Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Notes: Herro, Robinson, Morris, Tucker

March 19th, 2022 at 6:21pm CST by Arthur Hill

Tyler Herro has rebounded from a difficult season to become the NBA’s leading candidate for Sixth Man of the Year, and he said the trials of last season inspired him, writes Wes Goldberg of The Miami Herald. Herro made an immediate impact as a rookie in 2019/20, helping the Heat reach the NBA Finals. But that was followed by a short offseason and then a second season where nothing came as easily.

“If last year didn’t happen I probably wouldn’t be where I’m at right now,” Herro said. “I just took it as motivation to get myself better, mentally and physically.”

Miami made Herro its starting point guard at the beginning of last season, but he only held the job for 14 games before being sent back to the bench. A few months after being hailed as a rookie sensation, he was frequently mentioned as trade bait, with rumors lasting throughout the summer. With a more standard offseason to work on his game, Herro improved his play-making and now handles that role for the second unit.

“It’s a lot mentally to try to block the noise out,” Herro said. “I knew that I would eventually get to an offseason where I could relax and decompress and get myself back to where I wanted to be.”

There’s more from Miami:

Duncan Robinson credits former NBA guard J.J. Redick for helping him stay confident when his shot wasn’t falling earlier this season, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Robinson was feeling pressure to deliver after signing a $90MM contract, but Redick told him to relax and keep shooting. “He’s seen it all in this league, offered me some words of encouragement,” Robinson said. “His advice stuck. I talked to Redick. I talked to a bunch of people. I’m fortunate to have a lot of people in my corner willing to lend a word and ear, whatever I need.”
On Friday, coach Erik Spoelstra used Markieff Morris as the backup center in place of Dewayne Dedmon for the second time this week, Jackson observes in the same piece. Caleb Martin understands that other players have to help on the glass when the team employs a small-ball lineup, saying they need to show “pride on the perimeter to get more rebounds. We’ve got to do more jobs as wings to try to help the bigs.”
Spoelstra would like to give P.J. Tucker some rest before the playoffs, but the veteran forward isn’t on board, Jackson adds. “Every time I’ve suggested it, he’ll just laugh in my face,” Spoelstra said. “Sometimes he’ll scowl at me. With the schedule right now, I don’t think we have to [rest him]. We’ll see when we get there.”

Butler Suffers Third Sprained Right Ankle Of Season

March 18th, 2022 at 9:53pm CST by Rory Maher

Jimmy Butler (sprained right ankle) and Victor Oladipo (back spasms) both missed the Heat‘s 120-108 win over the Thunder on Friday, Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes. It’s the third time Butler has sprained his right ankle this season, Chiang notes, which is definitely a concerning trend. However, the injury isn’t considered serious. On the bright side, Caleb Martin (hyperextended left knee) and P.J. Tucker (left knee irritation) were both able to play after being listed as questionable. Martin had missed the past three games for the 47-24 Heat, who hold the No. 1 seed in the East.

Southeast Notes: Unseld, Herro, Strus, Vincent, J. Johnson

March 18th, 2022 at 12:24pm CST by Luke Adams

Wes Unseld Jr. has been thrown into the deep end during his first year as an NBA head coach, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington, who notes that the Wizards have used a franchise-record 29 players in games this season.

Injuries, trades, and COVID-19 outbreaks have shaken up the Wizards’ roster, and Unseld himself missed multiple games when he contracted COVID. Despite having to deal with a somewhat chaotic first season in D.C., Unseld has tried his best to take it all in stride.

“With this being my first experience in this chair, in a weird way it’s the norm. I can’t compare it to anything,” Unseld told Hughes. “But it’s not lost on me that this has been a bizarre experience, just because of all the things that we’ve had to process and go through.”

Wizards guard Bradley Beal, who is out for the rest of the season while he recovers from wrist surgery, said he had “huge respect” for the way Unseld has responded to a challenging year.

“That’s tough on a coach, a first-year coach,” Beal said. “I’m very impressed with how well he’s handled the adversity.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

With Tyler Herro extension-eligible beginning this July, Keith Smith of Spotrac takes a closer look at what the guard’s next contract might look like and considers how much the Heat should be comfortable paying to lock up a player who is currently a sixth man.
Now that the Heat‘s roster is healthier than it has been all season, Max Strus and Gabe Vincent aren’t getting the same sort of consistent minutes they were earlier in the year. However, as Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes, the two reserves said they were prepared for that possibility, recognizing that the coaching staff needs to experiment with different lineups ahead of the postseason. “They got to play with things. They got to see what works, see what doesn’t work and try to get this chemistry going in a short span,” Vincent said. “I kind of knew it was coming. But you don’t really know how it’s going to go. You could only prepare for something like that so much.”
Nate McMillan‘s inclination to trust his veterans over rookies has meant there has been no NBA role this season for first-rounder Jalen Johnson, who has spent much of his rookie year in the G League. According to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, the Hawks are still very intrigued by the potential of Johnson, who was recalled today from the NBAGL with John Collins out, but it remains unlikely that he’ll see regular minutes this season.

Markieff Morris Had Little Doubt He'd Return This Season

March 16th, 2022 at 3:10pm CST by Luke Adams

After returning on Saturday following a four-month absence due to a neck injury, Heat forward Markieff Morris said he only briefly entertained the possibility that he wouldn’t make it back this season, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “At times, doubt crept in,” Morris said. “It probably wasn’t until January when the doubt crept in because it was just so long and there were a bunch of things happening that didn’t go as planned. … Other than that, if you ask me personally, I already knew that I would come back to play. It was more so not a matter of if, it was a matter of when.” Morris has played 17 minutes in each of his two appearances since returning, reclaiming his role as the team’s backup power forward.

Jimmy Butler Tweaks Ankle Again

March 16th, 2022 at 11:45am CST by Dana Gauruder

Heat forward Jimmy Butler sprained his right ankle and did not play in the second half of Miami’s win against Detroit on Tuesday, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. Butler has already missed six games – three in November and three more in January – due to a right ankle sprain.

“He tweaked his ankle. We’ll see how he feels (Wednesday),” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Oladipo Has Been Humbled By Injury Rehab

March 14th, 2022 at 8:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Victor Oladipo didn’t play in the second game of a back-to-back on Saturday and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said they don’t want to push him too much physically, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes. “This is just a matter of I’m not going to try to fast track this,” Spoelstra said “This is going to be about us tempering the expectations.” Miami plays Detroit on Tuesday.

Markieff Morris Uninterested In Hearing From Nikola Jokic

March 13th, 2022 at 5:30pm CST by JD Shaw

Heat veteran Markieff Morris returned on Saturday for the first time since November 8, but the forward has no interest in hearing from Nikola Jokic, as relayed by Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Jokic’s hard shot on Morris caused whiplash for the 32-year-old, forcing him to miss most of the season. The hit came after Morris delivered a hard foul just seconds earlier. “F– nah, I don’t want to hear from him,” Morris snapped, according to Vardon. “He did what he did and it is what it is.”

Markieff Morris Available To Play On Saturday

March 12th, 2022 at 4:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

After missing the past 58 games with whiplash, Markieff Morris will be available for tonight’s contest against Minnesota, the Heat announced (via Twitter).

Morris has been out of action since a November 8 incident with Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who hit him from behind in retaliation for what Jokic considered to be an excessive foul. Both players were ejected following the exchange.

Morris has been practicing with the team and traveling to road games for several weeks in anticipation of his return. He recently received clearance from the NBA’s Fitness-to-Play Panel, which proclaimed him “medically able and medically fit to practice and play.”

An offseason addition in free agency, Morris played just 10 games for Miami before the injury. He was used off the bench and averaged 7.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in 18.7 minutes per night.

Heat’s Markieff Morris Close To Returning

March 11th, 2022 at 7:54pm CST by Rory Maher

Forward Markieff Morris has received medical clearance to return for the Heat, as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press details.

Morris has missed 58 straight games with whiplash after a controversial incident between Morris and Nikola Jokic on November 8. Both players were ejected from the game, with Jokic receiving a one-game suspension.

It was reported a little over a month ago that Morris was eager to return to action, but the Heat were concerned with potential liability issues and were unwilling to clear him. Morris had a previous neck injury in 2019.

However, a source tells Reynolds that Morris has cleared a vital hurdle — he was deemed “medically able and medically fit to practice and play” by the NBA’s Fitness-to-Play Panel, which consists of three physicians.

According to Reynolds, the belief is the veteran will be available to play at some point during Miami’s current stretch of home games. The Heat face the Wolves on Saturday, the Pistons on Tuesday, and the Thunder next Friday.

Morris has been traveling and practicing with the team for several weeks, as well as doing pregame shooting sessions prior to games. Morris, 32, is averaging 7.7 points and 2.8 rebounds on .457/.364/1.000 shooting through 10 games this season (18.7 minutes).

Heat Rumors: Herro, Robinson, Oladipo, Martin, Offseason

March 11th, 2022 at 10:04am CST by Luke Adams

Heat guard Tyler Herro is the frontrunner to win the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award in 2022, having averaged 20.7 PPG, 4.8 RPG, and 3.9 APG in 32.7 MPG this season while coming off the bench in 44 of his 54 appearances. Herro is having his breakout year at the right time — he’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason.

According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, some rival executives and agents believe Herro’s next deal could approach the maximum salary. Others believe it’ll be a step below that and have used Jaylen Brown‘s four-year extension with Boston – which had a base value of $103MM, plus $12MM in incentives – as a point of comparison. Recent four-year, $85MM contracts for the likes of Fred VanVleet and Lonzo Ball have also set a potential baseline for Herro, Fischer observes.

There are still people around the NBA who believe Herro could be the “odd man out” if the Heat try to land another star, Fischer writes. “We all know Miami goes big-fish hunting,” one general manager told Bleacher Report. Still, until an obvious big-name target emerges, it seems likely that Herro’s future will be in Miami, where he’s highly valued.

Here’s more on the Heat from Fischer:

Assuming Miami is unable to add a star player this offseason, the team’s biggest summer move could involve sharpshooter Duncan Robinson. Fischer says league personnel view Robinson as the Heat’s most logical trade chip, and sources tell Bleacher Report that the club gauged his value prior to February’s trade deadline, though no discussions ever got serious. The Heat would love to add another impact player in the frontcourt and have shown interest in Rockets big man Christian Wood and Hornets forward P.J. Washington, among others, Fischer adds.
Victor Oladipo and Caleb Martin, both of whom will be free agents after the season, have strong interest in remaining with the Heat, sources tell Fischer.
People around the NBA believe last month’s KZ Okpala trade that freed up Miami’s 2023 first-round pick to be dealt could be a precursor to a potential offseason move, says Fischer. “They are the best in the league at lining up for a big move,” a Western Conference executive said. Another source suggested to Fischer that Miami always has “plans for every actuality,” so the team isn’t necessarily zeroed in one specific target.