has averaged 9.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks over 904 career games with the Rockets, Grizzlies, and Heat. The former Duke star has been to the playoffs in nine of his 12 seasons in the NBA.

David Fizdale, Melvin Hunt On Sixers’ Radar

June 7th, 2013 at 11:03am CST by Luke Adams

Maurice Cheeks is said to be the frontrunner for the Pistons' head coaching job, and the openings with the Clippers, Nets, and Nuggets appear to be turning into a game of musical chairs featuring Brian Shaw, Lionel Hollins, George Karl, and others. Since Sam Hinkie was hired in Philadelphia though, we haven't heard a whole lot about the Sixers' head coaching targets.

According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter), a pair of assistant coaches are on the 76ers' radar: David Fizdale of the Heat and Melvin Hunt of the Nuggets. Fizdale had been mentioned as a candidate for Detroit earlier in the Pistons' process, and actually was said to be on the Sixers' list before Hinkie was hired as well. Hunt, meanwhile, hasn't received any head coaching buzz since he was named as a potential Cavs candidate back in April.

Besides Fizdale and Hunt, Rockets assistants Kelvin Sampson and Chris Finch have also been cited as possible candidates for the Sixers' job, while Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal tweeted earlier this week that Philadelphia appears to have interest in Grizzlies assistant Dave Joerger.

Grantland's Zach Lowe also noted yesterday that Hinkie has long been an admirer of George Karl's offensive creativity, but Lowe hears from coaching sources that the new GM may prefer to develop a strong relationship with a first-time head coach of his choosing.

How The Heat Were Constructed

June 6th, 2013 at 9:58am CST by Luke Adams

With the Heat and Spurs set to get this year's Finals underway tonight, there's been plenty of talk about the way in which each team was built. As Michael Lee of the Washington Post notes in his latest piece, both teams have created a "Big Three" model, but obtained those three star players in very different ways.

Both teams' rosters are about more than just their respective stars though, so we're going to examine today how each of the players on Miami's and San Antonio's 15-man rosters was initially acquired. We'll cover the Spurs later today, but here's a look at how the Heat's current players arrived in Miami, listed in chronological order:

Dwyane Wade
Drafted with the fifth overall pick in 2003. Signed a four-year extension in 2006 and a six-year extension in 2010.

Udonis Haslem
Signed a two-year deal as a free agent (August 6, 2003). Signed a five-year extension in 2005 and another five-year extension in 2010.

Joel Anthony
Signed a two-year deal as a free agent (July 3, 2007). Re-signed in 2009 and eventually signed a five-year contract in 2010.

Mario Chalmers
Acquired from the Timberwolves for cash and two second-round picks (June 26, 2008). Signed a three-year extension in 2011.

James Jones
Signed a five-year deal as a free agent (July 9, 2008). Bought out and re-signed in 2010 before signing a three-year contract in 2011.

LeBron James
Acquired in a sign-and-trade deal from the Cavaliers for two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and a trade exception (July 10, 2010). Signed a six-year deal.

Chris Bosh
Acquired in a sign-and-trade deal from the Raptors for two first-round picks and a trade exception (July 10, 2010). Signed a six-year deal.

Mike Miller
Signed a five-year deal as a free agent (July 15, 2010).

Juwan Howard
Signed a one-year deal as a free agent (July 20, 2010). Re-signed in 2011 and eventually signed another one-year deal in 2013.

Norris Cole
Acquired from the Timberwolves with cash and a second-round pick for Bojan Bogdanovic (June 23, 2011).

Shane Battier
Signed a three-year deal as a free agent (December 9, 2011).

Ray Allen
Signed a two-year deal as a free agent (July 11, 2012).

Rashard Lewis
Signed a two-year deal as a free agent (July 11, 2012).

Jarvis Varnado
Signed a pair of 10-day contracts, then re-signed on a two-year deal (January 30, 2013).

Chris Andersen
Signed a pair of 10-day contracts, then re-signed on a one-year deal (February 8, 2013).

Categories:
Miami Heat

Odds & Ends: Hollins, Nets, Allen, Raptors, Pacers

June 5th, 2013 at 10:41pm CST by Chuck Myron

Game One of the NBA Finals will be ending about 24 hours from now, and while the Spurs will provide more evidence for the rest-versus-rust debate, many expect them to find their rhythm before long. The majority of Hoops Rumors readers who voted in today's poll say San Antonio will beat the Heat. While we wait to see if they're right, here's more from around the NBA:

The Grizzlies rebuffed the Nets when they asked for permission to interview Lionel Hollins the day after the Western Conference Finals ended, but Memphis would likely grant that permission now if Brooklyn inquired again, TNT's David Aldridge hears (Twitter link).
Ray Allen feels his return to the Finals with the Heat provides a measure of vindication for his decision to sign with Miami last summer, observes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe.
Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun looks at what Tim Leiweke and Masai Ujiri have done and said since arriving in town and concludes that the Raptors will soon be rebuilding.
Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star, writing for USA Today, details five key questions the Pacers must answer this summer.
The shakeup continues for the Kings, as Jerry Reynolds will step down as the team's director of player development, he tells Chris Riva of KCRA-TV.
The Knicks worked out Deshaun Thomas today and will get another look at him Friday, reports Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio (Twitter link), who also notes that Cody Zeller will work out Thursday for the Suns. Thomas will also work out later this month for the Timberwolves, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune, apparently clearing up earlier confusion involving Adonis Thomas.
The Sixers auditioned Steven Adams, Colton Iverson, Alex Oriakhi, Mouhammadou Jaiteh and Jamelle Hagins today, tweets Jake L. Fischer of SLAM Online.
Ray McCallum, who will work out sometime this month for the Pistons, has also worked out with the Spurs, Rockets and Pacers, notes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.

Poll: Who Will Win The NBA Finals?

June 5th, 2013 at 4:52pm CST by Luke Adams

We're a little over 24 hours away from Game One of this year's NBA Finals, which means there's only one appropriate question to ask in today's poll: Who will 2013's champion be? The Heat or the Spurs?

The Heat finished the regular season on a 37-2 run for a 66-16 overall record, giving them home-court advantage in the Finals. They're the defending champs and they have the world's best player in LeBron James, but they're coming off a couple grueling series against the Bulls and Pacers, inculding a seven-game Eastern Finals.

The Spurs, meanwhile, only had the second-best record in the West, but blew through the postseason, going 12-2 against the Lakers, Warriors, and Grizzlies, with a pair of sweeps. They've had plenty of time to get ready for the Finals, but there's always a concern that the extra rest will turn into rust by the time the next series begins.

Who do you like? Weigh in with your selection in the poll and feel free to specify a number of games and/or explain your reasoning in the comments section. Having picked the Heat over the Spurs before the season got underway, I'll stick with my pick, and take Miami in seven games.

Who will win the NBA Finals?

San Antonio Spurs 61.28% (793 votes)

Miami Heat 38.72% (501 votes)

Total Votes: 1,294

Odds & Ends: LeBron, Barry, Pierce, Suns

June 2nd, 2013 at 10:25pm CST by Zachary Links

LeBron James is feeling the heat as he's seeing flashbacks to his shortcomings with the Cavs, opines Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer. For Pluto, the message of the series is that even when you stack your roster, there rarely is a smooth playoff road ahead. Things can go wrong, players can get hurt, and team chemistry can fizzle. The Heat will face the Pacers in Game 7 on Monday night and if Miami gets bounced, you can bet on the summer of 2014 talk ramping up in a hurry. Here's more from around the Association..

The NBA salary cap won't change much from this season to next season as Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears that it will go from $58.044MM to $58.5MM.
Rick Barry realizes that his outspoken ways may have cost him an NBA job, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. The 69-year-old lives in Denver and hosts a nationally syndicated talk show but hasn't had the kind of opportunities that most players of his stature have gotten. Barry infamously attempted to teach Shaquille O'Neal his grandma-style free throw technique years ago in offseason practice sessions, but the big man refused to implement it during the season.
HoopsWorld's Derek Page ran down the top five free agent small forwards this summer. Andre Iguodala and Paul Pierce are among the notable names on the list, but they may not see the open market.
The HoopsWorld staff debated what the Suns should do with the No. 5 pick. Shabazz Muhammad is suggested as an intriguing fit for Phoenix, but his baggage likely wouldn't be worth the risk.