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Heat Aim To Extend Danilo Gallinari As Part Of Trade

February 6th, 2020 at 8:01am CST by Luke Adams

Having already agreed to a contract extension with Andre Iguodala as part of the trade that will send him from the Grizzlies to the Heat, Miami is looking to do the same with Danilo Gallinari, who is expected to be acquired from the Thunder in a three-team trade, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski, the Heat and Gallinari’s reps were working overnight on a possible extension.

As we detailed late on Wednesday night, the exact terms of the trade that will send Iguodala and Gallinari to Miami remain unclear. We know the Grizzlies are acquiring Justise Winslow, but no other pieces have been confirmed. The belief is that Jae Crowder and Solomon Hill would be involved, likely heading to Oklahoma City. James Johnson and Dion Waiters are among the other rumored outgoing pieces for Miami and would presumably both end up in Memphis. Draft compensation would also be involved.

Assuming the three teams reach a trade agreement, Gallinari would be eligible to sign a new contract with the Heat that extends his current deal by two additional years, with 5% annual raises. Typically, veteran extension rules are less restrictive, but extend-and-trade rules limit new deals to three total years (including the current season) and modest raises.

Based on his current $22.62MM salary, Gallinari could receive as much as $23.75MM for 2020/21 and $24.88MM in 2021/22. However, as Woj notes, the Heat’s desire to preserve cap room for the 2021 offseason may complicate matters. Miami’s extension with Iguodala features a non-guaranteed team option for that ’21/22 season, allowing the team to maintain flexibility. It’s not clear if Gallinari would be on board with a similar arrangement.

As cap expert Albert Nahmad details (via Twitter), the Heat currently project to have more than $50MM+ in cap room for 2021, assuming Iguodala’s option is turned down. A pricey guaranteed salary for Gallinari would compromise the club’s ability to create a maximum-salary slot unless contracts are stretched.

It will be interesting to see how creative Miami gets — Nahmad points out (via Twitter) that using a descending salary structure or making that 2021/22 partially guaranteed could help the team stay somewhat flexible.

Latest On The Andre Iguodala Trade

February 5th, 2020 at 11:31pm CST by Arthur Hill

Negotiations are continuing in an effort to make the deal sending Andre Iguodala to Miami a three-way trade that would also enable the Heat to acquire Thunder forward Danilo Gallinari, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

One way the Heat could facilitate trade talks is to remove protections on a lottery-protected 2023 first-round draft pick they owe to Oklahoma City, sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link). That would free up Miami to unconditionally trade its 2025 first-rounder, explains Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link).

Because of hard-cap restrictions, Miami will need to send out at least $39.8MM in salary to fit Iguodala ($17.2MM) and Gallinari ($22.6MM) on its roster, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). He notes that Justise Winslow, who is already believed to be part of the deal, Dion Waiters and James Johnson add up to $40.4MM.

Johnson’s representatives tell Jackson that they are expecting their client to be included in the transaction, but several other teams have expressed interest as well (Twitter link). Jackson identifies the Bucks, Rockets and Timberwolves as teams that have inquired about the veteran forward.

Meanwhile, the Grizzlies held Jae Crowder and Solomon Hill out of Wednesday’s game in Dallas, and Dillon Brooks spoke after the game as if they were being traded, though that hasn’t been confirmed (video link via ESPN’s Tim MacMahon). Moving Crowder and Hill along with Iguodala would allow Memphis to take back up to $47MM+ in salary, if necessary.

In an interview with Marc J. Spears of the Undefeated, Iguodala said he plans to join the Heat and take his physical in Sacramento on Friday. He’s excited to be coming to Miami, but after not playing since June he isn’t sure when he’ll be ready to be activated (Twitter link).

“Jimmy Butler is very well respected in terms of passion and hard work he brings to the game,” Iguodala said. “His temperament and values he has really resonates with the Heat. They’re very well aligned. He’s brought out the most in those young guys. Those are some of the guys I’m really excited about. I feel I can make the most impact with those guys. I’m a big fan of Bam [Adebayo]. … Really looking forward to playing with him. … Been hearing about him last couple of years. Help him get better. Really excited about that opportunity.”

Grizzlies’ Dillon Brooks Signs Three-Year Extension

February 5th, 2020 at 10:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

11:28pm: The extension is official, the Grizzlies announced on Twitter.

10:51pm: The Grizzlies have reached a three-year, $35MM extension agreement with Dillon Brooks, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Brooks had been on track to reach restricted free agency this summer.

Brooks’ new deal is fully guaranteed without any options, and will be worth $11.4MM in the first year, $12.2MM in the second and $11.4MM in the third, according to Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (Twitter links).

The 24-year-old swingman has been an important part of Memphis’ resurgence and the team’s surprising run at a playoff spot. He’s posting career highs across the board in his third NBA season, averaging 16.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. He has reclaimed his place in the starting lineup after being limited to 18 games in an injury-plagued 2018/19.

Brooks has also emerged as a vocal leader on the team. He called out Andre Iguodala earlier this week for electing to sit out rather than play for Memphis and said he couldn’t wait to face him on the court once he was traded.

After years of salary-cap issues, the rebuilt Grizzlies now have plenty of room going forward, so Brooks’ salary won’t be an issue. His extension is the first of what should be several long-term deals that Memphis will hand out to its young talent.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Andre Iguodala Headed To Miami, Will Receive Contract Extension

February 5th, 2020 at 7:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Grizzlies have reached an agreement to send Andre Iguodala to the Heat, who will give him a two-year, $30MM contract extension, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Justise Winslow will be part of the package headed to Memphis in return, Woj adds (Twitter link).

The second season of Iguodala’s extension will be a team option, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). That will allow the Heat to retain their financial flexibility to participate in a loaded free agent class in 2021. Sources tell Wojnarowski that Miami will guarantee the second season of Iguodala’s deal for $15MM if the team misses out on its top free agent targets (Twitter link).

The trade takes a player off the board who was coveted by contenders around the league for his defensive toughness and playoff experience. Iguodala was widely expected to return to Golden State next season as a free agent, but the extension removes any chance of that.

Bobby Marks of ESPN notes that Miami is limited to two years on the extension along with 5% raises on top of his current salary because of extend-and-trade restrictions. (Twitter link). Normally teams can offer extensions up to four years with 8% raises.

Heat president Pat Riley is making an effort to acquire Oklahoma City’s Danilo Gallinari as well as Iguodala, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Gallinari was expected to have a short stay with the Thunder after he was acquired in July as part of the trade that sent Paul George to the Clippers. However, OKC has emerged as a strong playoff contender with Gallinari contributing 19.2 points and 5.7 rebounds per night. The 31-year-old has a $22.6MM expiring contract.

Heat In “Advanced Discussions” For Andre Iguodala

February 5th, 2020 at 6:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Miami is involved in “advanced discussions” with Memphis about acquiring Andre Iguodala, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Iguodala, an important component of the dominant Warriors teams of the past five years, hasn’t played at all since being traded to Memphis over the summer in a cost-cutting move. He is making $17,185,185 in the final year of his contract.

As we detailed yesterday, getting Iguodala to Miami won’t be easy. The Heat are operating under a hard cap and can’t take on more money than they send out in any trade. The Grizzlies will likely have to take on one or more multi-year deals, possibly James Johnson, Dion Waiters, Kelly Olynyk or Justise Winslow.

Memphis has also insisted on getting a first-round pick in return for Iguodala ever since acquiring him. Miami doesn’t have a first-rounder to offer until its conditional pick in 2025.

With the Grizzlies as a surprise playoff contender, some players have become irritated with Iguodala’s absence. Dillon Brooks said this week that the team can’t wait to face Iguodala on the court so they can “show him what really Memphis is about.”

Trade Rumors: Wolves, Wizards, Kennard, Valentine, Burks, More

February 4th, 2020 at 1:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Timberwolves forward Robert Covington has been one of the most-discussed trade candidates leading up to this year’s deadline, and looks like one of the likeliest players to be on the move. While star teammate Karl-Anthony Towns will understand if Covington is dealt, he admitted in a conversation with Sam Amick of The Athletic and Chris Hine of The Star Tribune that he’s not thrilled by the idea.

“I think it’s very obvious he’s my best friend on the team, so it would be very difficult if something like that was going to happen,” Towns said of Covington. “But like with Zach LaVine (traded from the Timberwolves to Chicago in 2017) , you know this is a business. So like I said, I’m the one who just plays the game. I don’t get paid to make rosters and stuff like that.”

As Amick and Hine note, Towns said it’s not his job to make roster decisions and expressed confidence in Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas to make those calls. Still, given how aggressively the front office has pursued D’Angelo Russell, one of Towns’ best friends, it’ll be interesting to see if the team is willing to part with Covington – another one of KAT’s good friends – if there’s no guarantee that doing so will land D-Lo in Minnesota.

“I don’t get paid to make those decisions,” the Timberwolves’ franchise player said. “Those are tough decisions, but here’s to hoping that I see Cov on Friday, I guess. … He’s a great guy, a great dude. He’s a great player. He’s helped me tremendously and he’s continuing to help me every day. He just gives me such comfort out there.”

Here are more trade rumors from around the NBA:

As first referenced by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Wizards have expressed interest in Cavaliers big man Tristan Thompson, confirms Candace Buckner of The Washington Post (via Twitter). If the Wizards were to make a move for Thompson, it would be with an eye toward the future, since they’d hold his Bird rights, Buckner notes.
Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press confirms that that the Pistons are open to moving Luke Kennard if the price is right. However, in the wake of rumors that the Suns are discussing a trade for the third-year sharpshooter, Ellis reports that no deal appears imminent and that Detroit isn’t worried about the possible price tag on a Kennard extension if he remains with the Pistons.
Two rival executives view the Sixers and Grizzlies as possible landing spots for Bulls trade candidate Denzel Valentine, according to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.
The Mavericks have real interest in Warriors guard Alec Burks, a source tells Chris Crouse of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link). Dallas and Golden State have already made one trade this season, with Willie Cauley-Stein sent to the Mavs last month.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski takes a look at the trade talks involving the Timberwolves, Warriors, Rockets, and Hawks, with the Wolves trying to orchestrate a multi-team deal that would send D’Angelo Russell to Minnesota. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer had details earlier on those discussions, with both Woj and O’Connor agreeing that there’s still a gulf between Minnesota and Golden State.

Heat In Mix For Andre Iguodala

February 4th, 2020 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Heat have emerged as a potential suitor for Grizzlies forward Andre Iguodala, according to Shams Charania of Stadium (video link), who reports that the two teams have had discussions.

While Miami would be a nice on-court fit for Iguodala, it may be tricky for the two teams to come to a trade agreement that works for everyone. The Heat’s only sizable expiring contracts belong to Meyers Leonard and Goran Dragic, who are key parts of the team’s rotation and seem unlikely to be moved for the former Finals MVP. As such, Memphis would likely have to be willing to take on a multiyear deal, with James Johnson, Dion Waiters, Kelly Olynyk, and perhaps even Justise Winslow among the candidates.

Additionally, the Heat are right up against a hard cap this season, so they won’t be able to take on more money than they send out. For instance, even though Johnson’s $15.35MM cap hit meets the salary-matching requirements to take back Iguodala’s $17.19MM salary, Miami would have to send out at least one more player because it can’t accommodate that extra money.

Finally, the Heat don’t have much draft capital available to dangle in trade talks, having moved so many of their future picks already. Their next available picks for trade purposes would be a conditional 2024 second-rounder or a conditional 2025 first-rounder. They also control the less favorable of the Sixers’ and Nuggets’ 2022 second-round picks, which could be included in a deal.

On top of all those roadblocks, there’s the question of whether or not Iguodala would be happy to land with the Heat. South Beach is a popular destination for most NBA players and Miami is a legit contender in the East, so presumably the 36-year-old would be satisfied with that outcome. However, Charania notes that Iguodala may want to play closer to home on the West Coast, and a report on Monday indicated the veteran could sit out the rest of the season if he isn’t sent to one of his preferred landing spots.

Although it’s not clear what those preferred landing spots are, it’s probably safe to assume the Lakers and Clippers are among them. If Iguodala is bought out, the two L.A. teams would likely be the frontrunners to sign him, but the Grizzlies have insisted all season long that they’ll find a pre-deadline trade involving the ex-Warrior. We’ll find out this week if they’re right.

Dillon Brooks On Iguodala: Can’t Wait Until We Trade Him

February 4th, 2020 at 8:21am CST by Luke Adams

Before the Grizzlies defeated the Pistons on Monday night, maintaining their hold on the No. 8 seed, a report surfaced suggesting that Andre Iguodala is preparing to sit out the season if he’s not traded to one of his preferred landing spots, or bought out. After Memphis’ win, forward Dillon Brooks weighed in on the Iguodala rumors, as Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal relays.

“Andre Iguodala’s a great player. I feel like he’s doing the right thing for his career, but we don’t really care,” Brooks said. “It’s not a distraction at all. I laugh at that type of stuff.

“A guy that’s on our team that doesn’t want to be on our team,” Brooks continued. “I can’t wait ’til we find a way to trade him so we can play him and show him what really Memphis is about.”

Although no other Grizzlies players conveyed a similar sentiment to reporters, Brooks’ teammates Ja Morant and De’Anthony Melton published cryptic tweets seemingly supporting his message.

Iguodala was sent from the Warriors to the Grizzlies in a July trade as Golden State cleared salary to bring in D’Angelo Russell. Although that trade was a salary dump that netted Memphis a first-round pick, the Grizzlies are confident Iguodala can be flipped for positive value and has insisted all season long they plan to move him rather than buy him out. The team has until Thursday afternoon to make that happen.

The Grizzlies and Iguodala reportedly reached a mutual agreement in the fall to have him remain away with the team, so the front office has no issue with his absence, but it’s not hard to see why some Grizzlies players may share Brooks’ sentiment.

When Iguodala talked in September about the trade, he recalled predicting in the summer that he’d be moved to “Memphis or some s–t,” implying that it was among the worst possible outcomes. And even as the upstart Grizzlies have outperformed expectations and moved into the playoff picture, the former Finals MVP has shown zero interest in playing for the team.

While a few young Grizzlies players may be eager to show Iguodala what he’s missing out on, veteran forward Jae Crowder took a more measured stance, as Barnes details.

“I would like to keep a lot of stuff in-house but we respect what he’s done,” Crowder said of Iguodala. “He’s a Hall-of-Famer. In my eyes, he’s a Hall-of-Famer. He’s proven in this league, so as long as he handled it like a professional, I believe he is. … I would not say that he’s been a distraction at all. Like I said, he hasn’t been here. But we respect what he wants at this time of his career, and you have to respect it.”

Trade Rumors: Covington, Randle, Henson, Celtics

February 3rd, 2020 at 10:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Clippers are among the teams pursuing Timberwolves forward Robert Covington, Sean Deveney of Heavy.com reports. A package of their first-round pick this year, forward Maurice Harkless, and a young player such as Jerome Robinson or Terance Mann could be enough to secure Covington, Deveney continues. Grizzlies forward Andre Iguodala, Suns center Aron Baynes and Magic guard D.J. Augustin are among the other potential targets for the Clippers, Deveney adds.

We have more trade chatter:

The Knicks have engaged in trade talks with the Hornets involving forward Julius Randle, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer tweets. Charlotte would be a surprising landing spot for Randle, who has a guaranteed $18.9MM salary for next season. However, the Hornets have three frontcourt players with large expiring contracts and will need reinforcements.
The Knicks had talks with the Cavaliers which included center John Henson but those discussions have died down, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets. Henson has an expiring $9.7MM contract.
Celtics GM Danny Ainge would like to strengthen the team’s bench but doesn’t see the center position as a major weakness, Jacob Camenker of NBC Sports Boston relays. The Celtics are reportedly one of the teams interested in acquiring Rockets center Clint Capela. Ainge indicated the roster “probably too many really young guys” but claimed he’s content with Daniel Theis, Enes Kanter, and Robert Williams manning the middle. “We’re not getting beat at the center position,” Ainge said. “We’re getting 17, 18 points per night. We’re getting double-figure rebounds. We’re just doing it as a team.”

Iguodala Could Sit Out Season If He Isn’t Dealt

February 3rd, 2020 at 6:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Grizzlies forward Andre Iguodala is preparing to sit out the remainder of the season if he’s not dealt to one of his preferred destinations by Thursday’s trade deadline, David Aldridge of The Athletic tweets.

Iguodala has been in limbo since the Warriors traded him to Memphis during the offseason. Iguodala and the Grizzlies’ front office mutually agreed that he didn’t have to play there but Memphis has tried mightily to use the former Finals MVP as a trade chip. The Grizzlies haven’t been willing to buy him out, at least until the trade deadline expires.

Iguodala said last month that he’s in shape and ready to get back on the court. But even though the surprising Grizzlies are in postseason contention, he apparently has no interest in joining their playoff push.

Iguodala has an expiring $17MM contract and salary matching is one of the issues that has hindered a deal to a prime contender. There has been talk that Igoudala could get moved to the Mavericks but recent reports suggest that’s not the case.