Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Mutual Interest Between Lakers, Dwyane Wade

June 21st, 2015 at 5:40pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Lakers and Dwyane Wade have mutual interest, reports Chris Mannix of SI.com, citing league sources (Twitter link). Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald previously reported that associates of Wade had identified the Lakers as a strong alternative if the Heat and its long-tenured shooting guard can’t come to terms (Twitter link), and it appears that the Lakers would like to take Wade up on the idea. Many execs nonetheless see Wade’s push for more than the Heat are willing to give as saber rattling, Mannix hears, pointing out in a second tweet that it’s difficult to envision the Lakers providing Wade with a better chance to win than he has in Miami. However, the Lakers have the cap flexibility necessary to give the Henry Thomas client the $20MM salaries that he’s apparently eyeing on a three-year deal.

Wade, who has a $16.125MM player option for next season and has hinted that he’ll opt out, is open to leaving the Heat, who’d prefer he opt in, as Jackson reported last month. A friend of Wade’s told Jackson that the Heat, if he won’t opt in, would like him to sign a deal worth $16MM next season and $10MM in each of the next two.

The Lakers have only about $35MM in guaranteed salary for next season against a projected $67.1MM cap. They wouldn’t have enough left over to sign Wade to the sort of salary he’s looking for if they land another marquee target, like LaMarcus Aldridge or Kevin Love, without making some sort of salary-clearing trade. Presumably Wade, at 33 and with persistent knee concerns, is farther down the list of would-be targets, though the Lakers are also reportedly likely to chase Heat backcourt mate Goran Dragic, who’d be more likely to leave Miami if Wade does, as Jackson reported. The Heat are planning a five-year offer worth more than $80MM that’s less than the max for Dragic.

Wade’s father, who went as far as to appear in public wearing a Cavs T-shirt, has dropped vague hints that the Heat star is ready to leave Miami, as Ananth Pandian of CBSSports.com observes, though Wade himself, at least at the time of Jackson’s initial report last month, prefers to stay in Miami, all things being equal. We invited Hoops Rumors readers to discuss the issue as part of a recent Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround.

Heat Rumors: Wade, Kaminsky, Dragic

June 21st, 2015 at 9:54am CST by Arthur Hill

Dealing players for draft picks could be a simple solution for meeting Dwyane Wade‘s salary demands, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Wade has one year left on his contract at $16.1MM, but he can opt out and is seeking a maximum deal of an estimated $23.5MM. Winderman writes that the Heat could give Wade what he wants and move salary elsewhere to keep their payroll in the same area. He mentions Mario Chalmers [due $4.3MM next season], Chris Andersen [$5MM], Josh McRoberts [$5.5MM] and Udonis Haslem [$2.85MM] as potential trade candidates.

There’s more this morning from South Beach:

Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky has the skills and maturity that appeal to Heat president Pat Riley, Winderman writes in a separate story. Miami already has Chris Bosh at power forward, backed up by McRoberts and Haslem, but Kaminsky is the type of player who could fit the system, especially if one of the veterans is traded. Winderman has Kaminsky ranked as the second-best power forward in the draft, behind Kristaps Porzingis of Latvia.
Two opt-in decisions this week make it more important than ever for the Heat to keep Wade, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. The Pelicans’ Eric Gordon and the Hornets’ Gerald Henderson both chose to delay free agency and stay with their current teams, meaning there are two fewer options for the Heat if Wade decides to leave Miami. Jackson lists the top potentially available shooting guards as Wesley Matthews, Danny Green, Arron Afflalo and Monta Ellis. Afflalo hasn’t made a decision on opting out, but Miami is interested in him, Jackson writes, and he cites Dirk Nowitzki as predicting Ellis will opt out. But even if the Heat were to lose Wade, they would not have the cap space to sign any of those four, leaving a sign-and-trade as their best option.
Miami’s reported offer to Goran Dragic could put him back in play for the Lakers, speculates Ben Rosales of SB Nation. The Heat are expected to make Dragic a five-year offer in the neighborhood of $80MM, which would be far less than the maximum of more than $100MM. Both figures are estimated until the end of the moratorium next month. The Lakers, Rosales notes, have expressed a willingness to give Dragic a full max deal, which for them would be four years at an estimated $85MM.

And-Ones: Payne, Rodriguez, Johnson

June 19th, 2015 at 10:35pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Potential lottery pick Cameron Payne suffered a non-displaced fracture in the ring finger of his right hand during a pre-draft workout for the Nuggets on Monday, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress reports. The point guard visited a hand specialist, and it was determined that it was a clean fracture that will not require surgery, and the former Murray State player will sit out the next three weeks as a precautionary measure, Givony notes. “Cam continued to work out even after suffering the injury in Denver, and he could probably play in a meaningful game tomorrow if he needed to,” Payne’s agent Travis King told Givony.

Here’s more from around the league:

Former NBA coach Avery Johnson acknowledged earlier this week that if he had waited until after the NBA season ended, he would have likely landed a head coach position in the league, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes. ”I know without a shadow of a doubt, that if I had waited, there would have been a high probability I would have got an NBA job based upon the conversations my agent was having with some people,” Johnson told Reid. ”But the main thing is that there is no turning back. I’m here at the University of Alabama and this is the right situation.” Johnson has coached the Mavericks and the Nets, and he owns a career regular season record of 254-186.
Texas big man Myles Turner is scheduled to work out for the Pistons on Saturday, the Heat on Monday, and the Knicks on Tuesday, Dwain Price of The Star Telegram relays (Twitter link).
Real Madrid’s Sergio Rodriguez, who is considered the top point guard in Europe, plans to try and secure an NBA deal this summer, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports. NBA front-office executives regard Rodriguez as an elite backup playmaker in the NBA, and his representatives at CAA began calling teams today to gauge initial market interest for Rodriguez, Wojnarowski adds. The 28-year-old’s contract with Real Madrid contains an NBA buyout provision that isn’t expected to become an obstacle, the Yahoo! scribe relays. Rodriguez last played in the NBA during the 2009/10 season, appearing in 66 contests split between the Knicks and the Kings.

Eastern Rumors: Lou Williams, Boozer, LeBron

June 17th, 2015 at 10:16am CST by Chuck Myron

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald expects Lou Williams to reach out to the Heat, among others, in free agency this summer. Still, the Heat are unlikely to have the cap space to afford the reigning Sixth Man of the Year unless two among Dwyane Wade, Goran Dragic and Luol Deng leave the team this summer, Jackson notes. Otherwise, Miami would be limited to either the $5.464MM non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception or the $3.376MM taxpayer’s mid-level. Neither would probably be enough to land the Wallace Prather client who’s likely seeking a significant raise on his $5.45MM salary with the Raptors from this past season. Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Someone close to Carlos Boozer told Jackson that he wouldn’t be surprised if the power forward signed with the Heat this summer, though Jackson asserts, as he writes in the same piece, that it would almost certainly be a minimum-salary deal if he were to go to Miami.
LeBron James has taken a detached, passive-aggressive stance to expressing his views on the moves his teams make during offseasons in which he’s been a free agent in the past, but the Cavs want him to give direct input this summer, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com details. James is likely to opt out and sign another two-year deal with a player option on year two, Windhorst writes, seconding what Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group wrote was a widespread expectation during the season, preferring leverage for himself over comfort for the team.
The Knicks would love to acquire an extra pick, whether in the first round or the second, a source told Marc Berman of the New York Post.
Thanasis Antetokounmpo, whom the Knicks drafted 51st overall last year, would consider signing overseas instead of again playing in the D-League, as his did this past season, if the Knicks don’t sign him to their NBA roster this offseason, agent Tim Lotsos tells Berman for the same piece.

And-Ones: Lockout, Gentry, Pointer

June 16th, 2015 at 10:00am CST by Chuck Myron

Commissioner Adam Silver signaled Sunday night that he doesn’t anticipate a lockout taking place in 2017, when the league and the union can opt out of the collective bargaining agreement, as Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com details. Players association executive director Michele Roberts said last week that the sides will begin negotiations this summer toward a new labor deal.

“I think we have a very fair deal right now,” Silver said. “I think the deal is designed to pay players a percentage of revenue so it self-adjusts as revenue goes up. And when the new television deal kicks in in 2016/17, the players are going to be averaging over $8MM a year. I think, again, it’s a fair deal. If there’s things they want to talk about, of course we’ll talk about them. But I’m not overly concerned. I think we’ve got a great thing going right now. I think both sides recognize that.”

Here’s more from around the league:

Warriors GM Bob Myers admits that if there hadn’t been such a lengthy break before the start of the NBA Finals, the team might not have allowed Alvin Gentry to have the second interview with the Pelicans that led New Orleans to hire him as head coach, as Myers tells TNT’s David Aldridge, who writes in his Morning Tip for NBA.com.
The Lakers, Wizards and Sixers are the upcoming teams on the predraft workout docket for St. John’s small forward Sir’Dominic Pointer, reveals Josh Newman of SNY.tv.
St. Bonaventure center Youssou Ndoye, if drafted, is willing to sign overseas and become a draft-and-stash prospect if an NBA team so desires, reports Shams Charania of RealGM. Ndoye faces long odds to hear his name called on draft night, as neither Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress nor Chad Ford of ESPN.com ranks him. He worked out for the Clippers on Monday and is set to do so for the Jazz today after showing off for the Knicks last week, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Charania adds the Sixers, Mavericks, Heat, Spurs and Wizards to the list of teams working him out, which includes previously reported auditions with the Nets and Grizzlies.
Shooting guard Bobby Ray Parks Jr., who took the unconventional route of playing collegiately in the Philippines rather than the U.S., will work out for the Mavericks, Hawks and Celtics in addition to previously reported workouts with the Nets and Jazz, as Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune details.

Southeast Notes: Griffin, Heat, Hornets

June 15th, 2015 at 6:21pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Magic and Bulls assistant coach Adrian Griffin have agreed to a deal that will make Griffin the lead assistant on Orlando’s bench, reports Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune first reported that the Magic were considering Griffin.

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

Myles Turner of Texas worked out for the Heat, owner of the 10th overall pick, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes.
The Hornets worked out Shane Heyward of Columbus State, instead of Jonathan Holmes of Texas, as had been reported, in their six-man workout today, the team detailed via press release.
Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post adds Bobby Portis to the list of players working out for the Hawks (Twitter link). Portis will do so on Friday, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).
Sam Dekker worked out for the Hawks today, reports Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
Quinnipiac forward Ousmane Drame replaced LSU’s Jarell Martin in a workout for the Wizards today, as reflected in a team announcement that showed Drame’s name, and not Martin’s among today’s workout participants for Washington. Martin’s name appeared on the list the team posted on Friday, as we noted. That lends credence to a report this weekend from Kennedy that Martin is shutting down all of his workouts after receiving a promise from a team picking in the middle of the first round that they’ll draft him.

Will Joseph contributed to this post.

Heat Rumors: Wade, Draft, Chalmers

June 14th, 2015 at 10:54am CST by Arthur Hill

Miami’s need to keep Dwyane Wade gives him an advantage in negotiations, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Jackson explains that if Luol Deng decides to opt in for $10.1MM next season and both Wade and Goran Dragic leave in free agency, the Heat would have less than $10MM available to replace them. If Deng opts in, Miami would have $56MM committed to 11 players, and possibly more if the team picks up Michael Beasley‘s player option for nearly $1.3MM. If Wade leaves and Dragic stays, Jackson notes, the Heat would be capped out and would have just a $5.5MM mid-level exception to offer free agents, which could attract someone like Danny Green or Mike Dunleavy. If Deng, Wade and Dragic leave, Miami would only have $20MM available to replace all three. Jackson speculates that the Heat could try to trade Josh McRoberts, who is due $5.5MM next season, or Chris Andersen, who will make $5MM, to free up cap room.

There’s more offseason news from South Beach:

The Heat could be crossing their fingers on draft night and hoping the Hornets don’t take Kentucky’s Devin Booker, Jackson writes in the same story. Booker, considered among the best shooters in the draft, visited both Miami and Charlotte last week and would help fill the Heat’s need for a three-point marksman. The Hornets hold the No. 9 pick, one spot ahead of Miami.
This week’s trade that sent Ersan Ilyasova from the Bucks to the Pistons for Caron Butler and Shawne Williams could impact the Heat, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Miami was interested in signing Butler when he was bought out by Milwaukee in February of 2014, although that interest may have lessened now that he has turned 35. Also, the Pistons now have a lineup hole at small forward, which could make them competitors with Miami in the draft and free agency. With the No. 8 pick, Detroit is two spots ahead of the Heat.
Mario Chalmers could be the player the Heat decide to move to clear cap space, Winderman writes in a separate story. If the Heat believe Shabazz Napier and either Zoran Dragic or Tyler Johnson can be sufficient backups to Dragic and Wade, that could make Chalmers expendable.

Eastern Notes: Heat, Wizards, Anthony

June 13th, 2015 at 11:15pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Heat own the No. 10 overall pick in the upcoming draft and Surya Fernandez of Fox Sports Florida wonders if the team should trade its lottery pick. Fernandez cites Dwyane Wade‘s age and the urgency to win now as reason for the dilemma. If the Heat keep the selection, Fernandez believes they are likely to draft a guard to complement Wade and Goran Dragic, assuming the latter re-signs with Miami.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Heat will work out Trey Lyles, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel (Twitter link). Arthur Hill of Hoops Rumors recently profiled the Kentucky forward.
Martell Webster didn’t have the sort of season he or the Wizards envisioned, but his contract, with a guarantee of almost $5.614MM for 2015/16, is one reason Brandon Parker of The Washington Post cites as he posits that the Wizards are unlikely to trade the 28-year-old this summer.
Carmelo Anthony says his rehab from left knee surgery is progressing well, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “Rehab is going very, very well. I’m actually ahead of schedule [compared] to where everybody predicted I would be at this point in time,” Anthony said.

Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 6/11/15

June 11th, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Some of the greatest joys of being a sports fan, besides your favorite team winning the championship, are the debates that arise between fellow sports nuts along the way. It’s with this in mind that we at Hoops Rumors want to provide a forum for basketball fanatics to voice their opinions, debate trending topics, and simply hang out with like-minded hoops aficionados. We’ll be posting a topic for discussion on weeknights, and we hope that this will become a regular part of your sports day.

Of course, there will be differing opinions from time to time. While we absolutely encourage lively discussion and debate, we do expect everyone to treat each other with respect. So, please refrain from inappropriate language, personal insults or attacks, as well as the other taboo types of discourse laid out in our site’s commenting policy. Speaking of commenting: we’ve made it much easier to leave a comment here at Hoops Rumors. Just put in your name, email address, and comment and submit it; there is no need to become a registered user.

Now that I’ve gotten the preamble and the fine print out of the way, it’s time to open the floor for our first topic: Dwyane Wade‘s contract situation with the Heat…

The Heat and Wade have been talking and there appears to be a significant difference in what the two sides believe Wade’s next deal should be worth, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. The latest report from Jackson pegged the proposed deal at $16MM for 2015/16, and then $10MM for each of the remaining seasons. This is far from the reported $20MM per season that Wade is seeking.

Wade has played the part of the good soldier for the Heat in the past, accepting lower salaries on his previous contracts so that the team would have greater flexibility to construct its roster. The guard likely did so with the understanding, or at the very least, the hope, that his loyalty would be rewarded down the line. There is a chance that if the organization does not up its offer to Wade, he’ll opt out of his deal this summer and head elsewhere.

So the question I’m asking you today is this: How should Miami handle Wade’s contract situation? Should the Heat pay Wade what he wants as a reward for his past service? Or should the team hold fast and risk losing a 33-year-old player who has averaged just 58 contests over his last four seasons, despite him being the face of the franchise? Head to the comments section below to voice your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say.

Eastern Notes: Kirk, Boylen, Porzingis

June 11th, 2015 at 9:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons got an early jump on their offseason today, acquiring Ersan Ilyasova from the Bucks in exchange for Caron Butler and Shawne Williams. Milwaukee GM John Hammond had nothing but praise for the departed big man, Charles F. Gardner and Matt Velazquez of The Journal Sentinel write. “Ersan always represented this organization and this community in a first-class manner,” Hammond said. “He gave 100% night in and night out. We wish Ersan nothing but the best as he continues his career in Detroit.” Here’s more out of the East:

The Bulls are pursuing San Antonio assistant Jim Boylen to become the top assistant on coach Fred Hoiberg‘s staff, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports. Chicago has received permission from the Spurs to speak to Boylen, league sources told Wojnarowski. Chicago has expressed a willingness to discuss the title of associate head coach with Boylen, the Yahoo! scribe adds.
The Nets held pre-draft workouts today for Dakari Johnson (Kentucky), George Lucas (Brazil), Lucas Dias Silva (Brazil), Josh Gasser (Wisconsin), and Luis Montero (Westchester CC), Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops tweets.
Center Alex Kirk worked out for the Knicks today with the hope he can earn an invite to training camp, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv writes. “I’m not going to come in and try to score 30 points and try to do some of these amazing things that these other guys are going to try to do,” Kirk told Basketball Insiders (video link). “I just want to come in and be Alex Kirk and try to play as hard as I possibly can and hopefully that turns into some training camp offers and just see where that goes from there.” Kirk was waived by New York shortly after being acquired from the Cavaliers this past season.
The Knicks will be one of a number of teams attending a workout for Kristaps Porzingis in Las Vegas this Friday, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com relays (Twitter links). This is likely to be Prozingis’ only pre-draft showcase, Begley notes. Also participating in the workout will be Myles Turner (Texas) and Jarell Martin (LSU), the ESPN scribe relays.
Kansas swingman Kelly Oubre plans to work out for the Heat in the near future, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel relays. You can see our full prospect profile for Oubre here.