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Heat Notes: Jaquez, Haslem, Jovic, Lillard

July 24th, 2023 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

When Jaime Jaquez was drafted by the Heat last month, one of his first actions was to send a text message to Udonis Haslem, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Haslem has retired after 20 seasons in the NBA, but he still represents the epitome of Heat Culture and Jaquez thought it was important to show respect.

“I know he’s the OG of the Miami Heat,” Jaquez said. “I felt it was only right that I reach out to him first and just let him know that I’m excited to be here and ready to work.”

Haslem said during a recent radio interview that Jaquez is “definitely a culture guy,” and they continued to text each other throughout Summer League. Jaquez grew up in California as a Lakers fan, but he followed the Heat closely as well so he’s aware of Haslem’s importance to the franchise.

“I’m a basketball fan, I was a Heat fan,” Jaquez said. “I always loved the Lakers, but the Heat was always my No. 2 and I’ve just always known about him and his presence in the organization. Being a basketball fan, you know who he is.”

There’s more from Miami:

  • Even though Haslem is officially retired, he’s still serving as a mentor to many of the team’s young players, Chiang adds. “I continue to stay connected to Orlando (Robinson), who had an amazing Summer League,” Haslem said. “I continue to stay connected to (Jamal) Cain, who had a hell of a Summer League, Niko (Nikola Jovic), who played well in the beginning (of Summer League), all these guys. There’s a next generation and I just continue to build relationships and bank equity with those guys.” 
  • Jaquez made a positive impression on Heat officials during Summer League, even though he was held out after injuring his shoulder in the second game, Chiang states in a separate story. Miami was also encouraged by the play of Jovic, last year’s first-round pick, who appeared in four games before joining the Serbian national team. “There’s a lot to like about his development so far,” coach Erik Spoelstra said of Jovic. “… You see the rebounding, you see the off-ball awareness defensively, his ability to take a rebound off the glass and push it in transition. These are skills that are really tough to teach. He has great vision.”
  • Former NBA star Gary Payton, who was in Miami on Sunday as a coach in the Big3 League, sees Damian Lillard as a perfect addition for the Heat, per Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. “Dame had to make the decision: Do I want to keep doing what I do, or do I want to try to win a championship? And that’s what he wants to do now,” said Payton, who followed a similar path before coming to Miami late in his career. “It is just time, time for him to make a move to where he wants to go.”
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Atlantic Notes: Bazley, Maxey, Herro, Tucker, Knicks

July 22nd, 2023 at 1:51pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Nets power forward Darius Bazley envisions himself as being a versatile, defense-first contributor for Brooklyn, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post.

Following a 2022/23 season split between the Thunder and Suns, the 6’8″ big man inked a one-year, veteran’s minimum agreement with Brooklyn, citing the team’s energy and chemistry as reasons why the Nets appealed to him.

“Just watching them a little bit in the playoffs, also just throughout the course of the season, the new team that they had towards the end here, they looked like they had fun,” Bazley said. “They looked like they played hard and together. It was just something I wanted to be a part of. When it all came down to it, Brooklyn was the place to be.”

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

  • As chatter about Damian Lillard‘s demand to be traded to the Heat continues, league executives who spoke with Sean Deveney of Heavy.com suggested that a stronger package could be put together around Sixers shooting guard Tyrese Maxey, whom they see as a better young player than Miami shooting guard Tyler Herro. “I like Herro, I think everyone does,” a rival scout said. “But when you look at where these guys are gonna be in four or five years, you can see a lot more growth potential with Maxey. He is more of an attacker, he gets into the lane, he is a lot more efficient with his shot. And you know, in today’s game, efficiency is everything. So I mean, it’s a no-brainer in that respect.”
  • Sixers star guard James Harden continues to want out of town, while veteran power forward P.J. Tucker‘s name was recently floated as a potential piece to include in a possible trade. Kyle Neubeck of ThePhillyVoice.com wonders if it may behoove Philadelphia strategically to move off Tucker’s contract. Though the 39-year-old remains a high-level defender, his meager offensive contributions last seasons don’t necessarily portend a bright future in that regard. Neubeck notes that moving Tucker for cap relief and/or a more athletic player could help the club.
  • Although the Knicks have now signed three players to fill their three two-way contracts heading into the 2023/24 season, the team is not permitted to withdraw its two-way qualifying offer to Duane Washington Jr. without his permission, in accordance with NBA guidelines, as Fred Katz of The Athletic observes (Twitter links). If Washington were to accept his two-way QO, the Knicks would have to waive one of their two-way players, since they’re not permitted to carry four.
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Heat Notes: Lillard Trade, Cain, Peterson, Summer League

July 21st, 2023 at 1:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat are getting “frustrated” over the slow pace of trade talks with the Trail Blazers regarding Damian Lillard, Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report said on the latest edition of the “This League Uncut” podcast (hat tip to Kurt Helin of NBC Sports). It’s been nearly three weeks since Lillard made his trade request and told Portland officials that he wants to play in Miami, but there’s been very little progress toward a deal.

“Portland is telling them to, ‘Bring us your best offer.’ Miami would like to know what does Portland want and Miami is not getting that answer,” Haynes said. “And so they feel like things could be moving on a little bit quicker if Portland would say exactly what it is they want. Because obviously, Miami doesn’t have all the assets that Portland would want in a return for a Damian Lillard trade. So they want to know, okay, what do we have to get out there? What other teams do we have to get involved to make this work? And so far, the communication is just not there.”

On the Heat Check podcast, Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald expressed doubt that the Blazers are trying very hard to grant Lillard’s trade request, at least for now. Chiang said a source told him that Portland may be planning to hold onto Lillard for a while to see if he changes his mind about his future with the team.

That thought is echoed by Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald, who tweets that a team that contacted the Blazers about Lillard is skeptical that they actually want to move him. Jackson suggests that Portland’s goal may be to get Lillard into training camp, unless he makes the situation really uncomfortable for the rest of the summer.

There’s more from Miami:

  • Jamal Cain has a qualifying offer to return to the Heat on a two-way contract, but he’s hoping for a standard deal, whether it’s with Miami or another team, Chiang writes in a Herald story. The 24-year-old power forward appeared in 18 NBA games as a two-way player last season. Cain is a restricted free agent, so Miami can match any offer he receives, but the QO can’t be pulled because the deadline has already passed. Several teams have interest in Cain, according to Chiang.
  • Miami can’t sign players to Exhibit 10 deals until it has 14 players with standard contracts, but the team has received some verbal commitments, Chiang adds. One of them is from Drew Peterson, a 6’9″ shooting specialist from USC who played for the Heat’s Summer League team. Chiang suggests that Miami could take several weeks to sign any Exhibit 10 players while the front office waits to see if a Lillard trade materializes.
  • Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel examines Miami’s Summer League roster and looks at who did the most to help their future with the organization.
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Scotto’s Latest: Tucker, Gay, Sumner, Noel

July 21st, 2023 at 10:28am CST by Tristan Tucker

With James Harden‘s trade request still unresolved, teams are monitoring the future of his Sixers teammate P.J. Tucker. According to a report from HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, Tucker has come up in trade discussions between the 76ers and the Clippers, Harden’s reported preferred destination. The Clippers “covet” Tucker’s ability to guard multiple positions, according to Scotto.

Tucker, a teammate of Harden’s on the Rockets from 2017-21, joined the 76ers last summer on a three-year, $33MM deal to reunite with Harden and former Rockets general manager Daryl Morey. Harden and Tucker are close, with Harden reportedly taking less money last offseason to help bring Tucker aboard one of the Eastern Conference’s top contenders.

Tucker, a 12-year NBA veteran, is owed $11MM this upcoming season and has a player option worth $11.5MM for the 2024/25 season. At 38 years old, Tucker is one of the oldest active players in the NBA but he hasn’t shown any mileage yet, starting in all 75 of his appearances last season and averaging 25.6 minutes.

There’s more from Scotto:

  • Free agent forward Rudy Gay, who was recently released by the Thunder, is drawing interest from several potential playoff teams, according to Scotto. The Warriors, Lakers, Mavericks, Bulls and Pelicans have all registered interest in Gay, per Scotto. Gay will be 37 by the time next season starts and while his role has diminished in each of the past three seasons, he’s still a seasoned veteran with 17 years of NBA experience. Gay averaged 5.2 points last season. Each team linked to Gay has at least one roster spot open and could offer him a one-year, veteran’s minimum which, for a player with 10+ years of experience, is worth roughly $3.2MM next season.
  • Free agent guard Edmond Sumner, who was recently let go by the Nets, is also drawing attention from multiple teams, according to Scotto. The Hornets, Bucks, Raptors, Heat and Suns all have registered interest in the 27 year old. Scotto says that some of the named teams appear more likely than others to pursue a deal with Sumner. The Bucks have one roster spot open and no true point guard behind Jrue Holiday, but those around the league expect Milwaukee’s final spot to go to Thanasis Antetokounmpo, according to Scotto. The Suns also just filled their final standard roster spot with Bol Bol, so they would have to create space elsewhere. Meanwhile, the Heat are reportedly in a holding pattern amid Damian Lillard trade talks. On the other hand, the Hornets are searching for veteran point guard help and the Raptors lack point guard depth behind new addition Dennis Schröder.
  • Before agreeing to a one-year deal with the Kings, center Nerlens Noel drew exploratory interest from the Lakers and Bulls, according to Scotto. The Lakers’ interest, in particular, is noteworthy due to their reported desire to add frontcourt depth to their roster. Free agent big men Christian Wood and Bismack Biyombo have also recently been linked to the Lakers.
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Southeast Notes: Ball, Highsmith, Muscala, Magic

July 20th, 2023 at 8:20pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Hornets star guard LaMelo Ball signed a five-year, maximum-salary designated rookie extension, worth up to a projected $260MM, with Charlotte earlier this summer.

During a press conference with gathered reporters, Ball and team president and general manager Mitch Kupchak spoke about the new agreement, as Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer reports.

“The decision, it wasn’t really hard,” Ball, the third draft pick in 2020, said. “All my years here I’ve had a good time. Life wasn’t bad. The basketball aspect, that’s not really going well. You kind of want to live your life and just have fun and just be living well. So in Charlotte I was doing that, so it just all felt like a great choice.”

Ball was limited to just 36 contests with the Hornets in 2022/23 due to ankle injuries, but was prolific on offense when he did play. The 6’7″ guard averaged 23.3 PPG on .411/.376/.836 shooting splits, along with 8.4 APG and 6.4 RPG. Charlotte has yet to make the playoffs during Ball’s NBA career.

“To have a player of LaMelo’s caliber with his game, with his youth, we know he is going to get better as a player,” Kupchak said. “He’s here every day. He certainly had a setback last year, but in terms of healing, he’s been 100 percent healed and he’s been on the court working out every single day trying to get better.”

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

  • Heat forward Haywood Highsmith recently saw his $1.9MM salary for the 2023/24 season become fully guaranteed, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “It’s a good step in the right direction for me,” Highsmith told Chiang. “Still developing, still trying to get better and big things coming for me, I hope. I’ve been working hard this offseason, so it’s definitely a good step in the right direction.” Former Miami teammate Udonis Haslem, now retired, unpacked how Highsmith approaches the game. “Undersized, not a guy who you’re going to run a lot of plays for, has to be efficient,” Haslem said. “His approach is a defensive-minded approach, so he takes the challenge every night. He’s just my guy.”
  • Despite a winless five-game 2023 Summer League run, the Magic were able to learn about their two rookie lottery selections, while in turn educating No. 6 pick Anthony Black and No. 11 pick Jett Howard about the team’s own approach to its internal dynamics, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. “From everybody in the front office to the coaching staff to the players, everybody’s locked in,” Howard said, “We just met each other but we still had the willingness to keep fighting and sticking together. “Even down the stretch when we’re losing, we’re still cognate for one another. We showed up and worked hard in training camp. All of those things just make a culture.”
  • On the cusp of his 11th NBA season, 32-year-old Wizards big man Mike Muscala isn’t taking his longevity for granted, writes Chip Scoggins of The Star Tribune. “As a young athlete, you’re always striving for something,” Muscala said. “It’s like, ‘I want to do this. I want to compete against this person.’ There’s still a lot of value in that. But once you kind of check those boxes, it’s like, now what? When you’re grateful for whatever situation you’re in and the opportunities you have, that’s been motivating me.”
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Heat Promote GM Elisburg To Executive VP Of Basketball Operations

July 20th, 2023 at 1:57pm CST by Rory Maher

The Heat have promoted senior vice president of basketball operations and general manager Andy Elisburg to executive vice president of basketball operations, the team announced in a press release. In addition to his new title, he will retain his dual title of GM.

Elisburg has been with Miami since the team’s inception in 1988. He has served as senior VP of basketball ops and GM for the past 10 years.

“Andy is so deserving of this promotion,” said president Pat Riley. “Working together for 28 years has brought so many great transactions that have improved the franchise multiple times over the years, both on and off the court. More importantly, Andy’s knowledge and work ethic are second to none, he’s been involved with everything we do at the HEAT and we look forward to continued success.”

While Riley is frequently (and justifiably) credited for the Heat’s success over the past two decades, Elisburg has been an instrumental behind-the-scenes figure who is said to be a shrewd negotiator and a CBA expert. Miami has won three championships and made seven NBA Finals appearances since 2006, when the team won its first title.

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Trade Rumors: Harden, Clippers, Lillard, Embiid

July 19th, 2023 at 7:07pm CST by Rory Maher

While the Sixers may be holding out hope that James Harden will rescind his trade request and return to Philadelphia next season, the former league MVP remains steadfast in his desire to be dealt to the Clippers, league sources tell Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

According to Fischer, Harden and his camp are confident he’ll end up playing for Los Angeles in 2023/24. Sources tell Fischer that the Sixers have discussed Harden trades with teams other than the Clippers, but none of those talks were serious, as rivals are aware of Harden’s “unwavering focus” on joining L.A.

The Sixers haven’t shown any interest in a potential Clippers deal though, and the Clippers aren’t interested in parting with Terance Mann, Fischer writes. Daryl Morey‘s recent comments suggest that the two sides aren’t natural trade partners.

If Harden is still on the roster by media day in early October, the 10-time All-Star is expected to join the Sixers in training camp. That might not be ideal for Philadelphia, however, as Fischer notes that Harden successfully forced his way out of Houston and Brooklyn in recent seasons when he was unhappy without needing to hold out.

Here are more trade rumors from around the NBA:

  • In his analysis of Fischer’s story, Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com wonders if Morey will eventually cave on his high asking price and accept an offer from the Clippers, as having Harden cause problems — in training camp or during the season — could hurt the Sixers‘ on-court results. The fact that Harden is on an expiring contract and Philadelphia is firmly in win-now mode makes it a complicated situation, because the team can’t afford to punt on a year of Joel Embiid‘s prime, Neubeck adds. That much was clear even before Embiid’s recent comments about wanting to win a championship no matter what team he’s on.
  • Talks between the Trail Blazers and Heat on a Damian Lillard trade are “stagnant,” according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. While the two sides have spoken, Charania hears the conversations weren’t serious. Portland has told Miami to make its best offer, Charania writes, but the Heat don’t appear to be in any rush to do so.
  • As Sam Amick of The Athletic wrote a couple days ago, there’s no indication that Embiid has any desire to leave the Sixers at this point, and Philadelphia certainly doesn’t want to trade him, to the Knicks or any other team. Ian Begley of SNY.tv reports that when Embiid and Morey met after the comments went viral, both sides envisioned a “Derek Jeter-type trajectory” for Embiid, with the reigning MVP remaining the face of the organization until he retires. In short, don’t expect an Embiid trade anytime soon, says Begley.
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Latest On Christian Wood

July 19th, 2023 at 11:53am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Lakers are in the market to add another big man to their roster and, on paper, free agent forward Christian Wood makes the most sense, according to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times.

However, Woike writes that factors outside of the Lakers’ control could determine Wood’s landing spot. According to Woike, the Bulls are viewed as a “potential threat” to sign Wood to a contract after being granted a $10.23MM disabled player exception due to point guard Lonzo Ball‘s season-ending knee injury.

Woike adds that the Lakers are only able to offer the veteran’s minimum – worth $2.7MM for a player with seven years of service time – which is significantly less than what Chicago can offer.

Wood is Hoops Rumors’ highest-ranked remaining unrestricted free agent who has yet to agree to a deal. Despite averaging 16.6 points in 67 games (17 starts) last season for the Mavericks and at least 13.0 points per game every year since 2019, Wood is still unsigned nearly three weeks after free agency began.

We have more on Wood:

  • While the Lakers are looking for additional frontcourt depth, they are being picky about what kinds of bigs they’re targeting. “We don’t want to sign someone who replicates the skills that Jaxson Hayes has,” Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said. “So if we can diversify the big position and have different looks, that would be good.” Woike adds that Wood fits that bill and has a skill set that could complement Anthony Davis and LeBron James. In the last three seasons, Wood averaged 18.1 points and shot 38.1% from three. Other floor-spacing big men are available, Woike writes, but there aren’t many with as much upside as Wood. While Bismack Biyombo has previously been mentioned as a Lakers option, the team may ultimately view his skillset as too similar to Hayes’. Other unrestricted free agent bigs who could be in line for minimum deals include JaMychal Green, Blake Griffin and Markieff Morris.
  • The Lakers have done “significant background work” on Wood, according to Woike. Head coach Darvin Ham and Wood overlapped in the 2018/19 season when Wood played with the Bucks for 13 games. Anthony Davis played with Wood in New Orleans at the end of the ’18/19 season and Lakers assistant JD DuBois was with Wood in Detroit in 2019/20.
  • The Heat could be suitors for Wood’s services, according to Woike. Miami is still in a holding pattern with remaining free agents while it pieces together a potential Damian Lillard trade offer, but if the Heat land Lillard, Wood makes sense as an impact free agent signing who could play big minutes. The Heat were rumored to be in on floor-spacing big Dario Saric before he signed with the Warriors.
  • While teams love Wood’s offensive play, there are reasons he is still available, potentially on a veteran’s minimum. According to Woike, sources around the league point to Wood’s subpar defensive contributions, despite his impressive 1.1 blocked shots per game last season. There also may be a disconnect between what Wood thinks his value is and what teams think his value is, Woike writes, along with concerns related to his professionalism. Even though their roster could use a floor-spacing big man, the Mavericks didn’t attempt to bring back Wood after trading a first-round pick for him last summer.
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12 Two-Way Restricted Free Agents Remain Unsigned

July 18th, 2023 at 10:24am CST by Luke Adams

The action on the NBA’s free agent market has slowed since the start of July, but there are still many FAs seeking new deals, including a notable group of under-the-radar players whose situations will need to be resolved in the coming days, weeks, and months.

A total of 12 two-way restricted free agents are still available, as our up-to-date list shows. Those players are as follows:

That group doesn’t include a 13th player, Neemias Queta, who is also a restricted free agent after finishing last season on a two-way deal. Although he remains eligible to sign another two-way contract, Queta was ineligible for a two-way qualifying offer after having played on a two-way with the Kings for consecutive seasons — his QO is a one-year, minimum-salary contract with a small ($75K) partial guarantee.

For the rest of these players, their qualifying offer is simply another one-year, two-way deal, which limits their leverage to negotiate a more lucrative standard contract.

Some two-way RFAs have managed to earn standard deals this offseason. A.J. Green of the Bucks was one. Julian Champagnie of the Spurs was another. Ty Jerome (Warriors) and Jack White (Nuggets) received standard contract offers from the Cavaliers and Thunder, respectively, that their former teams were unwilling to match, so Golden State and Denver simply withdrew their respective qualifying offers, making Jerome and White unrestricted free agents.

Offer sheets for two-way restricted free agents essentially never happen though. And in general, unless a team has earmarked a 15-man roster spot for a two-way free agent, it’s an uphill battle for these players to earn offseason promotions.

As a result, the majority of the dozen restricted free agents listed above will likely end up accepting their qualifying offers and hoping that their play in 2023/24 forces their clubs to find 15-man roster spots for them later in the season.

Still, it’s worth keeping an eye on this group to see if any of them can do better than another two-way — and to see how long some of them might be willing to wait in the hope of earning that opportunity.

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Rockets’ Cam Whitmore Named Summer League MVP

July 17th, 2023 at 2:46pm CST by Rory Maher

Rockets forward Cam Whitmore has been named the Las Vegas Summer League Most Valuable Player, the NBA announced (via Twitter).

The NBA also announced its All-Summer League First and Second Teams, which are as follows (Twitter links):

First Team

Second Team

According to the NBA (Twitter link), Christie and Moon received the same amount of votes, which is why there is an additional backcourt player on the second team.

Whitmore, a projected lottery pick in last month’s draft who fell to Houston at No. 20, averaged 20.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 2.2 APG and 3.0 SPG on .465/.293/.625 shooting in his five Vegas Summer League games, per NBA.com.

Houston faces Cleveland at 8 p.m. CT tonight in the Summer League championship game. Both teams are undefeated, holding identical 5-0 records.

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