Dewayne Dedmon Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Sixers Notes: McClung, Embiid, Love, Reed, Dedmon

February 18th, 2023 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mac McClung has only played in two NBA games, but for one night he was the league’s brightest star. McClung dominated Saturday’s Slam Dunk Contest with three perfect scores on his four dunks, all of which drew a massive reaction from the crowd at Vivint Arena, writes Ben Golliver of The Washington Post.

“It’s great,” McClung said after defeating the Pelicans’ Trey Murphy in the finals. “I’m truly blessed and grateful to the NBA for giving me this opportunity. If you guys will have me, I’ll be back (next year).”

The 6’2″ guard wowed the packed house with his incredible leaping ability and acrobatics, leaving some of the NBA’s top players and former stars visibly impressed. He started the final round with a “double double-clutch” dunk, as Golliver describes it, then ended the night with a spinning reverse slam.

It was a memorable performance for a player who had been in the G League all season before signing a two-way contract with the Sixers on Tuesday. After brief trials with the Lakers, Bulls and Warriors over the last two years, McClung will try to use his newfound fame to help him stick on an NBA roster.

There’s more on the Sixers:

McClung would have missed the opportunity to become an All-Star Weekend sensation if he had accepted one of the offers received to play overseas last summer. According to Rich Hofman of The Athletic, McClung could have made more than $1MM with either Fenerbahce in Turkey or the Shanghai Sharks in China. He opted for an Exhibit 10 deal with Philadelphia that he believed gave him a better path to the NBA.
A Sixers source tells Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer that the organization believes Joel Embiid intends to play in Sunday’s All-Star Game, but Pompey suggests it would be better for Embiid and the team if he sits it out. Pompey notes that Embiid has been dealing with soreness in his left foot for much of the season and hasn’t been fully healthy for about a month.
Kevin Love will reportedly talk to the Sixers before deciding on his next team, but Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice isn’t convinced that it would be a good fit. Philadelphia has a full roster, so someone would have to be waived to make room for Love, and Neubeck sees Paul Reed or the recently signed Dewayne Dedmon as the best choices. Although Love could provide an upgrade with his rebounding, Neubeck points out that the Sixers already have a similar forward in Georges Niang.

Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Jeffries, Raptors, Boucher, Dedmon

February 18th, 2023 at 7:58am CST by Luke Adams

Since trading away three players in their deal for Josh Hart at this month’s trade deadline, the Knicks have been carrying just 13 players on standard contracts. The NBA-mandated minimum is technically 14, but teams are permitted to be below that minimum for up to two weeks at a time.

It has been nine days since the trade deadline, meaning New York has five more days to fill at least one of its two open roster spots. And according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, one contender to claim one of the Knicks’ roster openings is two-way player DaQuan Jeffries.

Jeffries isn’t a prototypical candidate for a promotion from a two-way contract. Not only has he not been a part of the Knicks’ rotation so far this season — he hasn’t even appeared in a single game at the NBA level since signing his two-way deal in November.

However, the 25-year-old swingman has had a strong season in the G League for New York’s affiliate, the Westchester Knicks. In 32 total games (Showcase Cup and regular season), he has averaged 19.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.1 blocks on .485/.328/.691 shooting in 33.5 minutes per contest. If there aren’t any free agents who appeal to the Knicks, it might make sense to lock up Jeffries to a team-friendly deal that includes non-guaranteed money beyond this season.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

While the Raptors‘ trade deadline may have been quieter than widely expected, Toronto’s front office would push back on the notion that the team didn’t do anything “big” last week, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. As Smith explains, the Raptors believed they had three pressing needs (size, depth, and shooting) and addressed two of them (size and depth) with their acquisition of Jakob Poeltl.
Within the same story, Smith notes that the Raptors may have a tough time avoiding the luxury tax next season if they’re intent on re-signing Poeltl, Gary Trent Jr., and Fred VanVleet. According to Smith, the club believes it could move off Otto Porter Jr.‘s guaranteed $6.3MM salary for next season if necessary, but isn’t enthusiastic about the idea of trading Chris Boucher (who is owed $11.75MM). “Sure, we could,” a team source told Smith when asked about the possibility of dealing Boucher to help cut costs. “But why? We like him a lot.”
One of Dewayne Dedmon‘s first NBA contracts, a 10-day deal, came back in 2014 with a 19-63 Sixers team that had just launched “The Process.” Back in Philadelphia nine years later and with over 500 NBA games under his belt, Dedmon appreciates how far both he and the team have come since then. “It’s great growth for the organization, you know what I’m saying?” Dedmon said, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “Doing big things. Just the whole processing years have turned out some really good things going on here. And for myself, just keep working and it’s paying off. I’m back here now and I’m ready to win.”

Sixers Sign Dewayne Dedmon

February 14th, 2023 at 9:31am CST by Arthur Hill

FEBRUARY 14: The Sixers have officially signed Dedmon, the team confirmed in a press release.

FEBRUARY 13: Former Heat center Dewayne Dedmon has agreed to a contract with the Sixers for the rest of the season, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Philadelphia wasn’t able to find a backup center before last week’s trade deadline, so the team is turning to Dedmon, who has filled that role for numerous clubs throughout his 10-year NBA career. The 33-year-old has played for seven franchises, including an 11-game stint with the Sixers in 2013/14.

Dedmon began this season as the reserve center in Miami, but things turned sour after he lost that role to two-way player Orlando Robinson. In January, Dedmon was suspended for one game after a sideline incident with coach Erik Spoelstra and assistant Caron Butler. He apologized to the team, but only appeared in one game after that confrontation.

Last week, the Heat traded Dedmon to the Spurs along with a 2028 second-round pick in exchange for cash considerations. San Antonio waived him two days later.

Dedmon will try to revive his career in Philadelphia, where management had been seeking a veteran big man to back up Joel Embiid. Dedmon was averaging 5.7 points and 3.6 rebounds with Miami this season in 11.7 minutes per night.

Atlantic Notes: Griffin, Dedmon, Simmons, Bridges

February 13th, 2023 at 9:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Adrian Griffin filled in for Nick Nurse on Sunday as the Raptors’ head coach dealt with a family issue. Griffin, who coached the club to a one-point win over Detroit, hopes this experience will help him land a head coaching job down the road, Doug Smith of The Toronto Star writes.

“It’s something I’d like to pursue in the future as far as being a head coach so this is good practice for me,” the Raptors assistant said said. “But I never lose sight of what’s important and that’s the players. I’ve got to make sure that they’re prepared, I’ve got to make sure that they know what’s coming and put them first. Yes, I appreciate this opportunity but I always try to keep it in perspective: We’ve got a game to win and my job is to prepare them to win.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Dewayne Dedmon has decided to join the Sixers after he clears waivers, but Philly Voice’s Kyle Neubeck is skeptical that Dedmon is the answer as Joel Embiid‘s backup, given that he’s 33 and he couldn’t establish himself as the Heat’s backup big man. Dedmon made spotty contributions on offense this season and it’s questionable whether he can effectively guard pick-and-rolls, Neubeck writes.
Ben Simmons admits he’s not happy with his spotty fourth-quarter minutes, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. “It’s a little frustrating trying to find some rhythm and consistency; but that’s what it is at this point right now,” he said. “Guys have been in and out due to injuries, trades, so there’s been a lot of different things that play factors into it.”
Nets fans have quickly embraced Mikal Bridges, the top player they acquired in the Kevin Durant blockbuster. The home crowd chanted “Brooklyn Bridges” as he shot free throws in his team debut on Saturday. “Hearing that chant, I kind of wanted to join in and make them yell louder. … People were already saying ‘Brooklyn Bridges’ when I got traded. I like it,” he said.
Bridges didn’t lose his consecutive games streak on a technicality, Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press reports. He was forced to miss a game last week for the first time in his career on Thursday after he was traded by Phoenix. He was listed as “inactive — trade pending” in the official box score. The league determined that since Bridges wasn’t eligible to play, it shouldn’t count as a missed game. He has the league’s longest active streak, now at 367 after the Nets fell to the Knicks on Monday night.

Spurs Release Dewayne Dedmon

February 9th, 2023 at 4:17pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

4:20pm: The Spurs have officially waived Dedmon, according to a press release from the team.

4:17pm: Veteran journeyman center Dewayne Dedmon will be waived by the Spurs just days after San Antonio acquired him via trade, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The Heat flipped a 2028 second-round draft pick to the Spurs to get off of Dedmon’s money earlier this week, while the Spurs sent Miami back $110K.

The 33-year-old seven-footer was in the midst of his third season with the Heat after inking a two-year, $9MM free agent deal to return in 2022. He had been squeezed out of the rotation by the emergence of two-way big Orlando Robinson in recent weeks. A minutes-related squabble on the bench prompted Miami to take the extreme step of suspending Dedmon for a game.

Provided Dedmon clears waivers, he will become an unrestricted free agent, and be free to latch on with any team besides the Heat.

Across his 30 games behind All-Star Heat center Bam Adebayo this season, Dedmon averaged 5.7 PPG and 3.6 RPG, while posting shooting splits of .496/.297/.727.

Heat Trade Dedmon, Second-Round Pick To Spurs

February 7th, 2023 at 1:53pm CST by Luke Adams

1:53pm: The Spurs have officially acquired Dedmon and the Heat’s 2028 second-round pick from Miami in exchange for cash considerations, they announced in a press release.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the belief is that the Heat are getting $110K, which is the minimum amount a team can send or receive in a trade.

10:25am: The Heat and Spurs have agreed to a trade that will send center Dewayne Dedmon to San Antonio along with a future second-round pick, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The second-rounder will be Miami’s 2028 pick, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link).

Dedmon, 33, re-signed with the Heat last summer and began the season as the club’s primary backup center behind Bam Adebayo. However, he lost his spot in the rotation to two-way rookie Orlando Robinson and was suspended for one game by Miami last month for a sideline outburst. The Heat had reportedly been shopping him in trade talks in recent weeks.

For the season, Dedmon has averaged 5.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per game in 30 appearances (11.7 MPG).

The Spurs remain well below the salary cap (and floor), giving them the ability to take on Dedmon’s $4.7MM salary without sending out any players of their own. They also have an open spot on their 15-man roster, so no corresponding move will be necessary to create room for Dedmon.

From the Spurs’ perspective, the deal essentially comes down to sacrificing some of their cap space for the rights to a future draft pick. Dedmon’s $4.3MM salary for 2023/24 is non-guaranteed, so he’s a good bet to be waived after the trade is official — San Antonio won’t owe him any money beyond this season.

For Miami, the move generates additional roster and cap flexibility. The Heat have spent the season carrying just 14 players, with a team salary about $200K below the luxury tax line. Moving Dedmon will give the team significantly more breathing room below the tax threshold to make trades or signings.

Even if the Heat don’t need that flexibility this week for a pre-deadline deal, they’ll have the ability to sign free agents to fill both their 14th and 15th roster spots without having to worry about becoming a taxpayer. Robinson is a candidate to be promoted to the standard roster to claim one of those openings.

Teams are permitted to carry below 14 players on standard contracts for up to two weeks at a time, so the Heat would have 14 days to add a 14th man after the trade becomes official.

To make the trade legal, the Spurs will have to send something to Miami, but since this is essentially just a salary dump, San Antonio’s outgoing piece is unlikely to be anything of real value — it could be a heavily protected draft pick, the rights to a draft-and-stash player who won’t ever play in the NBA, or a small amount of cash. Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link) hears that it’ll be the latter.

The Heat will generate a trade exception worth $4.7MM (Dedmon’s salary) as a result of the deal.

Heat Open To Dealing Kyle Lowry

February 6th, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Rory Maher

While it was previously reported that the Heat weren’t actively shopping Kyle Lowry and a deal was considered unlikely, evidently the team is now open to moving him if it receives an “advantageous” offer, according to Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.

As Jackson and Chiang point out, Lowry’s list of suitors might be small. In addition to being 36 years old, he is making $28.33MM this season and $29.68MM in 2023/24.

The other issue is Lowry has been battling left knee soreness off and on since December. He had a “minor medical procedure” on the knee in mid-January, which caused him to miss four games, Jackson and Chiang report. He missed Saturday’s game as a result of the issue and plans to meet with a doctor soon.

Lowry, a six-time All-Star and 2019 NBA champion with the Raptors, has seen his production drop off in ’22/23. He’s averaging 12.0 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 5.3 APG and 1.0 SPG on .396/.333/.855 shooting through 44 games (33.3 MPG).

The Clippers are one team that has expressed interest in the veteran point guard, but others have inquired as well, per Jackson and Chiang.

In addition to Lowry, Miami is “willing to listen to offers on most players” on its roster. One player rival teams have been calling about is Max Strus, who is an impending free agent in the summer, a source tells Jackson and Chiang. The Heat would like to re-sign him, but it might be costly due to luxury tax concerns.

The Herald’s duo suggests the Heat are unlikely to trade away a first-round pick unless they can acquire a “quality starter.” The primary reason for that is the team is always on the lookout for star talent and would prefer to save its draft capital.

The Heat continue to look for frontcourt help and will attempt to unload Dewayne Dedmon‘s $4.7MM contract (his deal is non-guaranteed for ’23/24), Jackson and Chiang add.

Heat Notes: Dedmon, Robinson, Herro, Adebayo

February 2nd, 2023 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

With Orlando Robinson sidelined due to a fractured thumb and Omer Yurtseven not yet ready to return from ankle surgery, the Heat will have to figure out how they’ll handle their backup center minutes for the seven games before the All-Star break, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Inserting Dewayne Dedmon into Robinson’s role would perhaps be the simplest option, but the veteran big man hasn’t seen any action since being suspended for a game without pay last month, and Jackson hears from a source that the Heat is looking to trade him. If they move Dedmon before next Thursday’s deadline, the Heat could perhaps get another center back in that deal — otherwise, the team could turn to veteran Udonis Haslem for a few games before the All-Star break.

For his part, Dedmon said he hasn’t heard from the club whether he’ll be reinserted into the rotation or whether he’ll be traded, and is just taking things day-by-day for now.

“It’s the business of basketball,” Dedmon said, per Jackson. “Just like you show up to work, I show up to work every day. Whatever the team decides to do in the future, or whatever may happen, you roll with the punches. I’m going to be professional about what I have to do do with my approach to every game and make sure I’m prepared if my team needs me.”

Robinson, meanwhile, told reporters on Thursday that he’s hoping his recovery timeline following his thumb fracture doesn’t have to be measured in weeks, suggesting he’s hoping for a speedy return (Twitter link via Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel).

Here’s more on the Heat:

While the Heat will almost certainly stay out of luxury tax territory this season, next season’s payroll will likely blow past the tax line if the team intends to retain free agents like Max Strus, Victor Oladipo, and Gabe Vincent, Jackson writes in another story for The Miami Herald. Jackson would be surprised if ownership signed off on a huge tax bill for the current version of the team and suspects that something will have to give, which could affect how the front office approaches next week’s trade deadline. Moving off Kyle Lowry or Duncan Robinson now or in the summer would put the Heat in a better financial position, Jackson observes.
Heat guard Tyler Herro said this week that he never sought clarity from the Heat on whether the team included him in any trade offers for Donovan Mitchell during the 2022 offseason, according to Jackson. “I was curious; I didn’t ask,” Herro said. “I’m sure I was.”
Within the same Miami Herald story, head coach Erik Spoelstra expressed confidence that both Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler will be among the seven players voted by coaches as Eastern Conference All-Star reserves. “I think they’ll both make it,” Spoelstra said. “The coaches vote on that, and I think they’re recognized, both those guys, how much they impact winning.” The All-Star reserves will be revealed on TNT on Thursday night.
Addressing the possibility of trying to recruit players to Miami in the future, Adebayo said he has mixed feeling about the issue — he would be willing to to it for the “greater good” of the team, but would feel uncomfortable asking Heat management to bring in a friend for the sake of it, per Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “It would be if it results in winning, and not, ‘Oh, we just want to be on a team just so we can play together,'” Adebayo said.

Heat Notes: Trade Targets, Crowder, Collins, Lowry, Oladipo

January 19th, 2023 at 9:23pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Heat are very active on the trade market, Sean Deveney of Heavy.com reports. An obvious area to upgrade would be power forward, with the Hawks’ John Collins a potential target. However, there’s concern within the organization that Collins may not be a great fit alongside Bam Adebayo due to his perimeter shooting issues.

The Suns rejected an offer of Duncan Robinson for Jae Crowder, but Caleb Martin could be substituted for Robinson with center Dewayne Dedmon tossed in to make the salaries work and keep Miami under the luxury tax, Deveney adds.

We have more on the Heat:

There are plenty of other potential trade options for a power forward but the Heat may have to include an asset or two they don’t want to give up, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald notes. They’d certainly be willing to move Robinson’s contract and Dedmon. They may also have to add Martin or Nikola Jovic into the package, as well one or two protected first-round picks, to get an impact player at that spot.
While a Kyle Lowry trade can’t be ruled out, the Heat aren’t actively looking to move him, Jackson adds in the same story.
After hovering around the .500 mark most of the season, the Heat are a season-best four games over .500. Better health has been a factor and Udonis Haslem believes the team can go on a run, he told Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “We’ve been right there. So many games coming down to the last shot even with a decimated roster,” the veteran big man said. “So sometimes you got to look within the lesson. The lesson is, I think, once we get healthy, we’re building some good habits and we’ll be able to put something together here. You look at how Boston started their first half of the season last year and it was similar. So if we get healthy, I think we’re still capable of putting something together here.”
Considering his past injury issues, Victor Oladipo is surprised he’s logged 30-plus minutes in eight of his last 10 games, he told Chiang. “A little bit, I can’t lie,” Oladipo said of playing extended minutes this season. “But sitting back and really reflecting, you see how much work I put in and how much I invest in my body. So it’s no surprise that I’m still feeling good, and I’m going to continue to keep feeling better as the year goes on.” Oladipo only played 25 minutes in a lopsided win over New Orleans on Wednesday.

Heat Notes: Dedmon, Oladipo, Highsmith, Vincent

January 16th, 2023 at 8:50pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Heat reserve big man Dewayne Dedmon spoke to reporters on Saturday for the first time about his recent suspension, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Dedmon was suspended for one game by the team after getting into an argument with coaches on the sidelines and swatting a massage gun onto the court during play.

“I talked with [head coach Erik Spoelstra], talked with [team president Pat Riley], talked with my team, made sure we were all on the same page,” Dedmon said. “And we’re ready to move on from it… Sometimes it gets the best of you. But it’s basketball. We’re all competitors in this locker room, we all want to play and we all want to win. So that’s all that is.”

Chiang notes that Dedmon has lost his rotation spot as Bam Adebayo‘s primary backup as of late to undrafted rookie center Orlando Robinson.

There’s more out of Miami:

The role Heat guard Victor Oladipo is playing as a defensive spark plug off the bench is exactly what Spoelstra had wanted the former All-Star to achieve prior to the regular season, per Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscriber-only link). “It’s what we envisioned,” Spoelstra said. “At the start of training camp, that’s the role we slotted for him.”
Heat reserve big Haywood Highsmith has performed well with starting power forward Caleb Martin injured, but Winderman notes in a recent mailbag (subscriber exclusive) that he is unsure if Highsmith will earn rotation minutes once everyone is healthy.
Spoelstra believes Heat swingman Gabe Vincent has evolved into a solid 3-and-D guard capable of playing either backcourt position this season, Chiang writes in another article. “He has the emotional stability to handle different roles that not every player in this league can accept,” Spoelstra raved. “He can play off the ball, he can play on the ball, he can play as a little bit more a scorer, he can be more of a facilitator if we have our full health. Those kind of guys are so invaluable in this league.”