TUESDAY, 1:22pm: The move indeed took place, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
SUNDAY, 12:16pm: The Heat have informed Michael Beasley that they will not pick up his option for the 2015/16 season, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). Beasley would have made slightly less than $1.3MM had the team opted to pick up his option.
Miami indicated the the decision to draft Justise Winslow was a major factor in the decision to part ways with Beasley, Jackson adds in a full-length article. There was no discussion of Beasley returning to the Heat down the road, according to Jared Karnes, who represents Beasley and spoke to Jackson.
Starting small forward Luol Deng has a player option worth more than $10.15MM for the upcoming season and the team hopes he sticks around for at least one more season. Assuming Deng is on the roster next season, along with Chris Bosh, Josh McRoberts and Winslow, the team shouldn’t have a major need at either forward position. Beasley played minutes at both the three and the four spot while averaging 8.8 points, 3.7 rebounds per game while shooting 43.4% from the field during his third stint in Miami.
I hope to see him end up somewhere. He looked like a totally different person and player for us last year. Gave us some really big minutes, and we ran some of the same sets we would run for Bosh through him at times. The biggest improvement was on the defensive end and with decision making. He took the challenge and actually lead us defensively in a few games, even playing minutes at the 5. Unfortunately, there just isn’t enough roster space for him here.
Dead weight / little to no defensive presence / not very selective with his shots – GOOD RIDDANCE mb. Maybe Phoenix or Timberwolves will call you back in, but MIAMI is not for you.
…as a matter of fact, I hope the Lakers pull you into their fold. Let’s see, Boogie Cousins, Josh Smith, Michael Beasley, Kome, Rondo, (sub) Swaggy P……yep, now there is an all time great lineup. How many balls would they need per offensive possession?