Miami Heat Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Trying To Trade Up, Land Shabazz Napier

June 25th, 2014 at 11:18am CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat are attempting to trade up from the 26th overall pick to land Shabazz Napier, reports Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Twitter link). LeBron James believes the former Connecticut Huskie is the best point guard in the draft, according to Ford, suggesting the soon-to-be free agent is heavily influencing Miami’s thinking on this front. The Heat, with little available trade assets given that Norris Cole is the team’s only player on a guaranteed contract for next season, will try to package Cole and the 26th pick to move into the late teens, Ford tweets. The Heat are open to a number of scenarios, including trading their pick for a veteran, Grantland’s Zach Lowe reports (on Twitter).

Heat president Pat Riley is, like James, a fan of Napier’s, Ford writes in his full piece. He flew to meet Napier and work him out right after the Finals and tried to convince him to halt his workouts with other clubs to enhance the chances of him falling to No. 26, according to Ford. That almost certainly won’t happen, as the Magic, who hold the 12th pick, as well as the Hawks (15th), Bulls (16th and 19th), and Celtics (17th) are giving serious consideration to drafting Napier, Ford hears, adding that it’s unlikely he slides past the Raptors at No. 21.

The Heat have the non-guaranteed contract of Justin Hamilton to throw into their proposal, but every other player is ineligible, since they all either have pending options or are entering free agency. They wouldn’t be able to officially give up the No. 26 pick in a trade until they use it to select a player on Thursday, since they’ve already traded away next year’s first-rounder.

Eastern Notes: Allen, Wade, Pistons

June 24th, 2014 at 10:14pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Ray Allen is leaning toward returning for a 19th season in the NBA and has a desire to continue playing alongside LeBron James, sources told Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Back in February, the sharpshooting veteran said that he wouldn’t be retiring this summer, and today’s report echoes a similar sentiment passed along last week. Allen just completed the second of a two-year, $6.32MM deal with the Heat and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

As for Dwyane Wade‘s contract status and whether or not he’ll decide to opt out, the 32-year-old guard didn’t have any updates today. “No news here yet.”

You can find more of tonight’s rumblings out of the Eastern Conference below:

Pistons president/head coach Stan Van Gundy said that he’s open to signing Greg Monroe to a one-year qualifying offer and letting the big man hit unrestricted free agency next summer, according to Larry Lage of the Associated Press. Van Gundy said that Monroe’s contract situation is the “most important thing on (the Pistons’) plate this offseason.”
Van Gundy added that the team would be willing to trade a future second-round pick and cash in order to land a late first round pick, especially if someone they ranked in the teens falls to the end of the first round.
Jim Boeheim – Carmelo Anthony‘s former college coach at Syracuse – believes that Anthony would take less money to sign with a contender this summer, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago.
Chauncey Billups is considering retirement, writes Aaron Matas of 9News.com. When Matas mentioned rumors of the Timberwolves approaching the 37-year-old guard about an assistant coaching job, Billups declined comment; however, Billups did say that he’d generally consider a television or front office position first before dipping into coaching when he does decide to retire from playing.
The Celtics hired Benas Matkevicius – a former scout of CSKA Moscow – to be the team’s international scout, tweets Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe (h/t to CSKABasket.com).

Clippers Open To Dealing Griffin For LeBron?

June 24th, 2014 at 8:57pm CST by Ryan Raroque

8:57pm: The team is discussing a run at LeBron but won’t trade Griffin for him, tweeted Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com earlier tonight. Shelburne points to the many times that Rivers has assured the Clippers big man that he’s “untouchable.”

5:07pm Clippers president of basketball operations Doc Rivers would be open to dealing Blake Griffin in a sign-and-trade package to land LeBron James, several NBA officials told Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Griffin is slated to earn $17.6MM in 2014/15; according to Turner, Jared Dudley or Matt Barnes could be included along with Griffin in a deal, presumably to give LeBron a contract starting at above $20MM annually. Dudley and Barnes are on the books for $4.25MM and roughly $3.39MM respectively next season. The team wouldn’t mind including DeAndre Jordan or Jamal Crawford as an additional piece, but also understands that it would be difficult to do so.

Turner includes that the Clippers also haven’t ruled out making a run at Carmelo Anthony this summer, but didn’t specify if Los Angeles would be open to offering the same package to New York. According to one NBA official, Steve Ballmer – whose $2 billion offer to buy the Clippers is not official yet – would agree to paying the luxury tax if the team were to land James or Anthony.

Clippers Arise As LeBron’s Top Non-Heat Option

June 24th, 2014 at 12:07pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat remain the “primary consideration” for LeBron James, but the alternative that intrigues him the most is signing with the Clippers, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Still, the Heat are privately insisting that they won’t cooperate with any sign-and-trade that would send their star elsewhere, Wojnarowski hears, and the capped-out Clippers would have to make several deals to clear the room to sign James outright. The only way the Heat would send away James in a sign-and-trade is if they fear they would lose him to a team that can sign him on its own, Wojnarowski writes.

Other teams are preparing to clear room for both James and Carmelo Anthony, both of whom are set to hit free agency next month after opting out of their deals. James can make a maximum of at least $20,020,875 next season, which is 105% of his salary from this past season, and he could make more if the NBA’s maximum salary rises above that figure. Still, he seems to be prioritizing the chance to win over making the most money.

The Clippers have seemingly been on the radar for James since February, when Brian Windhorst and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com wrote that they were “perhaps the most serious competitor” that the Heat have for the four-time MVP. Chris Paul is a friend of James, and playing for coach/executive Doc Rivers also looms as an attractive scenario, as Wojnarowski points out.

Cavs, Hawks, Lakers Eye LeBron-‘Melo Pairing

June 24th, 2014 at 11:47am CST by Chuck Myron

The Hawks, Cavs and Lakers are considering clearing the cap space necessary to double up on marquee free agent signings this summer and ink both LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, report Brian Windhorst and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. James’ decision to opt out of his contract and hit free agency has spurred the thinking of the Hawks and Cavs, while the Lakers have been considering this scenario for a while, according to the ESPN scribes.

James timed his opt-out nearly a week ahead of his June 30th deadline to do so to give potential suitors a better chance to make the necessary cap-clearing moves, sources tell Windhorst and Stein. He also plotted the timing to give the Heat a chance to make moves of their own, Windhorst and Stein add. The Heat have given at least some thought to recruiting Anthony to join James in Miami.

The Lakers probably possess the easiest path to the requisite cap space with about $34MM in commitments for next season and Nick Young‘s player option, which he appears likely to decline. They’ve been linked to trades in which they’d give up Steve Nash and the No. 7 overall pick, and they’ve entered those discussions with clearing cap space in mind, as Stein and ESPN.com colleague Ramona Shelburne wrote earlier today.

The Cavs don’t have much more in guaranteed salary, with just about $36MM, and they believe they can clear about $30MM in space under the projected $63.2MM cap without giving up Kyrie Irving or the No. 1 overall pick. The Hawks have a little more than $47MM tied up for next year, and they’re reluctant to tear apart their roster, according to Windhorst and Stein, in spite of a report earlier this morning that they were pondering a run at Anthony.

In any case, Cleveland, Atlanta and the Lakers all face a tight squeeze if they hope to accommodate both James and Anthony, who can command combined maximum salaries of roughly $42.5MM. Still, there’s been talk that each would be willing to take a discount, and, as Windhorst and Stein note, James and Anthony will likely communicate during free agency.

Southeast Notes: LeBron, Wizards, Hornets

June 24th, 2014 at 10:35am CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat granted agent Rich Paul and LeBron James‘ friend and adviser Maverick Carter unprecedented access to the team in the past year, prompting consternation from many within the organization, as Mike Wise of The Washington Post details. We’ll soon find out whether it was worth it for Miami, now that James has decided to opt out of his contract and hit free agency. Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:

Wizards “draft and stash” prospect Tomas Satoransky wants the team to sign him before he competes in summer league this year, and he’s also pushing for a larger amount than the team is willing to give, as J. Michael of CSNWashington.com hears. The former 32nd overall pick isn’t bound by the rookie scale, so it would likely take a portion of the mid-level, which Michael says Washington doesn’t want to give up, to give him more than the minimum salary. Ultimately, the Wizards are willing to stand firm and have no intention of trading Satoransky’s rights, according to Michael.
Hornets coach Steve Clifford has indicated a preference for adding size and experience rather than more young perimeter players, as Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer examines.
Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops adds Gary Harris and Scottie Wilbekin to the list of draft prospects working out for the Magic (Twitter link).
Wizards are auditioning Jahii Carson, Dwight Powell, Roscoe Smith, Sean Kilpatrick, Chaz Williams, Richard Solomon, Isaiah Armwood, Maurice Creek, Halil Kanacevic, Devin Oliver and Talib Zanna, the team announced. They’re also giving LaQuinton Ross his second workout, having also taken a look at him two weeks ago.
The Hawks are giving thought to clearing cap space and making a run at Carmelo Anthony, as we passed along earlier.

Hawks Ponder Run At Carmelo Anthony

June 24th, 2014 at 9:05am CST by Chuck Myron

The Hawks are thinking about launching a run at Carmelo Anthony, according to Ramona Shelburne and Marc Stein of ESPN.com, who deem Atlanta a “sleeper” team in the race for the star forward. A run at ‘Melo reminiscent of last year’s darkhorse pitch to Dwight Howard is one of many options that Hawks GM Danny Ferry is considering, though it would require that the team clear a significant amount of cap space.

Atlanta and the Heat are on the fringes of an Anthony sweepstakes that more prominently features the Rockets, Mavs and Lakers, as well as the Bulls, who appear to have taken the lead, as Shelburne and Stein write. The Knicks are in the running, too, as they bid to keep Anthony from leaving New York.

The Knicks can re-sign him using Bird rights, but the Lakers have the most cap flexibility among the teams in the race. Still, Anthony wants the Lakers to upgrade their roster before he would consider them, according to Shelburne and Stein. That’s why rumors involving No. 7 pick and Steve Nash have cropped up, as Lakers look to part with them in search of improvements, as the ESPN scribes explain. Sources tell Chris Broussard of ESPN.com that ‘Melo met recently with Kobe Bryant in Europe, and while Bryant denies that any meeting took place, he said a meeting with Anthony is indeed on his agenda (Twitter link).

Ferry would have to make a few trades of his own just to open up room for a competitive contract offer. The Hawks have slightly more than $47MM in commitments to eight players next season, not counting their first-round pick at No. 15 overall. If the Hawks renounced all of their free agents, roster charges would bring Atlanta’s cap hits to about $49MM, leaving only about $14.2MM under the $63.2MM projected salary cap to bid for Anthony, who can make a starting salary of nearly $22.5MM.

LeBron James To Opt Out, Hit Free Agency

June 24th, 2014 at 8:27am CST by Chuck Myron

LeBron James will opt out of his contract and become a free agent next month, agent Rich Paul has told the Heat, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter link). That means he’ll exercise his early termination option to get out of his contract that called for him to make $20.59MM next season and another $22.1125MM in 2015/16. It also opens the possibility that the four-time MVP will change teams and invites suitors to make pitches beginning a week from today.

The chances that he’d opt out appeared better than that he’d opt in, but while James reportedly has some hard feelings about what he perceives as Miami owner Micky Arison’s spending cutbacks this past season, most reports suggest that the Heat will likely retain him. That’s not a given, as the Rockets, Clippers, Cavs and others line up bids for the player in the top spot of the Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, but the decision from James is far from a death knell for his tenure in Miami.

The opt-out decision keeps the alive the notion that James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh could all re-sign at discounts to allow the Heat to court Carmelo Anthony, or perhaps Kyle Lowry or another top-tier free agent. James is determined to push the Heat to spend money and improve their roster, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Still, Miami’s abillity to do so will have much to do with whether Wade, Bosh and Udonis Haslem follow suit and opt out of their deals, as well as just how much of a discount that trio plus James are willing to take, as I explained when I looked at the offseason ahead for the Heat.

Just how much James can make on his next deal will depend on where the NBA sets the maximum salary for a player of his experience following the July moratorium, as our Luke Adams examined before the season. While it seems likely that he’d be limited to an amount that’s slightly less what he’d have made if he’d exercised his option, it appears as though James is prioritizing the chance to win over gathering every last dollar available. If that’s so, it mitigates the advantage the Heat have to offer a contract with higher raises than other teams can offer. Miami can also offer a fifth year, while other clubs are limited to four.

And-Ones: Pistons, Draft, LeBron

June 22nd, 2014 at 12:47pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Stan Van Gundy doesn’t necessarily view the Pistons lack of a first round pick as a negative, writes David Mayo of MLive. Van Gundy believes that the cap room that would have gone to a first-rounder can be used to acquire useful veterans, notes Mayo. Van Gundy wants to find what he termed, “winning players.” Van Gundy expanded on that saying, “I’ve had the good fortune to be around a lot of them, and they’re not winning players because they’re the most talented guys. I had Udonis Haslem in Miami and he’s still helping teams win championships. He’s a good player but he’s not the most talented guy in the world. I had a lot of those guys in Orlando — Rashard Lewis, Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick — who help you win a lot of games, and they’re very good, but they’re not the most talented guys. But they’re winning guys.”

Contract Details: Knicks, Pelicans, Heat, Bulls

June 21st, 2014 at 7:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

August 1st will be a key date for many teams and players in the NBA, as Mark Deeks of ShamSports details in the latest update to his salary database. Knicks guard Shannon Brown and Melvin Ely of the Pelicans have their minimum-salary contracts fully guaranteed if their respective teams don’t waive them by the end of that day, Deeks reports. It’s also the day when Justin Hamilton of the Heat earns a partial guarantee of $408,241 and Bulls big man Lou Amundson has his deal partially guaranteed for $300K if they’re not waived, according to Deeks. The salary data guru has a few more revelations, as we note below:

Hamilton’s partial guarantee increases to $612,362 should the Heat elect not to waive by the end of December 1st.
Lamar Odom‘s deal becomes fully guaranteed if he remains on the Knicks roster past September 10th.
The Knicks have another deadline to consider on September 15th, the final day they can waive Jeremy Tyler without owing him a $100K partial guarantee.
Jorge Gutierrez receives a $25K partial guarantee if he sticks with the Nets past September 26th.
Jarvis Varnado‘s deal with the Sixers is already partially guaranteed for $75K.