It remains to be seen how aggressive the Heat will be in trying to lock up Justise Winslow to a rookie scale extension this offseason, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald, who writes that the team has yet to present an offer to the fourth-year forward. The Heat also haven’t indicated whether or not an offer will be forthcoming, but the two sides are expected to meet in the coming weeks, Jackson reports.
Miami will have until October 15, the day before the start of the regular season, to work out an extension with Winslow. Without a new deal in place, the former lottery pick would be on track to reach restricted free agency in 2019, and one GM tells Jackson that he could see the 22-year-old fielding offers starting at about $9MM per year. Of course, Winslow’s play in 2018/19 would go a long way toward determining his market value next summer.
Here’s more on the Heat:
- It doesn’t appear that anyone outside of Dwyane Wade‘s inner circle knows his intentions for the coming season, but two sources – one Heat person and one person who has spoken to Wade – tell Jackson that Wade “seems inclined to play” in 2018/19. That’s far from definitive though. The future Hall-of-Famer has been mulling a return to the Heat, but it’s still possible that he’ll follow fellow veterans Manu Ginobili and David West into retirement.
- The Heat haven’t ruled out the possibility of converting Duncan Robinson‘s two-way contract to a standard NBA deal if he impresses the club during training camp and the preseason, writes Jackson. Even if Wade and Udonis Haslem re-sign with Miami, the team would have one open spot on its 15-man roster for the regular season.
- Briante Weber finds himself in a familiar spot this fall, as he prepares to head to training camp with the Heat for the third time in his four-year professional career. Weber, who has only ever appeared in a single regular season game for the Heat, is hoping that his fourth overall contract with the club will be the one that sticks, as Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel details.