Heat Notes: Cap Sheet, Herro, Optimism, Jovic
By trading Jimmy Butler, the Heat have created more cap flexibility for this offseason, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes.
Miami now has $176.2MM committed to 12 players for next season, approximately $11MM below the projected $187.9MM luxury tax threshold. However, that figure doesn’t include restricted free agent guard Davion Mitchell and rookie forward Keshad Johnson’s $1.9MM team option, nor does it account for the salary for either of the first-round picks they might have.
The Heat could free up an additional $10MM by shedding Duncan Robinson‘s partially-guaranteed contract but it could also be used to help facilitate a trade. In any case, the team doesn’t have to worry about Butler exercising his $52.4MM option, which he declined in order to sign a two-year extension with Golden State.
We have more on the Heat:
- Tyler Herro won the 3-point contest at All-Star weekend and also participated in the revamped All-Star Game format. He expressed gratitude for the opportunity. “I broke like not even a half sweat. But it was a great experience all weekend, just to be here from Friday to Sunday night. Just super grateful to be here,” Herro told Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald.
- Though the Heat entered the All-Star break with a four-game losing streak and three games under .500, there’s hope for a strong finish, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes. The Butler drama is over and there’s more depth with the additions of Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson and Mitchell. The bigger lineup featuring Ke’lel Ware and Bam Adebayo also gives the club a new dimension.
- In his latest mailbag, Winderman notes that Nikola Jovic has not blossomed as hoped. He’s sometimes guilty of trying to do too much, Winderman writes. An even bigger issue is that he does not play to his size, as he tries to get by too often by finesse instead of power.
And-Ones: Award Eligibility, Towns, Vincent, Brown, WNBA, Dunk Contest
A key requirement for NBA postseason awards is 65 games played and 20 or more minutes per game, though there are some exceptions to the rule. According to Clippers reporter Justin Russo (Twitter link), a majority of the players in the league will fall short of that baseline.
There are 524 players currently in the NBA and only 148 remain eligible, according to Russo. Among the current eligible players, only 108 are on pace to play 65 games. Russo provides a comprehensive spreadsheet on the eligibility of players throughout the league.
We have more from around the basketball world:
- Knicks big man Karl-Anthony Towns and Lakers guard Gabe Vincent were elected by the Players Association’s Board of Representatives as vice presidents on the NBPA Executive Committee, ESPN’s Shams Charania tweets. Additionally, Celtics forward Jaylen Brown was reelected as a VP.
- Cleveland is likely to be awarded the next WNBA franchise, Tom Friend of the Sports Business Journal reports. The new franchise will begin play in 2028. Multiple sources told Friend that Cleveland’s approximate bid was a league record $250MM. An official announcement is expected no later than March. The WNBA is also considering scrapping its original plan of adding one team and could award one or two more franchises to bring its league total to 18 clubs. Philadelphia, Houston, Nashville, Detroit and Miami are the other cities in the running for a franchise.
- Mac McClung‘s three straight triumphs in the annual Dunk Contest on All-Star weekend proves that the event doesn’t need star power, Jason Jones of The Athletic opines. Ja Morant and Giannis Antetokounmpo expressed some interest on social media of participating in next year’s competition but Jones argues that it’s more important to have entrants who are passionate about the art of dunking and performing on a grand stage.
Wizards Sign Erik Stevenson To 10-Day Deal, Cut Jaylen Nowell
The Wizards have signed Erik Stevenson to a 10-day contract, according to a team press release. In a related move, they released Jaylen Nowell.
Washington is rewarding one of its G League players. In 32 games this season, Stevenson is averaging 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game for the Capital City Go-Go as a sixth man. The 25-year-old has scored 20-plus points 15 times this season and was selected to the G League Up Next game.
Stevenson, who played college ball for West Virginia, took part in training camp with San Antonio in 2023 and Washington in 2024. He was waived by the Wizards in October before joining the G League club and also played in three games for Washington during Summer League in Las Vegas.
Nowell signed his 10-day deal on Feb. 8 but didn’t see any action for the Wizards last Monday or Wednesday. He appeared in eight games, averaging 8.4 PPG in 21.0 MPG, for the injury-plagued Pelicans in November.
Nowell spent his first four NBA seasons from 2019-23 in Minnesota, had stints with Memphis and Detroit in 2023/24, then joined the Capital City Go-Go after New Orleans waived him. His contract would have run through this Friday it hadn’t been terminated early, since 10-day deals are required to cover at least three games.
Atlantic Notes: Celtics All-Star Bid, Claxton, Russell, Watford, Dadiet
The Celtics’ bid for an All-Star Game remains under consideration even though the team is up for sale, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe reports.
The All-Star Game hasn’t been held in Boston since 1964. The Celtics’ bid had been put on hold as the league determines other scheduling commitments, Washburn adds.
With the refurbishing of Boston’s TD Garden and the construction of additional hotels over the past several years, commissioner Adam Silver has previously stated that the city would be an ideal candidate for a future All-Star weekend.
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- Nic Claxton has reestablished himself as the Nets’ defensive anchor in recent weeks, Andrew Crane of the New York Post writes. After averaging 1.1 blocks per game in his first 40 games this season, Claxton has swatted an average of 3.1 attempts in the last seven contests, including a five-block night against Philadelphia. Claxton is in the first year of a four-year, $97MM contract.
- Following the departure of Ben Simmons via a buyout, Brian Lewis of the New York Post anticipates that D’Angelo Russell and Trendon Watford will soak up more minutes. After missing six weeks due to hamstring injury, Watford returned on January 29. He has averaged in 10.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.2 steals in 20.2 minutes per game this month for the Nets.
- Knicks rookie Pacome Dadiet has renewed his Ivorian citizenship, according to Basketnews.com. That could pave the way for Dadiet to play for Ivory Coast in international competitions. Dadiet has represented France at various youth international levels. Dadiet, a late first-round selection, has appeared in 13 games this season.
Lakers Notes: LeBron, Luka, Center, Vanderbilt, DFS
Asked at All-Star weekend whether the the Lakers‘ acquisition of Luka Doncic might affect his timeline for retirement, star forward LeBron James neither confirmed nor denied that the opportunity to play alongside Doncic would prompt him to try to extend his career.
“I have not given it that type of thought,” James said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “Just the excitement of being able to add a caliber player like that, a generational talent like that to our franchise, it’s something that’s given me energy. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do. … I think we could be really good going down the stretch. But we’ll see what happens.”
As McMenamin relays, James discussed a wide variety of topics during his 15-minutes press conference on Sunday, including Saturday’s dunk contest. LeBron said it would be “pretty cool” to see stars like Ja Morant and Giannis Antetokounmpo compete in the event, as they teased on social media on Saturday night, but he said he’s fine with the fact that it’s not something on his own career résumé.
“No, there’s no part of me that has regrets about not doing it,” James said. “Obviously, I had a couple moments where I wanted to do it, and it just never worked out that way.”
Here’s more on the Lakers:
- There’s “no tangible dismay” from Doncic’s camp about the fact that the Lakers’ trade for Mark Williams – who was reportedly “handpicked” by Doncic – ended up falling through, reports Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link). According to Stein, Doncic told Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka he understood the team might not be able to add a starting-caliber center until the offseason, and he was impressed that Pelinka and the front office nearly addressed that need just days after making their deal with the Mavericks.
- Doncic has been on a minutes restriction since returning from his calf strain last Monday, playing between 23 and 24 minutes in each of his first two outings as a Laker. According to Stein, L.A. is expected to continue with that “measured approach” coming out of the All-Star break, with Doncic likely to play in just one of the club’s back-to-back games on Wednesday vs. Charlotte and Thursday in Portland.
- Jovan Buha of The Athletic considers what the Lakers’ center rotation will look like for the rest of this season, writing that Alex Len‘s first game last Wednesday was “rough” and the veteran’s floor may be lower than initially thought. In Buha’s view, the team may end up having to rely more than it would like on small-ball lineups, especially in the postseason, with Jarred Vanderbilt and Dorian Finney-Smith among the candidates to see minutes at the five in that scenario.
NBA Veteran Extension Candidates To Watch
While the majority of February's biggest transactions have been trades, it has also been an eventful month for contract extensions.
The Bulls took point guard Lonzo Ball off the trade market when they reached an agreement on a two-year, $20MM extension, which was finalized on Friday. The Warriors completed a two-year, maximum-salary extension with Jimmy Butler as part of the trade that sent him from Miami to Golden State. And the Raptors locked up Brandon Ingram to a new three-year, $120MM deal shortly after acquiring him from New Orleans.
Among the players who entered the month eligible for veteran extensions, Ball, Butler, and Ingram were three of the top candidates to sign new contracts. But even with that trio off the board, there are more than two dozen players eligible for veteran extensions up until June 30.
Not all of those players should be considered legitimate candidates for new deals. For instance, I wouldn't hold my breath on P.J. Tucker signing an extension with the Raptors or the Nets getting a new deal done with Bojan Bogdanovic. Still, there are a number of extension candidates worth keeping an eye on in the coming days, weeks, and months.
Let's take a closer look at those players to watch...
Dorian Finney-Smith (Lakers)
Mavs Reportedly Never Intended To Offer Luka Doncic Super-Max
When word broke two weekends ago that the Mavericks were trading Luka Doncic to the Lakers, one theory quickly emerged — perhaps Dallas had learned Doncic would hesitate to sign the five-year super-max extension (worth a projected $345MM) that he would’ve been eligible to receive during the 2025 offseason.
Asked about that theory during his introductory press conference as a Laker, Doncic said he had “absolutely not” given the Mavericks any reason to believe he wouldn’t accept such an offer. Agent Bill Duffy echoed that message and said he’d expected to discuss a potential super-max deal with the team this summer.
Based on all that’s been reported in the past two weeks, it seems as if any hesitation over the super-max was on the Mavericks’ side, not Doncic’s. Christian Clark, Mike Vorkunov, and Fred Katz of The Athletic confirm as much within an in-depth feature on Dallas general manager Nico Harrison, reporting that Harrison and the Mavs were “never going to offer” Doncic that record-setting super-max contract.
We’ve seen potential super-max eligibility factor into teams’ decision to trade players in the past, but that typically occurred in instances where a club was concerned about having to pay big money to retain a second- or third-tier star — the Kings traded away DeMarcus Cousins in 2017 after consecutive All-NBA Second Team seasons, for example, rather than hanging onto him and having to make a decision on a super-max extension offer during the following offseason.
Doncic, on the other hand, has five consecutive All-NBA First Team nods under his belt and finished third in the MVP voting last season. Super-max contracts – which allow a player to earn a salary worth 35% of the cap before he has reached the required threshold of 10 years of NBA experience – were designed to reward superstars like Doncic and to put their teams in a better position to hang onto them.
But, as has been reported ad nauseam since word of the blockbuster trade broke, the Mavericks were concerned about making that sort of financial commitment to Doncic due to concerns about his injury history and work ethic. According to Clark, Vorkunov, and Katz, Harrison was worried about the possibility that Doncic’s body would “break down possibly sooner than anyone would suspect.”
If the Mavs had retained Doncic and declined to make him a super-max offer in the offseason, would he have been willing to accept something below the 35% max or would he have balked and looked to join a team that valued him higher? We don’t know for sure, but that uncertainty explains why Harrison said shortly after making the deal that he believes he and the Mavs avoided a “tumultuous” summer by trading Doncic when they did.
“There’s some unique things about his contract that we had to pay attention to,” Harrison said at the time. “There’s other teams that were loading up that he was going to be able to decide, make his own decision at some point of whether he wants to be here or not. Whether we want to super-max him or not, or whether he wants to opt out. So, I think we had to take all that into consideration, and I feel like we got out in front of what could have been a tumultuous summer.”
Harrison hasn’t spoken to the media since Doncic’s introductory presser as a Laker, so reporters haven’t had an opportunity to ask him about Luka’s comments on a potential super-max deal.
Doncic is no longer eligible for a super-max contract this summer with the Lakers as a result of being traded.
Warriors’ Draymond Green: ‘We’re Going To Win The Championship’
The Warriors currently hold the 10th seed in the Western Conference standings with a record of 28-27. If the season ended today, they’d have to win two play-in games just to claim the No. 8 playoff spot.
However, Golden State’s trade deadline acquisition of Jimmy Butler has emboldened Draymond Green, who said during Sunday’s All-Star broadcast as a TNT panelist that he expects to win his fifth NBA title this spring.
“Since (Butler)’s been here, we’ve walked into every game thinking and believing that we’re going to win that game,” Green said (Twitter video link). “And that goes a long way in this league. When you walk in the game like, ‘Ah man, we’re probably gonna lose this game,’ it’s not good. He’s brought back that belief. And I think we’re going to win the championship.”
Asked to repeat that last part, Green continued, “I’m sorry, I said, ‘I think we’re going to win the championship,’ but I lied.’ We are going to win the championship.”
As Sam Amick of The Athletic writes, Green was simply going public with a belief that he had been expressing frequently behind the scenes in recent days. Green told Amick shortly after reporting to All-Star weekend on Friday that Golden State is “absolutely” going to win a championship this year, and he said the same thing to Warriors owner Joe Lacob last week, Amick adds.
Certainly, the Warriors have looked like a more dangerous team since Butler’s arrival, winning three of four road games heading into the All-Star break, including victories in Milwaukee and Houston. They still have plenty of work to do to even secure a playoff spot, but All-Star guard Stephen Curry didn’t balk upon hearing about his teammate’s proclamation.
“We love pressure, we love expectations,” Curry said during an interview on the TNT telecast when asked about Green’s comments (Twitter video link). “He knows that. He’s smart, he knows what he’s saying.”
Curry delivered a similar message during his post-game press conference (Twitter video link): “I’m excited. I got Draymond on the telecast guaranteeing we’re winning a championship. I love expectations and having something to play for, so he’s lighting a fire for sure.
All-Star Notes: Wembanyama, Curry, Edwards, Giannis
The solution to fixing the competitive level in the NBA’s All-Star Game may be as simple as unleashing Victor Wembanyama, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. Making his first appearance in the showcase Sunday night, the 7’3″ center displayed an intensity that got the attention of his fellow All-Stars.
“I thought he played like he plays in a game, seriously,” Damian Lillard said. “When I saw him, I was like, ‘He was not messing around.’ One time, he got fouled. The ref didn’t call it and he got mad. He knows one way, and you can tell that he’s going to play that way every time.”
Wembanyama vowed earlier this week to take the game seriously, something that has been an issue in recent All-Star contests regardless of the format. Playing on a team drafted by Charles Barkley, he saw just six minutes in the semifinal contest, posting six points, four rebounds, a block and a steal. He followed that with 11 points, three rebounds and a block in eight minutes in the championship round.
“My biggest takeaway is that it’s possible to give a hundred percent on that court, to play hard, to play your ass off,” Wembanyama said. “And, for me, it’s the only way to play basketball, and I think it’ll only make the game better.”
There’s more from the All-Star Game:
- Stephen Curry received 12 of the 14 MVP votes, making him the 15th player in NBA history to win the honor more than once, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Several players pointed out that the abbreviated format makes it harder for anyone to put up the gaudy numbers that are typically associated with All-Star MVPs. “In this type of format, nobody is going to have 50 points, or 30 points is even going to be hard to do unless you shoot it every time and make every shot,” Lillard said. “But you look at what jumps out. When was the crowd the loudest? What jumped off the floor? And that’s probably who your MVP is going to be. So, watching the game, it was like, ‘I’m pretty sure Steph is going to win it.’ … I don’t know how many points he had, it couldn’t have been that much, but I think it was the eye test.”
- Anthony Edwards sat out Sunday due to a groin injury, although the reason wasn’t announced until his team lost in the opening round. He didn’t want to risk aggravating the condition with so little at stake, per Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “I’ve never been an All-Star Game type of guy, to like take it serious and go out there and try to guard somebody and get a stop,” Edwards said. “I’ve never been that type of guy. I just save it for the Timberwolves season, pretty much.”
- Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s suggestion to liven up the All-Star Game is to take it overseas, according to Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. “It would be fun,” Antetokounmpo said. “Having a game in the UK or a game in Paris. Or having a game in Greece, obviously is a small country, but why not. Having a game in China, an All-Star Game in China, and all the stars go there for a weekend and play the game.”
NBA Africa Dikembe Mutombo Humanitarian Award Created
The NBA is honoring one of its most beloved and influential players by announcing the NBA Africa Dikembe Mutombo Humanitarian Award, writes Marc J. Spears of Andscape.
The Hall of Fame center, who died in September at 58, is being celebrated for his dedication to expanding the game in Africa and supporting humanitarian causes on the continent.
Commissioner Adam Silver revealed the new award on Saturday at the annual NBA Africa All-Star Luncheon, and the league describes it as “a new annual honor that will recognize a person or an organization that works to advance health, education or economic opportunity across the continent of Africa.” Mutombo, who hailed from the Democratic Republic of Congo, was appointed by former commissioner David Stern as the NBA’s first global ambassador.
“[Mutombo] was a constant fundraiser,” Silver said. “I used to sort of joke when we traveled with him, [and] he had his card as the NBA ambassador — these days when I take out my business card, young people say, ‘what is that piece of paper?’ But when people still had business cards, he would start with his NBA ambassador card, and then he’d wait until I walked away and out would come four other cards of all these other programs that he would be raising money for. He was so committed to it.
“His spirit was infectious. Part of it was just being a 7-footer. We all knew when we traveled with him, whether it was to Mumbai — a place where people might not know much about basketball or Dikembe Mutombo — I think because of his size, because of his laugh, just because of his presence, they instantly would know he was somebody important and he’d create those connections, something we all talk about so much these days.”
Spears notes that the NBA Africa Luncheon is typically filled with energy and celebrations of African music and culture. Although that was true this year, the mood was mixed with solemn remembrances of Mutombo, whose photos adorned the walls of the event.
Mutombo enjoyed an 18-year NBA career, spending time with the Nuggets, Hawks, Rockets, Sixers, Knicks and Nets. He was a three-time All-Star and ranks second on the career blocks list with 3,289. He punctuated many of those rejections with a finger wag that became his trademark.
In addition to his excellence on the court, Mutombo was twice recognized with the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award in honor of his service to the community.
His legacy includes the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation, which was established in 1997 to improve the quality of life for people in the Congo, and a $29MM hospital he opened in 2009 near Kinshasa, which is the nation’s capital. He was also a strong promoter of Basketball Without Borders and an early investor in the Basketball Africa League.
Silver announced Saturday that the NBA will donate 55 basketball courts in Africa in honor of the number Mutombo wore throughout his career, with the first set to be built in Kinshasa.