Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Notes: Whiteside, Andersen, D-League

November 3rd, 2015 at 9:59am CST by Dana Gauruder

Center Hassan Whiteside, poised to hit free agency in the summer, is the biggest weapon for the Heat when opponents utilize smaller lineups against them, according to Ethan J. Skolnick of the Miami Herald. Whiteside had 25 points and 15 rebounds when Miami staged a second-half rally on Sunday against the Rockets, who tried to play small ball against them, Skolnick continues. “That’s the thing with Hassan, he’s a conventional center but he’s a mobile center,” point guard Mario Chalmers told the team’s beat reporters. “He’s able to move, get blocks, get out on the perimeter if he wants to. So [small-ball] plays into our hands a little bit.” Veteran shooting guard Dwyane Wade concurs that the Heat can handle the small-ball strategies by unleashing Whiteside, Skolnick adds. “I’m sure there will be moments where they’re gonna get us on it, and it’s gonna affect us, but we can’t take him off the floor,” Wade said to Skolnick. “He means so much to our defense.”

In other news regarding the Heat:

Backup center and trade candidate Chris Andersen did not play in the first three games but Spoelstra anticipates that he’ll soon get opportunities, Winderman adds in the same piece. “We’re not going to, on every night, suit up every center. That’s not an indictment on anybody,” Spoelstra said. “That’s not a storyline at all, it really isn’t. He practiced [Monday] and he’ll be ready, and when his number’s called, he’ll produce, as we have full confidence in that.”
All but one of the six players the Heat released during the preseason have joined their D-League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, tweets Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Greg Whittington, Keith Benson, Briante Weber, Corey Hawkins and Tre Kelley are all on the Skyforce’s training camp roster. The only released player not to join the Skyforce is veteran point guard John Lucas III. Miami claimed the D-League rights to Whittington, Benson, Weber and Hawkins through the affiliate player rule, while the Heat already had the D-League rights to Kelley.

Southeast Notes: Wizards, Heat, Hawks

November 1st, 2015 at 2:00pm CST by Will Joseph

This is an important year for Wizards coach Randy Wittman, who has been referred to as “old-school” with a defense-first philosophy, but has adjusted his philosophy to fit his roster with the implementation of more speed and more shooting, Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post writes in an in-depth piece. The season is key for Wittman, as Castillo points out, because his contract is only partially guaranteed for next season. Players are in favor of Wittman’s approach to having an offense suit the skills of the players he has, Castillo adds.

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

While the Heat need Hassan Whiteside, who is set to hit unrestricted free agency in July 2016, as a rebounder and shot-blocker, Miami has enough depth to play the hot hand if the center is struggling or seemingly sulking, Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald writes. Such was the case in the Heat’s season opener when head coach Erik Spoelstra elected to go with Udonis Haslem after the Hornets‘ Al Jefferson had his way with Whiteside, Skolnick adds.
Tim Hardaway Jr., whom the Hawks acquired in June in a draft-night trade with the Knicks, was inactive for the season-opener and since Atlanta gave up its first-round draft pick to obtain Hardaway, it will be a move under scrutiny, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays.
Speaking of Hardaway, the guard told Brian Lewis of the New York Post that he never received a reason for the trade and was surprised by the move. “No, nothing,” Hardaway said. “Just a call that said … I got a call from my agent first that broke the news to me. I was surprised. I was at Clyde Frazier’s. It was myself, Cleanthony Early, Langston Galloway, and some more of my friends. I was there for draft night, to see who we got — well, when I was part of the team, to see who we had. Then later on I didn’t know what was going to happen. It happened 30 seconds before they made the trade.’’

Southeast Rumors: Heat, Fournier, Batum, Wizards

October 31st, 2015 at 8:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Even though they’re facing a large luxury tax bill, the Heat should hold on to Mario Chalmers and Chris Andersen, writes Ethan Skolnick of The Miami Herald. He notes that although both players are drawing salaries beyond their expected contribution — $4.3MM for Chalmers and $5MM for Andersen — they have value for a Miami team that will need depth to become a threat in the East. The columnist points to Chalmers’ familiarity with the system, which gives him an advantage over younger guards like Tyler Johnson and Josh Richardson, and Andersen’s durability, which will come in handy if new addition Amar’e Stoudemire gets injured or cannot overcome his defensive lapses. Skolnick cautions that the Heat shouldn’t make moves that could be perceived as “skimping” while they’re trying to build a contender.

There’s more news from the Southeast Division:

Magic guard Evan Fournier can already feel a difference under new coach Scott Skiles, writes Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel. Even though Orlando is off to an 0-2 start, Fournier said the team’s role has been clearly defined. “I feel like we have an identity right now,” he said. “We are a defensive team and we share the ball offensively.” When asked about the team’s identity last season under coaches Jacques Vaughn and James Borrego, Fournier said, “We didn’t have one. We were basically looking for it throughout the whole season.”
The Hornets want their offense to run through Nicolas Batum, according to Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. Charlotte traded for Batum in June with the confidence that he could handle a playmaker’s role. “He comes across as a very quiet player, but he’s one of the most intense, competitive kids we had in our time in Portland,” said Hornets assistant GM Chad Buchanan, who worked with the Trail Blazers while Batum was there. “He internalizes that competitiveness. But he’s very driven to win, very team-first. He has a very high IQ, always knows what everyone on the court has to do and where they’re at. Such a student of the game.”
After being ousted from the playoffs last spring, the Wizards identified four strengths and tried to add players to complement them, writes Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. The team was rebuilt around John Wall‘s speed and passing, Bradley Beal‘s shooting, Otto Porter Jr.‘s cutting and Marcin Gortat‘s willingness to run the floor and get to the rim on pick-and-rolls.

Eastern Notes: Monroe, Mahinmi, Spoelstra

October 28th, 2015 at 6:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite meeting with the Knicks first during the free agent signing period this offseason, Greg Monroe dispelled the notion that New York was ever the frontrunner for his services, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News writes. “That was just the way it was scheduled,” Monroe said. “There was nothing extra. I wasn’t the only player teams were meeting with and that’s just how it fell in place.” David Falk, Monroe’s agent, regarding why his client chose the Bucks over the Knicks, told Bondy, “It wasn’t about presentation or marketing, It was about what Milwaukee already brought to the table.”

“The interest was definitely there [with the Knicks],” Monroe told the Daily News scribe. “I took an interest in everybody that was willing to meet with me. I don’t like to take anybody’s time for granted. I definitely didn’t take their time for granted. I made a decision based on the things that I was looking for and I wanted. At this point, I’d rather not [talk about it]. It doesn’t matter anymore. Any questions anybody has, I could honestly not care less. I’m happy with where I’m at. I definitely feel like I made the right decision.”

Here’s more from out of the Eastern Conference:

Ian Mahinmi, entering the final season of his contract and with the Pacers starting center job now his, worked tirelessly over the summer on his offensive game, particularly his shooting touch, as Gregg Doyel of the Indianapolis Star examines.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens has been the exception to the rule for college coaches coming to the NBA, as most of them have struggled, so Billy Donovan of the Thunder and Fred Hoiberg of the Bulls face a challenge to defy history, as Chris Kuc of the Chicago Tribune examines.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is the second longest tenured coach in the NBA behind Gregg Popovich, yet he enters this season needing to prove himself all over again now that the team has overhauled its roster and is in need of a new identity, Ethan J. Skolnick of The Miami Herald writes.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Southeast Notes: Schröder, Stoudemire, Marble

October 27th, 2015 at 3:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Hawks are among the six teams in action as the 2015/16 regular season gets underway tonight, though they’ll be hard-pressed to match the 60 wins they had last season. They also face a stiff challenge simply to win the Southeast Division, where the Heat and Wizards loom. See news on the Hawks and elsewhere from the Southeast as we count down the last few hours before tip-off:

The relationship between Jeff Teague and Dennis Schröder is solid, and people close to the situation tell Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders that they don’t anticipate locker room problems developing even in light of Schröder’s public desire for a starting job. Schröder recently told Sport Bild magazine in his native Germany that he would “explore other possibilities” if the Hawks don’t give him a chance to start, though he made it clear that he likes playing in Atlanta.
The Heat don’t plan to push Amar’e Stoudemire‘s body any more than the Knicks and Mavs did the past two seasons, when he missed a combined 32 games because of injury or rest, and the veteran big man will essentially be on a maintenance program, as Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald details. Miami invested only a one-year deal for the minimum in the former All-Star who turns 33 next month, far from the $20MM-plus he earned each of the last two years.
Devyn Marble made the opening night roster for the Magic, so the full guarantee on his minimum salary kicks in, as our schedule of salary guarantee dates shows. The 56th overall pick from 2014 still has a non-guaranteed minimum salary for 2016/17 left on his deal.
The arrival of new coach Scott Skiles places the pressure squarely on the players and the front office in Orlando, opines Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. The Magic “desperately” need to attract an All-Star in free agency but stand little shot of doing so if they don’t improve their win-loss record this year, Schmitz believes.

Southeast Notes: Johnson, Heat, Murry

October 25th, 2015 at 5:35pm CST by Will Joseph

Heat shooting guard Tyler Johnson will have his contract fully guaranteed for the season on opening night, becoming the 14th of the 15 players on the roster to have such security, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel reports. Winderman tweeted Saturday that the terms of Johnson’s contract were reworked so that his full guarantee kicks in with the start of the regular season instead of the leaguewide guarantee date in January.

Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:

In discussing the composition of the team’s roster Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said cutting John Lucas III was a tough decision, Winderman relays. Lucas was among five players the Heat waived educe Miami’s roster to 15 players, the regular season maximum.
Damien Wilkins, who was recently waived by the Hornets, has signed a deal overseas to play for Guaros de Lara of Venezuela, Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia reports. Wilkins, 35, had spent the 2012/13 season with the Sixers. He has played overseas and in the D-League since.
Toure’ Murry, who was waived by the Wizards, will start the season in the D-League, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports tweets.
Magic rookie Mario Hezonja seems to be adjusting well to life in the United States and the caliber of play in the league, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel writes. “He’s progressing for sure,” coach Scott Skiles said. “What we’ve been talking to him about is he has a tendency, like a lot of young players, [where] he checks into the game at whatever point we put him in and teams either go right at him or plays are occurring that he’s not yet comfortable with, and he gets taken advantage of often.”

Heat Keep James Ennis For Opener, Rework Deal

October 25th, 2015 at 12:21pm CST by Chuck Myron

SUNDAY, 12:21pm: The restructuring leaves Ennis with precisely 37% of his salary guaranteed for this season, according to Winderman (Twitter link).

4:50pm: Ennis will have 40% of this season’s salary guaranteed, Jackson clarifies (Twitter link).

4:12pm: The sides are still finalizing the changes to the contract, tweets Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.

SATURDAY 4:04pm: The Heat are keeping James Ennis for the start of the regular season after Ennis agreed to yet another change to the guarantee structure on his contract, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Ennis was to have received a full guarantee on his $845,059 salary if he stuck on the roster for opening night under the terms of the modifications he and the Heat made to his deal over the summer. Instead, his salary will be partially guaranteed for about half its full value, according to Jackson. It’s unclear if the sides agreed to a date on which the full salary would kick in or if that would take place on the leaguewide guarantee date January 10th.

Ennis, who spent the preseason on a non-guaranteed deal, initially was to have received 50% of his salary for this season if he remained on the roster through August 1st, but the sides did away with that trigger this summer. The 25-year-old swingman struggled in summer league but bounced back somewhat during the preseason. He carries potential, having been the 50th overall pick in 2013.

The latest change to Miami’s deal with Ennis also moves up the date by which his salary for 2016/17 would become fully guaranteed. The new guarantee date for that season will come before July 1st, Jackson reports. It had previously been slated for August 1st.

The Heat have 15 players, including Ennis. That’s the regular season roster limit.

Heat Rumors: Whiteside, Green, Shooting, Chalmers

October 25th, 2015 at 11:10am CST by Arthur Hill

Several “happy accidents” have accelerated the Heat’s rebuilding process, according to Ethan Skolnick of The Miami Herald. The emergence of center Hassan Whiteside, who was signed last November after being waived by Memphis, was one of those developments, as was the unexpected drop in the draft by No. 10 pick Justise Winslow. That caused team president Pat Riley to focus less on the 2016 free agent class and try to build a contending team right away. However, Skolnick cautioned that if things don’t go as expected and the Heat get off to a poor start, Mario Chalmers or Chris Andersen could be moved quickly to cut the luxury tax bill.

There’s more news out of Miami:

It didn’t take Gerald Green long to earn the trust of coach Erik Spoelstra, Skolnick writes in a separate story. Green, who signed as a free agent in July, is with his eighth NBA franchise. He also spent time in China, Russia and the D-League, but thinks he has found a home in Miami. He plans to stay there by committing to defense. “I’m just trying to be the best defender I can be,” Green said. “Because I know offense comes easy for me. If I ‘D’ up, [Spoelstra] ain’t gonna take me off the floor, and then my offense is gonna show. As long as I ‘D’ up, I’m good.”
Failure to significantly improve its three-point shooting over the summer could sink the Heat’s season, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Green offered some hope by hitting 15 of 35 during preseason, but the Heat know they lack a consistent three-point threat. Josh McRoberts, who has also been mentioned as a trade candidate, said he plans to help in that area. “I think it’s a possibility I may have to take more,” McRoberts said. “I think that was kind of why I took more and more threes in Charlotte when I was there, because we had kind of similar situation, where we didn’t a bunch of shooting.”
Chalmers also vows to help with three-pointers, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. His shooting average from distance dipped to 29% last year after reaching 40.9% and 38.5% the two previous seasons. “I will never shoot 29 percent again [on three-pointers] for a season,” he said. “I can tell you that. I took 500 to 1000 shots a day, mostly threes, this summer. I got to work on my form, perfect my technique.”

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Miami Heat

Heat Cut Lucas, Benson, Kelley, Weber, Whittington

October 24th, 2015 at 12:42pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat have waived the non-guaranteed deals of John Lucas III, Keith Benson, Tre Kelley, Briante Weber and Greg Whittington, the team announced (Twitter link). The moves reduce Miami’s roster to 15 players, the regular season maximum. James Ennis is the only remaining Heat player without any guaranteed salary, so today’s moves put him in strong position to make the opening night roster. If the team indeed keeps him through Monday, his salary would become fully guaranteed. Tyler Johnson is also with the Heat on a partially guaranteed deal. The rest of Miami’s 13 players have full guarantees.

Lucas was by far the most experienced of the Heat’s camp invitees, as the 32-year-old point guard was attempting to make it into his ninth NBA season. He didn’t impress in preseason action, going scoreless in about 16 minutes of action in his lone appearance, dishing out one assist and committing one turnover.

Benson, 27, joined Miami on his first NBA contract in three years. The center was efficient during the preseason, averaging 5.8 points and 5.6 rebounds in 11.8 minutes across five appearances.

The 30-year-old Kelley was on his second contract with the Heat after having briefly joined the club before the 2008/09 season. The combo guard averaged 3.5 points, 4.0 assists and 1.5 turnovers in 13.8 minutes per game in a pair of preseason contests.

Weber, 22, signed with the team just this week after his inability to pass a physical scuttled an earlier deal between the sides. The undrafted combo guard who tore his ACL, MCL and meniscus in his right knee while playing for VCU in January didn’t see any preseason playing time.

Whittington went undrafted this June and joined the Heat for summer league the next month. The 22-year-old power forward averaged 2.8 points and 4.8 rebounds in 16.1 minutes per game across four preseason appearances.

Southeast Notes: Weber, Hardaway Jr., Webster

October 22nd, 2015 at 10:19pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Martell Webster‘s injury woes may end up costing him some guaranteed salary, J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic relays. The final season of Webster’s four-year, $22MM deal with the Wizards includes an incentive clause that stipulates that he has to appear in a total of 180 regular season contests during the first three years of the arrangement, or else his full guarantee will be downgraded to a partial guarantee of $2MM, which is less than 50% of what Webster’s contract calls for in 2016/17, Michael notes. Webster played 78 and 32 games in the first two years of his deal, which means that he’d need to make 70 appearances this season to meet his contractual goal, an unrealistic expectation given the Wizards’ depth at forward and his current health status, the CSN scribe opines.

Here’s more out of the Southeast:

Briante Weber‘s minimum salary deal with the Heat is for one year and includes no guaranteed money, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (via Twitter).
Hawks swingman Tim Hardaway Jr. has struggled to find his shooting stroke during the preseason, but he’ll still be given ample opportunities to prove himself this season given the high price Atlanta paid to obtain him, writes Kris Willis of SB Nation’s Peachtree Hoops.
Magic coach Scott Skiles believes that second-year combo forward Aaron Gordon will be a difference-maker for the team this season, John Denton of NBA.com writes. Orlando is hoping that Gordon will be able to play small forward full time which would allow the team to shift Tobias Harris to power forward, Denton adds. “I want to get [Gordon] to play with Tobias some. It’s not like we’re doubting that they can play together because we know that they can, but it’s just a matter of actually going out there and doing it,’’ Skiles said. “Then, it’s about figuring out after Friday who we want to start opening night and things like that [with the rotations].’’