- Tom Thibodeau sold Timberwolves‘ owner Glen Taylor on passing on the initial offer from the Heat centered around Josh Richardson because he believed that Pat Riley would come back with a better offer down the road (the Heat never returned with Richardson on the table in subsequent trade talks).
[SOURCE LINK]
Heat center Hassan Whiteside had a good stretch of games this past week, recording double-doubles in each of his three contests and nearly recording a triple-double in Wednesday’s win over the Spurs.
The Heat benefit most when Whiteside is fully engaged, and after last season’s back-and-forth debacle with coach Erik Spoelstra, many were quick to write the 29-year-old off before the 2018/19 season even began.
“I’m very confident, man,” Whiteside said after Wednesday’s win, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “My body feels great. I think a lot of people had written me off. That’s fine. I don’t need anybody’s justification. But I feel like if I do those things for myself, it’ll put me in the conversation of being an All-Star, being defensive player of the year.”
Whiteside worked tirelessly to improve his body and conditioning last summer, and it’s paid off through 12 games. Entering Monday’s contest against Joel Embiid and the 76ers, he’s holding per-game averages of 14 points, 15.5 rebounds and 3.5 blocks.
“It’s kind of like he’s changing his mindset to be great,” teammate Bam Adebayo said.
Should Whiteside continue to play solid basketball on both ends, he could be in consideration for his first ever All-Star appearance with the Heat.
There’s more out of Miami today:
- Wayne Ellington could register interest from contenders as a trade candidate, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes in his latest “Ask Ira” mailbag. Ellington has the right to veto any trade and can’t be traded until December 15, should the Heat make a surprising decision to move him.
- The Heat could have missed an opportunity by not trading for Jimmy Butler, Winderman writes in a separate mailbag. Players such as James Johnson and Dion Waiters lost some value due to injuries, making it harder for Miami to strike a deal. The Timberwolves agreed to trade Butler to the 76ers on Saturday in a multi-player transaction.
- Yante Maten has drawn comparisons from his G League coach to former All-Star Paul Millsap, Winderman relays in a separate story. Maten is on a two-way contract with the Heat. He recorded 21 points and 10 rebounds in a win with the team’s G League affiliate on Saturday.
After two months of trying to make a dysfunctional situation work with Jimmy Butler, the Timberwolves finally reached their breaking point after an 0-5 road trip, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
A combination of losing, economic concerns and the stress of not knowing from game to game if Butler was going to be available became too much for team officials. The Wolves, who left home with a .500 record but returned at 4-9, were worn down by the pressure that Butler has been applying since making his trade request two months ago.
Sources tell Krawczynski that coach/executive Tom Thibodeau, who had been resisting a trade while trying to convince Butler to stay, informed his coaching staff after the latest loss that a deal had to be made. Owner Glen Taylor stepped in Saturday and finalized the trade with the Sixers.
Minnesota had three offers to consider before pulling the trigger on the package that brought Dario Saric, Robert Covington, Jerryd Bayless and a 2022 second-round pick from Philadelphia in exchange for Butler and injured center Justin Patton. Philadelphia made its latest offer on Wednesday, resuming discussions after a disappointing start to the season. The Rockets, who offered four first-round picks, never stopped pursuing Butler, while the Heat remained steadfast in their refusal to include Josh Richardson in any deal.
The schedule also factored into the timing of the Butler deal, Krawczynski adds. Attendance has plummeted as Wolves fans have grown tired of watching their team feud with its star player. The organization has been offering discounted ticket packages, but with 10 of its next 12 games at home, management wanted to resolve the situation to get paying customers back on their side.
There was also concern about the effect that the precedent that was being set for Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and any other young players who will eventually be free agents. Butler has been allowed to set the terms of the dispute without consequence, whether through provocative public statements about teammates and the front office, well-publicized confrontations at his first practice and day-to-day decisions on whether “general soreness” would keep him out of the lineup.
Players had grown tired of answering questions about Butler after every game, Krawczynski reports, and the situation had become too much of a distraction to continue. The Wolves finally decided the cumulative effect of dealing with Butler was too much and sent him away less than 18 months after he arrived.
Heat president Pat Riley told his players just before the season started that he was pulling out of trade talks with the Timberwolves involving Jimmy Butler, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Riley held a team meeting October 14 in which he acknowledged that negotiations had been going on and apologized to players whose names became public in trade rumors. That was just days after the teams nearly completed a deal that would have sent a package that included Josh Richardson and a protected first-round pick to Minnesota. However, Riley didn’t guarantee that negotiations with the Wolves wouldn’t resume.
Today’s trade that sent Butler to the Sixers eliminates that as a possibility. With about $130MM in salary, Miami is hovering above the $123.7MM luxury tax threshold and would face a $9.7MM tax payment if the team can’t trim $6.3MM by the end of the season. Riley said Thursday that the team isn’t currently active on the trade market, but tax concerns may change that before the February deadline.
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Heat center Hassan Whiteside, who has reportedly been on the trade block for several months, is “changing his mindset to be great,” teammate Bam Adebayo tells Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Whiteside posted his best game in a long time Wednesday with 29 points, 20 rebounds and nine blocked shots. “I think a lot of people had written me off,” Whiteside said. “That’s fine. I don’t need anybody’s justification. But I feel like if I do those things for myself, it’ll put me in the conversation of being an All-Star, being defensive player of the year.”
- Marvin Williams says the players were thrilled this summer when they learned that Tony Parker was leaving the Spurs to join the Hornets as a free agent, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. Parker brought championship experience to Charlotte, having won four titles in San Antonio. “He’s so willing to teach everyone and he’s very patient with all of us,” Williams said. “He’s obviously been in certain situations that a lot of us haven’t been able to experience yet, so that knowledge and that wisdom really helps us.”
- Williams believes the way the game has changed in recent years has helped the Hawks‘ Vince Carter stay productive at age 41, relays Brendan Marks of The Charlotte Observer. Carter still displays his vertical leap on occasion, but he has prolonged his career with a deadly jump shot. “As the league has evolved, he’s almost benefited from it because he still can guard multiple positions, and he can still really shoot the lights out,” Williams said.
The Timberwolves and Sixers agreed on Saturday to one of the biggest trades in recent years. Jimmy Butler is headed to Philadelphia, while Dario Saric and Robert Covington headline the package that Minnesota is receiving.
We have more news to pass along on this blockbuster:
- Butler had shown an interest in Philadelphia long before Saturday. Butler scheduled a free agent meeting with the Sixers in 2015, when they were still in the early stages of building a contender, before he re-signed with the Bulls, Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated tweets.
- If Butler agrees to a max contract with Philadelphia, Markelle Fultz‘s long-term prospects with the organization would be in serious doubt, Zach Lowe of ESPN tweets. There are plenty of other questions regarding how Fultz fits with core group that Philadelphia has assembled and the team’s brass will closely monitor how all the personalities mesh, Lowe adds. The top 2017 pick is averaging just 8.9 PPG and 3.6 APG in 24.3 MPG and will now have to compete with another All-Star for touches.
- Minnesota avoided sending Butler to a Western Conference contender, one of the goals it set in trade talks involving the disgruntled swingman, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN notes (Twitter link). The Rockets had been mentioned prominently as a possible destination but even a package of four future first-round picks couldn’t entice the Timberwolves to send him to a conference rival. The Sixers became the most viable trade partner once the Heat pulled Josh Richardson out of trade discussions, Wojnarowski adds.
- The Sixers were prepared to offer a similar package to the Spurs to acquire Kawhi Leonard this summer, Fischer reports in another tweet. Philadelphia was willing to give up Saric, Covington and a first-rounder to San Antonio before the Spurs opted to deal Leonard to the Raptors. The Spurs’ decision to decline the Sixers’ offer thus far seems like a wise move, considering Saric’s early shooting slump (30% from long range), Jabari Young of The Athletic tweets. Toronto’s package, with DeMar DeRozan as the centerpiece, has helped San Antonio get off to a 6-4 start despite a rash of injuries.
- Buyout candidates will be even more intrigued to join the Sixers for the stretch run, Alex Kennedy of Hoops Hype tweets. Ersan Ilyasova and Marco Belinelli joined Philadelphia in that fashion last season, Kennedy adds, and the incentive for players seeking a ring to hop on Philadelphia’s bandwagon has dramatically increased.
- The Timberwolves considered three offers from different teams before picking the Sixers’ package, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets.
- Philadelphia will likely move J.J. Redick back into the starting lineup because his 3-point shooting will be needed on the first unit, Keith Smith of RealGM tweets.
- The earliest that Butler could make his Sixers debut, once the trade is finalized, is Wednesday against the Magic, Wojnarowski adds in another tweet.
Heat president Pat Riley spoke today in front of fans and media personnel, answering questions about the team’s reported pursuit of Jimmy Butler, his decision to address the players, and where the team currently stands from a competitive viewpoint. Riley made his comments at an event created to help renovate the homes of two veterans, with the longtime Heat executive being joined by Glen Rice, Alonzo Mourning, and others.
“I’m not looking, I’m listening and [general manager Andy Elisburg] and I are … we’ve been doing this all the time,” Riley said, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “We’re not actively pursuing anything, we’re listening. But you have to be part of what’s going on in the conversation in the NBA, and there’s a lot of hypotheticals from that standpoint.”
Riley also added that he “never called anybody with an offer, but there’s always conversations — probably more Andy than myself because he loves to talk. So he has a brethren out there, and his brethren are great. He’s got 29, 30 GMs that they all like to talk, and so they need to talk to one another. You listen, and I think that’s how things happen is you just sort of listen.”
The Heat nearly reached agreement on a Butler trade with the Timberwolves last month, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, but the deal fell apart shortly before completion. With rumors swirling and players’ names surfacing in reports, Riley made the decision to pull the plug for the time being. He made his plans known to Heat players and assured them they would remain with the team.
“I think it was important. It was about time,” Riley said when asked why he addressed the team. “I let it go for about two weeks, but it was all over the board and when things get out publicly like that, I think your players and names start to hit, you’ve got to talk to them. I always talk to the agents first, but I thought at that time it was best just to sort of, ‘Let’s get the season started. We’re not going to do anything. We shut the thing down, and this is where we are with it.’”
The Heat have started the 2018/19 season with a 5-5 record, and could revisit the Butler talks down the road. For the time being, however, it certainly appears the team isn’t pursuing a trade for Butler or any other player.
No resolution appears imminent on the Jimmy Butler front, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports that the Timberwolves “never” showed any willingness to accept the Rockets‘ previously reported offer of Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss, and four first-round draft picks. Accepting a package that featured a pair of probable non-rotation players and a handful of picks with uncertain conditions was a “non-starter” for Tom Thibodeau, league sources tell Charania. Charania also reaffirms something we’ve heard within the last week or two, writing that there’s a belief around the NBA that the Heat and/or Sixers could re-engage the Timberwolves at some point on Butler.
Over the course of the 2018/19 NBA season, up until February’s trade deadline, we’re keeping an eye on potential trade candidates from around the NBA, monitoring their value and exploring the likelihood that they’ll be moved. Each of these looks at possible trade candidates focuses on a specific division, as we zero in on three players from that division.
Viewed as perhaps the weakest division in the NBA coming into the season, the Southeast has been even worse than expected during the first month, with the Wizards and Heat both struggling. Not every Southeast team will be a seller at the deadline, but it looks safe to assume that at least a couple will.
Here’s our early-season look at a few possible trade candidates from the Southeast…
Kent Bazemore, F
Atlanta Hawks
$18.09MM cap hit; guaranteed $19.27MM player option for 2019/20
Frequently mentioned in trade rumors over the summer, Bazemore hasn’t been the subject of many recent reports, but his name figures to surface again in the coming months. The 3-6 Hawks are well on their way to a spot in the lottery, and Bazemore only has one year on his contract beyond this season. He makes much more sense as a complementary three-and-D wing for a contending team than he does as a long-term piece in Atlanta.
Bazemore has struggled with his three-point shot so far in 2018/19 (.326 3PT%), but he made a career-best 39.4% of his long-distance attempts last season, and he has otherwise been solid this year, posting career bests in PPG (14.3) and FG% (.485) in the early going. His cap charge will make a deal tricky for some teams, but if Atlanta is willing to take another unwanted contract back in a deal, there should be teams with interest.
The Pelicans and Rockets were two teams linked to Bazemore during the offseason, and both clubs still have a need on the wing. New Orleans could use Solomon Hill as a salary-matching piece, while Houston could use Brandon Knight‘s contract for matching purposes.
Marvin Williams, F
Charlotte Hornets
$14.09MM cap hit; $15MM player option for 2019/20
Williams checks a lot of the same boxes that Bazemore does — he’s a wing with good size who can knock down a three-pointer and switch between various positions on defense. He’s also a little less expensive. However, there are two roadblocks in the way of a potential Williams deal.
For one, the Hornets – unlike the Hawks – have serious playoff aspirations in 2018/19 and won’t want to surrender a reliable veteran who could help them get there. Secondly, Williams hasn’t exactly been boosting his trade stock so far. His 6.5 PPG and .371 FG% would both be career worsts, and if he doesn’t start playing better, he won’t help the Hornets win or net them anything in a trade.
Charlotte’s forward rotation will be worth watching this season. With rookie Miles Bridges looking great so far, it seems like just a matter of time until the Hornets part with at least one of Williams, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, or Nicolas Batum, if they can.
Dion Waiters, G
Miami Heat
$11.55MM cap hit; contract guaranteed through 2020/21
The Heat were already loaded with shooting guard depth and exploring ways to move Waiters even before Rodney McGruder emerged as a more reliable option early this season. Now the former fourth overall pick looks even more expendable.
Unfortunately for the Heat, the ankle injury that ended Waiters’ 2017/18 season early has kept him out of action so far this fall, and there’s no indication of when he might return to action. The 26-year-old’s contract, which still has two years left after this season, will probably still create negative value even after he gets healthy, but if he’s able to get back on the court and show off some of the talent that earned him that four-year investment in the first place, it’d go a long way toward rebuilding his stock.
The Timberwolves, for instance, might view a Jimmy Butler offer of Josh Richardson, a first-round pick, and Waiters much more favorably if they thought they could count on Waiters to stay on the court and contribute.
Previously:
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- Much hasn’t changed for Hassan Whiteside and the Heat this season, as his spurts of strong statistical outputs are mixed in with inconsistent playing time. As Ira Winderman points out for The Sun Sentinel, Whiteside is near the top of the league in rebounds and blocks per game, yet will still receive the short end of the stick from game-to-game, which will be something to monitor moving forward.
Goran Dragic was expected to return to the court today but because of lingering foot pain, he won’t practice with the Heat nor play in the game against the Hawks tonight.
“I feel like it’s frustrating but just need to think about the future. So it’s still sore, so hopefully, go day by day and see what happens,” Dragic said (via Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel).
Miami hopes Dragic will be able to play against Detroit on Sunday, though the team will continue to take the long view rather than rushing him back on the court. While Dragic is the only true point guard on the roster, coach Erik Spoelstra believes the team has all it needs despite not having another traditional floor general.
“We have a lot of ball handlers,” Spoelstra said. “If anything, our roster has as much depth with ball handling and playmaking as any conventional team would with specific point guards.
“Additionally, the league is changing. It really is becoming less position oriented. I’m having enough challenges getting the ball spread around to guys. It seems like half of my roster wants to bring the ball up and initiate offense. So when Goran is out, it will give other guys opportunities to do that. But that extends to our frontcourt. We have frontcourt players that also handle the ball quite a bit.”
Miami had a Briante Weber, an experience, defensive-minded point guard, on the roster during training camp but elected to release him.