- The Heat’s Victor Oladipo (left knee tendinosis) and Omer Yurtseven (left ankle impingement) are listed as out for Wednesday’s opener against the Bulls, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald tweets.
There are health concerns regarding Victor Oladipo as the Heat prepare for their season opener, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Oladipo was held out of today’s practice due to left knee tendonosis and may not be able to play Wednesday night. The team’s official injury report will be released later this afternoon.
Miami will proceed cautiously with Oladipo, who has undergone two surgeries on his right knee in a little more than three years. Even though this condition affects his other knee, there is speculation that it may be related to his injury history.
“When you really start to ramp it up, there’s still a little bit of overcompensation and a lot of load on the other leg,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Everybody downstairs feels like this is the normal process. I know how badly he wants to be out there right now. But we’re looking at this big picture still and we don’t want to skip steps. We want to make sure his body is feeling great and so things like this don’t linger.”
There’s more from Miami:
- After earning a starting role in late March, Max Strus will have to get used to coming off the bench again, Chiang adds. Strus spent the preseason working on his fit with the reserves. “I would imagine I would be more aggressive in the second unit because I’m not playing with Jimmy (Butler), Kyle (Lowry), Bam (Adebayo). Maybe I’ll look for my shot a little more,” Strus said. “But I am still going to play the same way I always do, get everybody else involved and find my shots throughout the offense.”
- Strus may be the only bench player with regular minutes every night, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Roles for Dewayne Dedmon, Duncan Robinson and Haywood Highsmith could depend on matchups, and Spoelstra may go back and forth between Oladipo and Gabe Vincent in the backcourt. First-round pick Nikola Jovic will have to prove he’s ready to contribute right away.
- Udonis Haslem has been the Heat’s inspirational leader for most of his 20-year career, but he’s getting ready to pass the torch, Chiang states in a separate story. As Haslem prepares for his final NBA season, the 42-year-old believes Adebayo is ready to take on that leadership role. “He can have it now. It’s time for him,” Haslem said. “… We’ve had these conversations about physically, vocally, emotionally. I think it’s time for him.”
The Heat made a pair of roster cuts today, waiving guards D.J. Stewart Jr. and Jon Elmore, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.
Stewart is a 23-year-old guard who went undrafted out of Mississippi State in 2021 and spent most of his rookie season playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate. In 36 total NBAGL regular season appearances for the Skyforce and the Austin Spurs last season, Stewart averaged 17.6 PPG, 4.5 RPG, and 3.1 APG on .480/.361/.764 shooting in 34.1 minutes per contest.
Miami claimed Stewart off waivers from Dallas on Friday, and it appears the plan is to have him report back to the Skyforce to open the 2022/23 season.
Elmore is likely also headed for the Skyforce after spending a day with the Heat on an Exhibit 10 contract. The 26-year-old went undrafted in 2019 after a standout college career at Marshall. He has played professionally for European clubs in Italy, Hungary, Greece and Lithuania over the past three years.
With today’s cuts, the Heat’s roster now appears set for the regular season. The team has 13 players on guaranteed contracts, Haywood Highsmith with a partial guarantee, and Dru Smith and Jamal Cain on two-way deals.
In a pair of unrelated moves, the Nets have waived Donovan Williams (Twitter link via Chris Milholen of NetsDaily), while the Heat are signing Jon Elmore to an Exhibit 10 contract, reports Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (via Twitter).
Williams, who was also on an Exhibit 10 deal, went undrafted this year out of UNLV. The 6’6” wing averaged 12.7 PPG and 3.3 RPG as a junior at UNLV last season, knocking down 43.6% of his 3-point attempts. If he goes unclaimed, he’ll be eligible for a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s G League affiliate.
Elmore, 26, went undrafted in 2019 after a standout college career at Marshall. He’s played professionally for European clubs in Italy, Hungary, Greece and Lithuania over the past three years.
According to Chiang, Elmore will report to Miami’s practice on Saturday prior to being waived, with the 6’3″ guard heading to the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. If he spends at least 60 days with the Skyforce, Elmore would receive a bonus worth up to $50K.
The Heat have claimed D.J. Stewart Jr. off waivers, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Stewart had been in training camp with Dallas, but was waived on Wednesday.
Stewart is a 23-year-old guard who went undrafted out of Mississippi State in 2021 and spent most of his rookie season playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate. He eventually signed a two-way contract with San Antonio in March, though he didn’t appear in an NBA game with the Spurs.
In 36 total NBAGL regular season appearances for the Skyforce and the Austin Spurs last season, Stewart averaged 17.6 PPG, 4.5 RPG, and 3.1 APG on .480/.361/.764 shooting in 34.1 minutes per contest.
The Skyforce still hold Stewart’s G League rights, and the plan is to have him return to Sioux Falls after he’s waived by Miami. The Heat claimed him off waivers so that they could give him an Exhibit 10 bonus for spending at least 60 days with the Skyforce, Chiang notes.
The Heat unveiled their new-look starting lineup for the first time this preseason in Wednesday’s victory over the Pelicans, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Tyler Herro and Caleb Martin have joined Kyle Lowry, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo in the first unit and they were impressive in their first outing, outscoring New Orleans 60-48 in the 20 minutes they were on the court together.
Herro, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year, has the starting job that he said he wanted after the end of last season. His future in Miami is secure after receiving a contract extension that could be worth $130MM over four years, and he’s ready to take on a slightly different role in the offense.
“Having Jimmy, Kyle, Bam out there with me allows me to play off the ball a little bit more,” Herro said. “It allows me to just be a spacer. If I’m open, they kick to me and I just knock it down or play out of a close-out. It’s hard to guard me when guys are closing out to me.”
Martin moved into the starting role that opened when P.J. Tucker left for Philadelphia in free agency. He’s undersized for the power forward position, but he’s athletic enough to be an asset on a team that switches frequently on defense.
“I think Caleb has been doing exceptionally well,” Butler said. “I’m talking about switching, making shots, being aggressive, being a great teammate. It’s tough to do what P.J. does, but I think Caleb does it extremely well.”
There’s more from Miami:
- The Heat want Adebayo to assume a larger role in the offense, and his preseason numbers are pointing in that direction, Chiang tweets. Per 36 minutes, Adebayo averaged 31 points on 19.4 shots and 12.1 free throws in three games, compared to 21.1 points, 14.4 field goal attempts and 6.7 foul shots last season.
- Signing Dru Smith to a two-way contract is likely the team’s last personnel move before the start of the season, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. However, he notes that five players held two-way deals with Miami in 2021/22, so those spots could change as the season progresses.
- The decision to waive Marcus Garrett was related to his fractured wrist, but his role with the team was already shaky because his offense hasn’t improved, Winderman adds. Once Garrett recovers, the Heat may consider sending him to the G League or bringing him back in a two-way role.
OCTOBER 13: The Heat have officially waived Garrett, Mulder, Robinson, and Bouyea, while converting Smith’s Exhibit 10 contract to a two-way deal, the team announced today in a press release.
OCTOBER 12: The Heat will convert Dru Smith to a two-way contract, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Miami plans to waive Marcus Garrett, Mychal Mulder, Orlando Robinson and Jamaree Bouyea, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link). Mulder, Robinson and Bouyea are expected to join the team’s G League affiliate in Sioux Falls after they clear waivers. Garrett, who suffered a fractured right wrist, will stay in Miami to rehab the injury.
A 24-year-old shooting guard, Smith signed with Miami last year after going undrafted out of Missouri. He spent the season in Sioux Falls and was part of the Heat’s Summer League team.
After signing an Exhibit 10 contract with the Heat this offseason, Smith won the competition for a two-way deal with a strong preseason, including a 15-point performance Monday against the Rockets. In four games, he averaged 8.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 17.3 minute per night.
Miami filled its other two-way slot on Sunday by converting Jamal Cain‘s Exhibit 10 contract. The Heat currently have 13 players on their roster with fully guaranteed contracts, plus Haywood Highsmith, who has a partially guaranteed deal.
- Trading Tyler Herro after signing him to a rookie scale extension would have been tricky due to the poison pill provision. However, that didn’t stop the Heat from making their initial extension offer to the fourth-year guard on July 1, even as they remained involved in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. According to Herro, that original offer was worth $100MM over four years. He eventually accepted once the Heat upped their offer to a guaranteed $120MM. “Thirty million a year is what I thought I was worth,” Herro said.
When the Suns engaged in trade talks for Kevin Durant this offseason, they made it clear that Cameron Johnson was off limits, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
While it’s hard to believe that the inclusion of Johnson would’ve been a deal-breaker for the Suns if they had a realistic shot to land Durant, Fischer’s report suggests the team is high on the fourth-year wing and is hoping to lock him up long-term.
According to Fischer, “early indications” suggested that Phoenix would like to sign Johnson to an extension in the range of $72MM over four years. Whether that’s enough to get anything done with the young sharpshooter remains to be seen.
Fischer’s first roundup of NBA rumors for Yahoo Sports focuses primarily on the Suns and Jae Crowder, as we detailed earlier today. But there are a few more odds and ends within the article about other teams and players. Here are some of the highlights:
- According to Fischer, the Wizards were one of the teams with legitimate interest in signing Victor Oladipo in free agency this past summer. Fischer writes that Oladipo turned down a “potential starting opportunity” in D.C. in order to remain with the Heat.
- The Suns have had discussions about the possibility of acquiring Rockets forward Kenyon Martin Jr., who has also drawn interest from the Trail Blazers and Heat, Fischer reports. Martin reportedly spoke to Rockets management this offseason about the idea of being dealt.
- Interestingly, Fischer cites sources who say there doesn’t seem to be a contract extension coming for Celtics forward Grant Williams. The team still has five more days to work out a potential deal with Williams before this year’s rookie scale extension deadline of October 17. If Williams doesn’t sign a new contract by then, he’ll become a restricted free agent next summer.
Rival teams are a little surprised by the way the Suns have handled the Jae Crowder situation, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, who notes that keeping a player away from the team generally lowers his trade value. Crowder didn’t join the Suns for training camp this fall as the two sides attempt to find him a new NBA home.
“I thought the way Phoenix played the situation was strange,” a Western Conference executive told Fischer. “You’re not a super deep team. You’re a contender. Doesn’t it seem like there’s some other way to resolve this other than him sitting out and hurting your depth?”
An Eastern Conference exec who spoke to Fischer offered a similar assessment: “For Jae to hold out is pretty rare. It’s pretty extreme. It’s really interesting they didn’t just play hardball with him.”
A Shams Charania report earlier this week indicated that the Hawks are among the teams with interest in Crowder, and Fischer confirms that Phoenix and Atlanta have had conversations about the veteran forward throughout the offseason. The Hawks are believed to be one of Crowder’s preferred landing spots, along with the Heat, Fischer writes.
As for what the Hawks might be willing to give up for Crowder, that remains unclear. Front office personnel have speculated about the possibility of a Crowder/Landry Shamet package for Bogdan Bogdanovic, but one source told Fischer that Shamet isn’t part of the Suns’ discussions with the Hawks. Some league executives have wondered if Atlanta would give up De’Andre Hunter in a deal for Crowder, says Fischer, but there’s no indication the team is exploring that scenario.
As I suggested on Monday, a package of Justin Holiday and a young player such as Jalen Johnson could theoretically work from a salary-matching perspective. According to Fischer, it’s possible that structure would work if a third team were involved, allowing the Suns to acquire a different player on their wish list.
Here’s more on Crowder from Fischer:
- The Suns have inquired about acquiring Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson in exchange for Crowder, sources tell Fischer. It’s unclear whether Phoenix would be willing to attach a draft asset to Crowder to land Clarkson. The rebuilding Jazz wouldn’t have much interest in Crowder as a player, so they’d need to be enticed to make a deal.
- The Suns are believed to have interest in Celtics guard Derrick White, but Boston hasn’t entered the mix for Crowder so far, according to Fischer.
- While the Grizzlies could theoretically build a package for Crowder around Danny Green‘s expiring contract, there are a couple roadblocks, as Fischer explains. The Suns don’t want to take on Green while he recovers from a torn ACL and are reluctant to send Crowder to a Western Conference rival unless the deal makes Phoenix significantly better. Sources tell Fischer that Memphis isn’t actively pursuing Crowder.