Heat’s Dedmon Ejected, May Face Additional Discipline Following Sideline Incident

With only nine players active for the Heat on Tuesday night, center Dewayne Dedmon had an opportunity to rejoin the rotation, but his night didn’t last long.

After being subbed out of the game less than three minutes into the second quarter, Dedmon got into an argument on the sidelines with head coach Erik Spoelstra and assistant Caron Butler, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (subscription required).

When the big man, visibly angry, left the bench and began walking toward the locker room, he swatted at a Theragun and sent the massage device flying onto the court in the middle of play (video link via Bleacher Report). The incident resulted in his ejection from the game, and there’s an expectation that the NBA will fine or suspend Dedmon for tossing something onto the court during play, Chiang writes.

Dedmon, the Heat’s primary reserve center earlier in the season, has fallen out of the rotation as of late despite the ongoing absence of big man Omer Yurtseven (ankle surgery). With two-way center Orlando Robinson assuming backup duties behind Bam Adebayo, Dedmon hasn’t played more than 10 minutes in a game since December 14.

As Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel writes, Robinson’s emergence and the anticipated return of Yurtseven later this season have essentially made Dedmon expendable for the Heat, so the 33-year-old is a good bet to wind up on the trade block once he becomes eligible to be dealt this Sunday.

Dedmon is in the first season of a two-year, $9MM contract he signed with the Heat last summer, but his $4.3MM salary for 2023/24 is non-guaranteed, so it shouldn’t require a significant asset for Miami to move off of his deal.

If they’re able to move him in a salary-dump trade, the Heat would create enough breathing room below the luxury tax line to immediately fill the 15th spot on their roster in addition to replacing Dedmon. Robinson is a strong candidate to be promoted to fill that spot sooner or later.

View Comments (15)