Rashard Lewis Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Notes: LeBron, Bosh, Chalmers, Wade

July 15th, 2014 at 12:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls were among the teams with which agent Rich Paul took meetings to discuss LeBron James during the first week of free agency, as Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reveal in a behind-the-scenes look at LeBron’s choice. Regardless, James was no longer willing to accept being underpaid, as Windhorst examines in a separate piece. James decided before free agency began that he’d take a max contract, and no matter where he would end up, he would demand a deal with a player option after year one, Windhorst writes. James wants to continue to sign short-term deals for the foreseeable future to maintain flexibility in case the maximum salary jumps or is eliminated in the next collective bargaining agreement, as Windhorst explains. He also wants to keep the pressure on Cavs brass to improve the team around him, the ESPN scribe adds. Here’s more on the Heat as they pick up the pieces after LeBron’s departure:

It wasn’t merely a two-team race between the Rockets and Heat for Chris Bosh, as the Nuggets, Suns and Lakers all made offers to the No. 3 player in the Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, reports Tom Haberstroh of ESPN.com.
The Heat’s contract with Mario Chalmers calls for him to make $4MM for this coming season and $4.3MM in 2015/16, Windhorst tweets. The ESPN scribe pegs the likely salary for Dwyane Wade at $15MM based on the Heat’s other moves this summer and the cap space the team still has available (Twitter link).
Miami renounced its rights to Ray Allen, Udonis Haslem Michael Beasley, Toney Douglas, James Jones, Rashard Lewis, Greg Oden and the retired Shane Battier and Juwan Howard, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. That’ll make it difficult to re-sign Allen, but the team continues moving toward a new deal with Haslem, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. The Heat would likely use either cap space or the $2.732MM room exception on Haslem.

Southeast Rumors: Ariza, Gortat, Ferry, Lewis

July 1st, 2014 at 12:24am CST by Zachary Links

The latest out of the Southeast Division..

Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) hears that Trevor Ariza is after a deal in the $8-11MM per year range and likes the idea of playing in a warm-weather city. Still, staying with the Wizards is an intriguing option for him.
The Wizards spent the evening reaching out to their own free agents, Marcin Gortat, Ariza, and Drew Gooden, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today.
Ariza has significant interest from clubs, including the Cavs, and Wizards coach Randy Wittman will be in Los Angeles tomorrow morning to meet with him, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. A league source close to Ariza tells Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter) that his potential destinations include the Suns, Clippers, Lakers, Heat, Mavs, Jazz, Cavs, and Wizards.
Hawks‘ GM Danny Ferry plans to be “very aggressive” in free agency, a source tells Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter).
Heat free agent forward Rashard Lewis is expecting interest from the Heat, Pacers, Thunder, Raptors, and Spurs, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter).
So far the Hornets have not expressed interest in Luol Deng, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (on Twitter).
The Hawks were the first team to call unrestricted free agent Kent Bazemore after midnight, a source tells Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter). The Hawks are really high on the Lakers free agent.
Unrestricted free agent Trevor Booker has attracted interest from several teams, including the Heat, Wolves, Jazz, Nets, Knicks, Magic, and Wizards, sources tell Michael Lee of the Washington Post (on Twitter).

East Notes: Bargnani, Cavs, Heat, Antetokounmpo

October 10th, 2013 at 8:59pm CST by Alex Lee

Let’s round up all of the links coming out of the Eastern Conference on Thursday night:

In Canada for tomorrow night’s matchup with the Raptors, the Knicks, at this point in training camp, seem thrilled Toronto gave up on Andrea Bargnani this offseason, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post, who tabs head coach Mike Woodson as one of Bargnani’s biggest fans in the early going.
Woodson also said on Thursday that rookie and No. 24 pick Tim Hardaway Jr. has “put himself in a nice position” to get minutes in the Knicks rotation, writes Al Iannazzone of the Long Island Newsday.
Despite going undrafted in June, it sounds like Matthew Dellavedova is on track to make the Cavaliers‘ final roster as the third point guard, writes Bob Finnan of the Cleveland News-Herald. The Cavs signed the Saint Mary’s product to a two-year deal with a small guarantee about a month ago.
Despite a shaky preseason debut on Tuesday, No. 1 pick Anthony Bennett says he is simply trying to find his groove after offseason shoulder surgery, writes Jodie Valade of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, who adds that the highly-touted rookie is currently concentrated on improving his conditioning.
Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report breaks down the five candidates in Miami with a chance to crack Erik Spoelstra’s nine-man, championship rotation: Michael Beasley, Rashard Lewis, Roger Mason Jr., James Jones and Joel Anthony. Skolnick also mentions Greg Oden, who may be a factor for the Heat in 2014.
Greek import Giannis Antetokounmpo, who the Bucks took in June at No. 15, has flashed big-time talent two preseason games into his NBA career, tweets Jonathan Givony of Draft Express, who says some scouts adamantly labeled the “Greek Freak” a bust without giving him a sufficient look (Twitter links here).

Rashard Lewis To Exercise Player Option

June 25th, 2013 at 5:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Rashard Lewis' agent, Colin Bryant, confirmed today what Lewis himself told Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld two weeks ago, telling Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com (Twitter link) that the Heat forward will pick up his 2013/14 player option to remain in Miami.

Lewis' option for next season will only pay him the minimum salary for a veteran with 10+ years of experience ($1,399,507). Still, he'd probably have trouble finding more than the minimum with another club, so giving up the chance to compete for another title in Miami never really made much sense for the 33-year-old.

In his first season with the Heat, Lewis appeared in 55 games (14.4 MPG), averaging 5.2 PPG and 2.2 RPG while shooting 38.9% on three-pointers.

Rashard Lewis Doesn’t Plan To Opt Out

June 11th, 2013 at 8:07pm CST by Chuck Myron

Heat reserve forward Rashard Lewis has a minimum-salary player option for next season, and he plans to exercise it, as HoopsWorld's Bill Ingram tweets. Lewis signed a two-year deal with the Heat last summer after the Pelicans bought him out of his previous contract for nearly $13.5MM.

"I'm with the Miami Heat. I don't plan on opting out at all," Lewis said.

The 33-year-old is set to make $1,399,507 in what would be his 16th NBA season in 2013/14, the minimum for a player with 10 or more years of experience. He saw scant playing time for the Heat during the regular season, averaging 5.2 points in 14.4 minutes per game, the lowest numbers in both categories since his rookie season. In the playoffs, he's been relegated to garbage time, logging just 40 total minutes.

He'd be hard-pressed to make much more than the minimum on the open market, though money may not be much of an object for a player whose career earnings totaled nearly $139MM coming into this season, according to Basketball-Reference. That's largely the product of a six-year, $113MM deal he signed with the Magic back in 2007. This was to have been the final season of that deal, and he forfeited about $9.3MM when New Orleans waived him following his trade from the Wizards. If the Pelicans had kept him, he'd have made a staggering $22,699,551 this year.

With Lewis likely around again next season, the Heat figure to have more tax trouble. Miami has more than $86MM in salary on the books for 2013/14.

Winderman On LeBron, Lewis, Anthony

January 1st, 2013 at 11:31am CST by Sean Highkin

The defending champion Miami Heat closed out 2012 with a dramatic overtime win over the Orlando Magic. Here are the latest rumors surrounding the team from Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:

Winderman is not worried about LeBron James leaving Miami in 2014 as a free agent, if the Heat win another championship in the next two seasons.
In a different column, Winderman writes that Rashard Lewis is not frustrated with his lack of playing time, with the veteran stating that he understands his role with the team.
Winderman adds that center Joel Anthony has been happy with his new involvement in the Heat's offense.

Heat Notes: Chalmers, Miller, Allen, Lewis

November 25th, 2012 at 3:55pm CST by Sean Highkin

At 10-3, the defending champion Miami Heat own the best record in the Eastern Conference. Here are the latest notes and rumors surrounding the team on Sunday afternoon:

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel wonders whether the Heat will pick up the $4MM option on guard Mario Chalmers' contract for next season.
Winderman also notes that Mike Miller is likely to be waived at some point using the amnesty clause.
Winderman writes that the Heat's decision to use Ray Allen as a sixth man is paying off for the team.
Signed for the veteran's minimum, it was unknown what kind of contribution Rashard Lewis would make to the Heat, but Winderman says that he has been a valuable part of Miami's rotation thus far.
Jeff Zillgett of USA Today notes that Udonis Haslem is the first undrafted player ever to lead his team in rebounding this season.

New Faces: Lewis, Lin, Landry, Martin, Johnson

November 8th, 2012 at 8:50pm CST by Alex Lee

Between the Dwight Howard sweepstakes and the implementation of the new CBA, this offseason was one to rememeber. While we are barely a week into the new season, it is only natural for glowing reports to emerge of players who have shined with their new teams. They are premature for sure, but so many players changed teams that keeping tabs on them is always useful:

Now coming off the bench for the Heat, Rashard Lewis is healthy for the first time in two years, writes Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports. Lewis was hampered by knee injuries the past few seasons, but has looked great so far in Miami, showing more lift in his jumpshot and even throwing down a few dunks last night against the Nets.
Within the same piece, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld looks at Jeremy Lin and Carl Landry. While James Harden has deservedly gotten the Rockets headlines, Lin has quietly lived up to the hype during his brief time so far in Houston. Meanwhile, Landry, a former Rocket, is proving once again that he is one of the NBA's most underrated players, this time averaging 17 points as a member of the Warriors.
The man traded for Harden, the Thunder's Kevin Martin, is shooting a ridiculous 62 percent from three point range and averaging over 19 PPG so far in Oklahoma City, writes Chris Sheridan. While Harden is clearly the best piece moved in the deal, it isn't hard to imagine Martin's skills and those draft picks making it look respectable for Sam Presti and the Thunder.
Averging only 14 PPG, Joe Johnson is still getting acclimated to his new role on the Nets, writes Roderick Boone of Newsday. The mixture in Brooklyn will probably take longer than most to jell, considering that not only is nearly the whole team new, but most of the high profile players have never played on anything close to an elite team before.
Kosta Koufos hasn't been a member of the Jazz since 2010, but Bill Oram's story about the former Utah draft pick's rise into the Nuggets starting lineup sure makes it feel like it was yesterday. After beating out JaVale McGee for the center spot, Koufos is averaging 6.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in Denver.
Shipped to Orlando after being drafted by Philly, Maurice Harkless played more than 22 minutes in his Magic debut on Wednesday, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Harkless didn't participate in preseason while he was recovering from a sports hernia, and still isn't 100 percent, but it sounds like the rookie is on his way.

Odds & Ends: D’Antoni, Clippers, Lakers

November 3rd, 2012 at 10:53pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News stirs up an interesting talking point about Mike D'Antoni and speculates whether or not a head coaching job with the Rockets would appeal to him down the line with James Harden now on board. In July, Lawrence wrote about how the former Knicks coach was worth keeping an eye on for Houston because of Jeremy Lin's success under his stewardship (all this under the premise of head coach Kevin McHale not being able to thrive with Lin this year). Again, this is purely speculation, and with McHale just beginning the second year of a three-year deal, nothing we've heard at this point would indicate that he's on the hot seat. With that aside, you'll find tonight's miscellaneous notes from around the league below:

Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK describes how Kevin Martin is fitting in with the Thunder as he looks to transition from being the main guy in Houston to the sixth man in Oklahoma City.
Tim Bontemps of the New York Post reports that Nets guard Keith Bogans suited up for tonight's game against the Raptors after being out with an injury since February.
The following three links are all courtesy of the Los Angeles Times: Firstly, Broderick Turner discusses Vinny Del Negro's task of finding minutes for all five of his rotation big men at the power forward and center positions, adding that doing so through the Clippers' first two games was easier because of foul trouble. Secondly, Ben Bolch reflects on current Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey's tenure with the Clippers, his departure, and the ties that Olshey still feels with some of their players. Lastly, Eric Pincus says that today's day off for the Lakers was needed, considering that Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, and Jordan Hill are all trying to play through injuries. Metta World Peace agreed, saying that the team had already gone through seven or eight straight days on their feet and that it had "hurt them a bit."
Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press writes about how Nikola Pekovic and his physical play during Timberwolves' practices have played a vital role in the development of Greg Stiemsma.
Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune talks about how veteran additions Brandon Roy and Andrei Kirilenko have fared in Minnesota so far.

Rashard Lewis Hopes To Play Five More Years

October 10th, 2012 at 9:20am CST by Luke Adams

Slowed by knee problems over the past two seasons, Rashard Lewis recently underwent treatment that has him feeling much better heading into the 2012/13 season. As he tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida, Lewis is optimistic enough about his health that he's hoping to play in the NBA for another five years.

"This will be my 15th season," Lewis said. "My whole goal is to play another five years and try to get to 20 years… The way I feel now, I most definitely think I can do it."

As Tomasson explains, Lewis underwent a process called OssaTron treatment over the summer, something that was suggested by the Heat. The team believed that the non-surgical procedure, which involves shockwave therapy, could help the 33-year-old regain the form he showed in Seattle and Orlando.

"They just numb the knees basically like ultrasound," Lewis said. "It breaks down a lot of the scar tissue and it kind of rebuilds it. It took me off the court for a couple of months… (The Heat believed) it was something that could really help me and get me back on the court playing at a high rate, and I told them anything that would help me be even a little bit better than I was the past season, the past couple of years, I’m willing to try."

While the inactivity this summer has left Lewis a little rusty heading into training camp, he feels as if the treatment has been a success. and thinks it could help him lengthen his career.

"It’s like night and day from how I felt the past two years," Lewis said. "It brings a smile to my face…. I’m going to show that I got a little more basketball left in me."