Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Rumors: Pacers, Heat, Humphries

August 13th, 2014 at 9:30pm CST by Cray Allred

The biggest remaining free agent name from an Eastern Conference team is Greg Monroe, and the big man is reportedly close to accepting a qualifying offer to remain with the Pistons for what would almost assuredly be his final year in Detroit. Here’s a rundown of other notes out of the East:

In a reader chat response, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders says he hears that the Pacers are working the phones and gauging interest in their players for trades.
Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel suggests that, outside of financial limitations, the Heat haven’t signed some of the better remaining free agents because team cohesiveness is being prioritized over talent for end-of-the-bench spots. Winderman says an abundance of quality players vying for playing time in Miami has created tension in recent years.
Kris Humphries told reporters including Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post that his time in Boston made him a more efficient player, and that he’s excited to play for the up-and-coming Wizards this season. “I talked to Brad all the time and it’s just one of those things where, ‘Man, you got me a lot better,’” said Humphries. “Handling the ball, making plays, things like that. Shooting. I’m grateful for that. I’m grateful for the opportunity to keep playing in a lot of situations like the one I was in.”

Toure’ Murry Close To Deal With Jazz

August 13th, 2014 at 5:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

WEDNESDAY, 5:30pm: The Jazz are finalizing the deal with Murry, writes Stein, who adds that the Lakers were also interested in the guard’s services.

5:53pm: Murry’s agent, Bernie Lee, said the report of a pending deal with the Jazz is “news to him,” notes Jody Genessy of the Deseret News (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 5:31pm: Toure’ Murry is close to signing a two-year, $2MM deal with the Utah Jazz, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Murry had also been pursued by the Heat, and his former team, the Knicks, notes Stein. Murry will be able to provide depth at both guard positions for the Jazz, and will compete for playing time off the bench.

Utah will most likely begin the season with Trey Burke as the starting point guard, and Alec Burks at the two guard position. No. 5 overall pick, Dante Exum, will begin his career at shooting guard, but the franchise hopes he can develop his ball-handling and decision-making skills enough to eventually shift over to the point.

Last year, his first season in the league, Murry appeared in 51 games for the Knicks, and averaged 2.7 PPG, 0.9 RPG, and 1.0 APG, while logging 7.3 minutes a night. His slash line was .434/.417/.590.

Heat Sign Reggie Williams

August 12th, 2014 at 3:02pm CST by Eddie Scarito

AUGUST 12TH: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

AUGUST 7TH, 5:53pm: Williams and the Heat have agreed to the deal, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link). It’ll be a one-year contract.

5:45pm: Free agent swingman Reggie Williams is nearing a deal with the Heat, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links). Williams will provide Miami with some scoring punch off the bench, notes Wojnarowski. The 6’6″, 27 year-old went undrafted out of Virginia Military Institute back in 2008.

In parts of five seasons in the league, Williams has played for the Warriors, Hornets, and most recently, the Thunder. He appeared in three games last season for Oklahoma City, averaging 3.7 PPG, while making 55.6% of his field goal attempts. Williams also appeared in 25 games for Tulsa in the NBA D-League last year, where he averaged 20.1 PPG, 5.7 RPG, and 4.9 APG.

For his career, Williams has averaged 8.5 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 1.6 APG. His career slash line is .460/.371/.743.

Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images.

East Notes: Melo, Oden, Knicks, DeRozan

August 11th, 2014 at 8:34pm CST by Zachary Links

Like most Knicks fans, Carmelo Anthony isn’t expecting to win it all this season, as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “I don’t expect to win a championship this year,” Anthony said in an article posted on PrimeraHora.com and translated by ESPN Deportes’ Marly Rivera. “That is something that takes time and everything has to be (synchronized) — from the front office to the players. We have a lot of work to do but that is something that motivates me. I know that we can start creating the basis for what (we want) to accomplish eventually. And this is a great start for the process.” Anthony was said to be prioritizing winning in his free agent decision and while he ostensibly expects to win a ring in New York, he knows it won’t happen overnight. More from the Eastern Conference..

Free agent center Greg Oden has been charged with felony battery, misdemeanor domestic battery, and misdemeanor battery resulting in serious bodily injury after allegedly punching his ex-girlfriend in the face during a fight, according to The Associated Press. The former No. 1 pick spent last season with the Heat but basketball is probably the furthest thing from the 26-year-old’s mind at the moment.
Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com looked at where the Knicks stand in terms of management. The suits earn high marks thanks to James Dolan’s willingness to spend and president Phil Jackson’s championship clout. However, there are obstacles, including Jackson’s lack of experience in this role and potential clashing between him and Dolan.
Raptors star DeMar DeRozan kept hearing from the critics in 2012 when he inked a four-year, $38MM deal, but he has continued to improve thanks to his tireless work ethic, writes Holly MacKenzie of Raptors.com.

And-Ones: Gaddy, Heat, Wiggins

August 10th, 2014 at 12:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the soon-to-be blockbuster trade that will see Kevin Love head to Cleveland to play alongside LeBron James approaching the date it can be made official, the debate now begins as to who is the team to beat in the Eastern Conference. Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders breaks down the contenders and their chances to reach the NBA Finals.

Here’s more from around the league:

Abdul Gaddy has signed a one-year deal to play for Virtus Bologna in the Italian Lega A, reports Chris Reichert of SB Nation. Gaddy most recently had played for the Pelicans in the NBA’s summer league, averaging 5.2 PPG and 3.2 APG while logging 15.9 minutes per contest. Last season, Gaddy played for the Maine Red Claws in the NBA D-League, appearing in 46 games, and averaging 9.0 PPG, 3.2 RPG and 5.0 APG in 27 minutes per game.
Despite losing LeBron to the Cavs this offseason, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel doesn’t believe it signifies the Heat organization has lost its luster. Winderman believes potential free agents will care more about how the current players are performing, and how well the franchise fares in upcoming drafts, rather than entertaining the perception that Miami isn’t an attractive place to play anymore.
According to Kansas coach Bill Self, Andrew Wiggins is the best natural athlete who has ever played for him, writes Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune. While Wiggins has been aware of all the trade talk revolving around him, Self said playing in Minnesota will give his former player plenty of room to grow. Self also added, “That’s the way he [Wiggins] sees it. He’s happy. Don’t anybody feel sorry for him. I’m not saying he hasn’t been in limbo and that it hasn’t, at times, been frustrating. But he told me, ‘Coach, I’m good with this.’ He told me that two weeks ago.’’

Eastern Rumors: Deng, Monroe, ‘Melo, Celtics

August 9th, 2014 at 4:15pm CST by Charlie Adams

Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel sat down with a league scout who believes that the Heat had a respectable offseason, even with the loss of LeBron James. The scout sees Luol Deng as a valuable piece for Miami to build around, even if he won’t generally be the club’s first or second scoring option. More from around the East..

Greg Monroe still isn’t sure if he’s going to be playing for the Pistons or not next season, as he tells Matt Dollinger of Sports Illustrated that the he isn’t sure how contract negotiations will end up.
The Knicks have been able to upgrade their roster this offseason, but Carmelo Anthony acknowledged that he doesn’t expect to win a title this season, notes Raul Alzaga of Primera Hora (translation via Basketball Insiders). ‘Melo is looking forward to next summer, when New York will have more cap space to work with, adds Alzaga.
Although the Celtics’ offseason lacked any major player movement, C’s owner Wyc Grousbeck was still pleased with the front office’s effort, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. “I said we’d try for fireworks and we tried,” Grousbeck said. “I’m reasonably content that first of all we tried as hard as we could and second of all we added some good pieces. But we have maintained our draft picks and we’ve maintained more building in the future as opposing to firing all the bullets now… We’re going to have to go the more patient route.“

And-Ones: Parsons, Heat, Southerland, Pistons

August 8th, 2014 at 2:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Chandler Parsons was an all-around contributor for the Rockets, averaging 16.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists this past season, but that sort of production isn’t why the Mavs gave him a near-max offer sheet that Houston declined to match. They’re confident he can be a “far better” player than he was with the Rockets, as owner Mark Cuban said, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. While we wait to see whether Parsons proves worthy of Cuban’s investment, here’s more from around the league:

The Heat will likely sign a center for the reserve role that Greg Oden played last season, writes Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Andray Blatche is available, but the Heat have shied away from him in the past because they’ve disliked his maturity level and behavior, according to Jackson, who seconds the notion that the Heat are unlikely to re-sign Oden following Oden’s arrest Thursday.
The contract that James Southerland signed Thursday with the Blazers is a one-year, non-guaranteed pact, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM. That means it’s a summer contract, as I speculated. It also fits the stipulations required to make it an Exhibit 9 contract, though it’s not necessarily one.
Former NBA players Tim Hardaway Sr. and Malik Allen will serve as assistant coaches for the Pistons next season, the team announced. The Pistons also announced the hiring of former Knicks executive Jeff Nix as assistant general manager. He’ll serve alongside fellow assistant GM Brian Wright underneath president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy and GM Jeff Bower.

And-Ones: Kings, Felton, Knicks, Singleton, Oden

August 7th, 2014 at 2:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Lost in the noise surrounding the agreement between the Cavs and Wolves to send Kevin Love to Cleveland is a trade that actually became official Wednesday. The Kings can create a pair of trade exceptions from their deal with the Knicks, one worth $915,243 for Quincy Acy‘s salary, and another worth $228,660 for the difference between the salaries of Travis Outlaw and Wayne Ellington. The Knicks, limited in part because they’re a taxpaying team, can only make a tiny trade exception worth $32,920 for the difference between the three-year veteran’s minimum that Jeremy Tyler makes and the two-year veteran’s minimum that’s coming to Acy. Here’s more on the Knicks and other teams and players from around the league:

Mavs point guard Raymond Felton will serve a four-game suspension at the start of the regular season for his guilty plea to gun-related charges stemming from a February incident, the league announced via press release.
Knicks GM Steve Mills didn’t rule out further moves, but he said Wednesday that the team is satisfied with its backcourt situation after alleviating a logjam with the trade, as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com chronicles.
The Wizards no longer have free agent Chris Singleton in their plans, a source tells J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Singleton nonetheless turned down an overseas offer in hopes of landing an NBA job, and has dropped agent Bill Duffy of BDA Sports in favor of Todd Ramasar from Stealth Sports, Michael also reports.
The Heat were unlikely to re-sign Greg Oden before his arrest this morning on misdemeanor battery charges, and the incident probably ends any chance he had of returning to the team, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes in a pair of tweets.
Mark Deeks of ShamSports clarifies an earlier report indicating that Jusuf Nurkic received less than the standard 120% of the rookie scale from the Nuggets. Denver is doling out the full 120%, but the team is using a portion of it to pay Nurkic’s buyout from his Croatian club, so while Nurkic is receiving less than 120% of the scale in actual salary, his cap figure will reflect that the Nuggets are paying 120%. The move is not unprecedented for a player picked as highly as Nurkic, who went 16th overall.

Heat Sign Tyler Johnson

August 7th, 2014 at 11:37am CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 11:37am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

WEDNESDAY, 2:48pm: It will be a two-year contract, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (on Twitter).

9:13am: The Heat and former Fresno State guard Tyler Johnson have struck a deal, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link). Hoops Rumors reported last week that Johnson had been drawing interest from multiple NBA teams who were impressed with his showing on Miami’s summer league roster. The terms of the deal aren’t immediately clear, though the Heat can hand out no more than a two-year contract for the minimum salary.

Johnson averaged 12.5 points in 22.7 minutes per game across 10 summer league appearances after going undrafted this past June. He notched 15.9 PPG in 33.6 MPG with 43.2% shooting from behind the three-point line this past season as a senior with the Bulldogs.

The Heat will surely make more additions between now and the start of camp, but as it stands, the client of agent Pedro Power seems to have a decent chance of making the opening-night roster, since Miami only has contracts or agreements with 13 other players. Only 11 of them have fully guaranteed deals.

Cavs Sign James Jones

August 5th, 2014 at 5:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

AUGUST 5TH: The signing is official, the team announced via its website.

JULY 16TH: The Cavs have struck a one-year deal with James Jones for the minimum salary, a source tells Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link). That means another ex-Heat teammate of LeBron James is headed to Cleveland. It’s unclear if the contract will be guaranteed.

Cleveland had been pursuing Jones, a favorite of LeBron’s, in conjunction with Mike Miller soon after it signed the four-time MVP. Cavs GM David Griffin also convinced Miller to take a discount to come to Cleveland, the same place he was reluctant to go last year, and now it seems the team will focus on its attempt to convince Ray Allen, also late of the Heat, to move north.

The Warriors, Wizards, Pelicans and Heat all made offers to the 33-year-old Jones, but LeBron’s recruiting effort led the Miami native to choose the Cavs instead, according to TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). Jones spent the past six seasons with Miami, never averaging more than 19.1 minutes per game, but his 4.9 points per contest this past season represents his second-highest scoring average in a Heat uniform. The Joel Bell client also serves as the secretary/treasurer for the players union.