JULY 6: The Heat have officially traded Oladipo to the Thunder along with Miami’s own second-round picks in 2029 and 2030, the team announced (via Twitter). According to the Thunder’s own press release, Miami acquired cash in the deal.
JUNE 30: The Heat are offloading reserve shooting guard Victor Oladipo to the Thunder, sources inform Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Thunder will receive a pair of second-round picks from the Heat as part of the trade agreement, tweets Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.
The Heat, meanwhile, will net a $9.45MM trade exception by flipping his salary. Miami also still has a $4.7MM trade exception from its February deal of big man Dewayne Dedmon.
Earlier this week, the injury-plagued former All-Star picked up his player option for the 2023/24 season. Oladipo tore his left knee patellar tendon during Miami’s first round matchup against the Bucks.
As Bobby Marks of ESPN details (via Twitter), the Thunder will absorb Oladipo’s salary into its available cap space. After the deal, Oklahoma City should still have an estimated $7.2MM in available money at its disposal, as well as the $7.8MM room exception. The club currently has 16 players under contract, and will need to make more moves to reduce its head count to 15 for its standard roster this fall.
With 11 players currently signed, meanwhile, the Heat now have $172MM in committed salary. While Miami is in the luxury tax, this move shifts the team $6.5MM beneath the highly punitive second tax apron. As Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype (Twitter link) notes, the team is in better position to use its $5MM taxpayer mid-level exception, but still may have to shed a little salary to do so.
Should the 31-year-old Oladipo remain with the Thunder, it would represent his second tour of duty with the team. After being drafted by the Magic with the second overall pick out of Indiana in 2013, he spent three seasons with Orlando before being dealt to Oklahoma City in 2016. The Thunder flipped him to the Pacers as part of the Paul George trade the following summer. With the Pacers, Oladipo blossomed into a two-time All-Star thanks to a versatile scoring touch and stellar perimeter defense.
His major lower body injury issues first began to plague him in Indiana, and he has since been trying to find his footing as a defense-first role player with the Rockets and Heat. During his 42 healthy regular season contests with Miami in 2022/23, the 6’4″ vet averaged 10.7 PPG, 3.5 APG, 3.0 RPG and 1.4 SPG in 26.3 MPG, mostly off the Heat bench.
Dame Time
I don’t see what Miami might have that Portland would want. Bam is the only player close to Dame’s value that should interest them and Hero and picks don’t seem like enough to kick start a rebuild. Plus why resign Grant if you plan to tear it down. I’m sure they have a plan but I doubt it involves Dame .
If Dame says trade me to Miami, say hello to Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro, your newest friends.
Blazers can reroute those guys asap for draft assets or TPE …
Yeah, once Philly puts Maxey in a deal, the Heat are done.
Portland will be good to Dame until they get what they really want…Maxey is the guy they want.
Phily wont flip Maxey though because he’s basically the last of “the process” who isn’t Embiid.
I honestly think if the Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat make a trade for Damian Lillard they will have to find a third team to take on Tyler Herro contract. Tyler Herro is only 23 years old but he’s a very nice offensive player that can go to a rebuilding team or championship caliber team. It won’t be hard to find him a team.
Dame for Herro, Robinson and picks is getting done unless Maxey or someone hits the trade table, but even still that’s a fine package for Dame plus those guys are a better fit in Portland if Dame isn’t there.
It’s such a great move by the Miami Heat. It was mandatory to move Victor Oladipo contract off the books.
The Miami Heat are trying to put their roster together to go after Damian Lillard but also be ready if he decides to stay with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Portland Trail Blazers will have to do a little more than just resign Jerami Grant to a 5 years $160 million deal. It was a good move but they need to upgrade the Center position.
Pat Riley is a basketball genius!!! He’s making great move after great move. Victor Oladipo is a major injury prone that you just can’t depend on. He’s a great talent but injuries have took a toll on his career. Miami Heat are making great moves and putting a really good team together. They cleaning up the roster well. Pat Riley learned his lesson from overpaying for role players. Gabe Vincent will do good on the Los Angeles Lakers and Max Strus will do good on the Cleveland Cavaliers if the trade goes down. It’s no need to pay them if they can find guys out there for the veterans minimum.
Ummm…. Riley signed Oladipo and they basically got nothing out of him, then they attach drafts picks just to be rid of his contract. Genius?
Cut him some slack, he seems like he’s 12 yrs old or something.
My apologies to all the preteeners
Lol u stole my comment
Champ… if Riley is a basketball genius, what is Calvin Booth?
The Miami Heat remains up near the top. Counted out this year, they beat our Celtics. That and all Riley’s many championships, I would think is enough proof that fans should trust him implicitly. Victor is sadly injury prone & had to be moved, unfortunately.
Remember when we all dreamed about what OKC’s cap space could be 2 years ago
Well we got our answer: Bertans and Ola, and a roster crunch that’s probably going to have to leave the room exception on the table; along with having to cut a couple good young fringe players, but hey they stocked some more draft capital so thats …..summthin
Cash cost and cap cost are two different things depending what they end up doing with those guys
These are both 1 and done guys OKC took on to move up in the draft and acquire picks. They might also be flipped for more picks at the trade deadline too. OKC wasn’t going to win it all in 2024 anyway so relax a little bit. No one with realistic expectations was expecting a massive “all in” just yet. Presti is doing a hell of a job so far.
GSW is going to trade Chris Paul and picks for Oladipo and Bertans at the deadline, arent they? lol
Draft picks are cool !
Thank the heavens for Sam Presti.
Where would the league be without OKC, being your 24/7, friendly neighborhood conduit for teams wanting to get of rid salaries, expiring contracts, etc all for the price of the team’s soul, I mean draft picks.
Every year, like clockwork. Today is like Christmas for teams looking to move expiring contracts. We should celebrate July 6 every year as “OKC player movement day”
That midlevel is going to go to someone like Crowder probably
Crowder seems to be shot/washed …… better use it for somebody else – team still needs a legit PG and a big.
I’m not sure who’s still available out there though.
This was my original list before FA. There were some other names but it was inconsequential so whatever…
Josh Richardson, Lindy Waters III, Danny Green, Wesley Matthews, Paul Millsap, Jae Crowder, Mo Bamba, Serge Ibaka, JaMychal Green, Taurean Prince, Dj Stewart jr, Jamaal Cain, James Johnson, Justise Winslow, Wenyen Gabriel, Oshae Brissett, Keita Bates-Diop, Derrick Jones jr, Tony Snell, Stanley Johnson, Josh Jackson, Nnamdi, Frank Ntilikina, Trendon Watford, Terence Davis, Patrick Beverley, Kevin Knox, Shake Milton, Daishen Nix, Rodney Mcgruder, Hamidou Diallo, Shaq Harrison, NAW,
If Bamba can be had for a 1+1 minimum, why not ……. Malik Allen might be one to light whatever fire Bamba never had.
Same with DJJ, if he’ll do 1+1 and can get over his opting out of the BULLS, this will be easy integration for the coaching staff.
What combination of the above players would be your top scenario to fill out the last 3-4 spots
Assuming it’s all minimum contracts …… Bamba, DJJ.
Liked Monte Morris for that vacant PG spot, it turns out the PISTONS got him earlier.
Always like Brissett also, damm Brad Stevens.
Montrezl is available, he could be a nice piece, assuming he’s good for near minimum.
Dame + Nurkic if you can move the OKC pick protection
Ya, it would all be minimum. I’m pretty comfortable as long as it’s from this list, and as I said there are a few more but I didnt feel like taking the time to add them. The rest would be potential summer league guys
I’m not actually sure at this point what my preferred combination would be; just that we need a smallball 5, another option at the 4, maybe a depth big, and another wing/guard
Richardson allows them to be a little more open to stuff with both Oladipo and Lowry. Thought they could use his deal for potential salary matching, but if this opens up the midlevel, i see that reason too. I was also hoping to see him.come back from his injury, which seemed as though they thought it was a partial tear based on the reported timeline.
I hope he finds his way back here somehow once he is healthy
Hate to see him go because he is a very skilled player, but if you can’t get on the court it doesnt mean anything. A good move
The only way Miami gets Dame is to trade Bam, and that’s not happening. Miami refused to trade Bam for KD.
Anyone do/have a breakdown on the true value of these trade exceptions? Don’t majority go unused?
Could Oladipo be sent to the Bulls and inserted into the Disabled Player Exception so OKC avoids cap penalties?