Josh Richardson

Heat Notes: Herro, Lillard, Richardson, Dragic, Roster Spots

October 9th, 2023 at 11:03am CST by Arthur Hill

Damian Lillard spent the summer trying to get traded, but Heat guard Tyler Herro, who likely would have been part of any deal that brought Lillard to Miami, was happy to stay where he is, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel.

Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin reportedly didn’t want Herro, which made it difficult for the teams to reach a deal without a third franchise involved. Although Herro doesn’t hold any resentment toward Cronin for his decision, he’s happy with the way things worked out.

“I didn’t want to go to Portland, so I’m glad Portland didn’t want me,” Herro said. “I just don’t want to be in Portland. So it’s not personal with Portland, at all. I’m just happy to be on the court. I haven’t played since April. I broke my hand and I haven’t played since then, so I’m ready to play.”

Teammates have been raving about Herro’s performance in camp as he returned from the injury that forced him to miss virtually all of last season’s playoffs. Herro doesn’t believe the perception of his importance to the Heat should change because the team reached the NBA Finals without him.

“I got hurt and obviously we went on a run,” he said. “So I don’t know if that changed people’s perspectives on the way that I play or my value. Nothing has changed. I haven’t gotten any worse. I’ve only gotten better, older, more experienced. And our team didn’t get better without me, we just started shooting better and making shots. We didn’t make shots all year. And I’m the best shooter on the team. So I don’t think with me sitting out affected our shooting percentage. I just think we started making shots.”

There’s more from Miami:

Lillard discussed his request to be dealt to the Heat during a weekend interview with Sirius XM NBA Radio (Twitter link). “I don’t think it was a secret that Miami is where I wanted to go when I asked for a trade,” he said. “When this conversation started, it was like ‘We’re not going to be able to build this team out. We’ll help you get to where you want to go.’ And that was where I wanted to go.”
Josh Richardson appears to be the backup point guard heading into the preseason opener, Winderman states in a mailbag column. In response to a reader’s question about signing Goran Dragic, Winderman said he doubts that the team would want two 37-year-old point guards on the roster, but he adds that the organization’s view of Dragic might change if Kyle Lowry gets traded. Winderman also mentions John Wall if the Heat are in the market for veteran help.
Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald takes at closer look at the Exhibit 10 players competing for a roster spot: Justin Champagnie, Cheick Diallo, Drew Peterson, Cole Swider and Alondes Williams.

Southeast Notes: Heat, Herro, Wizards, Okongwu

October 6th, 2023 at 5:27pm CST by Rory Maher

Kyle Lowry said earlier this week that he expects to be the Heat‘s starting point guard in 2023/24 after finishing last season as a reserve. But will he actually reclaim his old job?

According to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald, while head coach Erik Spoelstra was complimentary of Lowry on Friday, he remained noncommittal about who will start at point, noting that a couple other players have been getting practice reps as well.

“Kyle, obviously, is our decorated champion,” Spoelstra said. “So playing on those words, he’s one of the great quarterbacks and quarterback minds in this league and he’s critical to what we do. (Josh Richardson) has been playing some there, just trying to get him re-acclimated to a little more of the role that he played with us previously. And Dru Smith is quietly or not so quietly had a very good camp. He’s improved considerably.”

Richardson has played for five different teams over four seasons since Miami traded him away in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster in 2019. He returned to the Heat this summer on a two-year, minimum-salary deal. Smith, meanwhile is a second-year guard on a two-way deal. He split last season with Miami and Brooklyn.

Here are a few more notes from the Southeast Division:

In an interview with Couper Moorhead of Heat.com, Tyler Herro said he realizes he can’t do anything about being involved in trade rumors, but he’s out to prove he’s valuable in ’23/24. “It’s funny, but everyone has their opinion,” he said. “The only people that really know are the ones in the front offices making the trades and ultimately deciding whose value is what. I feel like I’m pretty damn valuable. I don’t know. I feel like I’m valuable as hell. At the end of the day, I’m going to show that this season and hopefully by the end of the season I’m going to be in the same boat as Bam (Adebayo).“
After ranking 17th in the NBA in pace last season, the Wizards plan to deploy a more up-tempo offense in 2023/24. Players are excited about the change, writes Chase Hughes of Monumental Sports Network. “Oh my God, it’s going to be amazing… It’s going to be really fun and it’s going to be fun to watch,” said forward Kyle Kuzma.
The Hawks are working with fourth-year center Onyeka Okongwu to expand his offensive arsenal, as Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays (subscriber link). “Some of the things that he’s working on, whether it’s a corner three or dribble handoff, taking the ball and driving, there’s some situations he’s in, they’re new to him, but he’s also very capable in those situations,” head coach Quin Snyder said. “I mean, when you see him, drive baseline, throw a left-hand pass along the baseline, he can do that stuff. It’s just got to become instinctive and that takes time but he’s putting in the work.” Okongwu is eligible for a rookie scale extension until October 23, the day before the regular season begins.

Heat Notes: Adebayo, Butler, Richardson, Ellington

October 5th, 2023 at 6:59pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Even with Joel Embiid manning the paint for Team USA, Heat center Bam Adebayo is still expecting to be on the national team’s roster, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes. Adebayo told reporters that he’d already received an invite from Team USA to be on the roster for next year’s Olympics.

If he remains healthy, Adebayo plans to play for Team USA in Paris after winning a gold medal with the Americans in Tokyo in 2021. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is an assistant under national team head coach Steve Kerr and is looking forward to coaching Adebayo in the event, according to Chiang.

“I think it’s awesome for Bam,” Spoelstra said. “I think it’s continuing to help establish him as one of the ultimate winners in this league. He was one of the most impactful players in USA Basketball, and we understand why. I don’t even know what his stats were in the Olympics. But in talking to everybody at Team USA, they felt like he was a must for that roster because of everything he does on both ends of the court and because he’s such a winner.”

Adebayo is entering his seventh season in the NBA and holds career averages of 14.7 points and 8.5 rebounds.

We have more from the Heat:

The NBA implemented new rules impacting teams resting healthy players this offseason. Though Jimmy Butler is defined as a star player who is subject to these rules, he says it will have “zero” effect on how many games he plays in the regular season, Marc Berman of The Palm Beach Post writes. “I’m going to play the games that I am healthy and I’m going to go out there and help my team win,” Butler said. Butler also said he didn’t care about any postseason awards. Players must now play in a minimum of 65 games to be eligible for postseason awards, like MVP.
After sending Josh Richardson out in the trade that brought Butler to Miami in 2019, head coach Erik Spoelstra always thought his return was inevitable, Chiang writes in a separate story. Spoelstra was right, as Richardson signed with the Heat this offseason. “It almost happened a couple times,” Richardson said. “But all the chips didn’t fall in place. But I mean, when I left, me and Spo talked about it, that it was going to happen eventually. It’s just one of those things.“
Even though Wayne Ellington played with nine franchises during his 13-year career, Miami left a lasting impression on him, Chiang writes in another story. That’s why Ellington decided to come back to the Heat as a player development coach, replacing Anthony Carter, who left to join the Grizzlies’ staff. “When I got here, I really bought into what the culture was about, I really bought into what the coaching staff was preaching and I put the work in and I saw that change and it helped me become who I thought I could be as a player,” Ellington said.

Heat Notes: Richardson, Lowry, Beal, Butler

October 4th, 2023 at 6:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat have been considering a reunion with Josh Richardson since they traded him in 2019, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Miami valued Richardson, but needed to include him in the deal that brought Jimmy Butler from Philadelphia. The 30-year-old swingman has bounced around the league since then, spending time with the Mavericks, Celtics, Spurs and Pelicans before returning to Miami this summer on a two-year veteran’s minimum contract.

“It’s always kind of been there,” Richardson said of coming back to the Heat. “It almost happened a couple times. But all the chips didn’t fall in place. But I mean, when I left, me and (coach Eric Spoelstra) talked about it that it was going to happen eventually. It’s just one of those things.”

Spoelstra also remembers that conversation, in which he told Richardson that the organization would likely try to sign him again someday. Spoelstra reached out this summer on the first night of free agency and was able to convince Richardson to return.

“It was one of those special conversations because we were able to revisit some of the things that we talked about back when he left,” Spoelstra said. “One of the things was he was a big piece, obviously, to get the transformative piece (Butler) for us. You take that as an incredible compliment as a player. Sometimes it sucks in this business to be involved in a move like that. But we invested so much in him.”

There’s more from Miami:

Kyle Lowry expects to return to the starting lineup this season, but it’s not clear if Spoelstra is thinking that way, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Jackson points out that Lowry was more effective as a reserve after returning from knee issues last season, and coming off the bench makes it easier for Spoelstra to control his minutes. A $29.7MM expiring contract could make Lowry a trade candidate by the February deadline, so he may not be in Miami’s long-term plans.
The Heat decided not to aggressively pursue Bradley Beal when the Wizards made him available in part because they don’t want a player with a no-trade clause, Jackson adds in the same piece. Washington gave Beal that perk when he signed a new contract last summer and he retained it when he was traded to Phoenix.
Butler claims he wasn’t serious when he said in an Instagram video that the Bucks should be investigated for tampering after trading for Damian Lillard, per Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. “I just say stuff all the time on my socials,” Butler said. “It’s funny, because nobody ever knows what I’m doing. So it’s a big deal whenever I do do something on social besides play dominoes and go to tennis matches. So if I say check somebody for tampering, I guess everybody takes it serious.”

Eastern Notes: Turner, Richardson, Bulls, Nets

September 17th, 2023 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Myles Turner was selected by the Pacers with the No. 11 overall pick in 2015. Turner revealed that he expected to go much higher in the lottery, Tidal League tweets.

“I thought I was going number 5 to Orlando. … I’m at the table in the green room. ‘With the number 5 pick the Orlando Magic select Mario Hezonja.’ I’m like, ‘Who the (expletive) is this?'” Turner said, adding that it was a “blessing in disguise” when he ended up going to Indiana at No. 11.

We have more notes from the Eastern Conference:

Josh Richardson joined the Heat in 2015 after playing four seasons at Tennessee, making him a polished, ready-for-prime-time player. Entering his second stint with the franchise, Richardson continues to play with an intelligent, measured style that has aged well, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel opines. Richardson rejoined Miami as a free agent on a two-year contract.
The Bulls remain outside the top six in the Eastern Conference’s pecking order, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times. They are not a serious threat as currently constructed, though all the teams above them are flawed, Cowley writes. The Bucks and Celtics take the top two spots in Cowley’s rankings.
The Nets earned a B-minus for their offseason moves, according to NetsDaily.com. The team’s two biggest question marks remain unanswered — namely, do they have enough scoring and can they improve their rebounding?

Heat Notes: Swider, Richardson, Butler, Lowry

September 17th, 2023 at 10:30am CST by Arthur Hill

Cole Swider is hoping to be the Heat‘s next success story in player development, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Miami has shown a knack for finding useful players who have gone undrafted, many of whom are coming off opportunities with other teams. Swider wants to put his name on that list with Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Duncan Robinson, Orlando Robinson and others.

“It was a big part of my decision-making process,” Swider said. “There were a lot of teams that were interested. And a lot of ’em were interested in the same thing the Heat were interested in, an Exhibit 10 (tryout contract) and the opportunity to earn a two-way or a roster spot. But the success with the Heat with those guys gave me an easy decision, in terms of they’re going to give you a real opportunity in training camp, they’re going to give you real opportunities to get on the floor and play through mistakes and make the team.”

Swider, a 24-year-old small forward, signed a two-way contract with the Lakers after going undrafted out of Syracuse in 2022. He saw minimal playing time in seven games with L.A., spending most of the season in the G League.

Another reason Swider decided to go to Miami was the team’s need for outside shooting after losing Strus and Vincent in free agency. Swider is a shooting specialist, connecting at 50.6% from the field and 43.6% from beyond the arc in 27 G League games last season.

“Because of the type of guys like me in the past, they know how to use guys like me,” he said. “When I do something in pickup that looks like Duncan or Max or Gabe, they know how to use me in a game. It’s not like, ‘Oh, this only works in pickup.’”

There’s more from Miami:

Josh Richardson has aged well throughout his NBA career and should be a reliable rotation player this season, Winderman states in a mailbag column. Richardson, who was drafted by the Heat in 2015, returned to the organization this summer after playing for five teams in the last four years. Winderman notes that he relies on intelligence as much as speed and athleticism and has remained productive at age 30.
Jimmy Butler falls just short of the NBA’s exceptions in its new Player Participation Policy, but his medical history may give the Heat more opportunity to rest him, Winderman adds in another piece. Teams can petition the league to sit out players in back-to-back games if they’re at least 35 years old or have logged more than 34,000 career minutes or 1,000 total games in the regular season and playoffs. Butler is 34 with 29,513 minutes in 873 games, but his history of knee issues may qualify him to get approval under the PPP’s injury provision.
NBA Twitter was buzzing Saturday night when Heat guard Kyle Lowry was spotted alongside Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups at the Colorado-Colorado State football game (video link). Lowry is among the players who may be headed to Portland if the teams can agree on a Damian Lillard trade.

Heat Notes: Lillard, Starters, Wood, Rebounding

September 10th, 2023 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat don’t have any reason to increase their offer for Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard unless they’re determined to have him when training camp opens, Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes in a mailbag column. No other team has made a significant offer for Lillard, Chiang notes, so Miami would essentially be bidding against itself by giving more assets to Portland.

Chiang adds that the first step would be for the Heat and Blazers to resume trade discussions, which have been dormant for several weeks. Sources around the league tell Chiang that they expect the teams to start talking again some time before they both open camp in early October.

Chiang also speculates that things might get “messier” in Portland if Lillard is still on the roster at the start of camp, which would mark three months after he submitted his trade request. It’s not ideal for the Heat to start preparing for a new season amid so much uncertainty, so the time pressure could renew both teams’ interest in getting a trade completed.

There’s more from Miami:

Without a trade, the Heat’s most likely starting lineup appears to be Kyle Lowry, Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Kevin Love and Bam Adebayo, Chiang adds in the same piece. Butler and Adebayo are the only full-time starters returning from a team that just reached the NBA Finals a few months ago, although Herro was sidelined with an injury and Lowry and Love both have extensive starting experience. Chiang speculates that Caleb Martin could take Love’s place on occasions when Miami wants to use a smaller starting five, and Herro could be used as a makeshift point guard with Josh Richardson starting alongside him in the backcourt.
The Heat were mentioned as a possible destination for Christian Wood before he signed with the Lakers this week, but Miami isn’t in position to make complementary roster moves until it knows what’s going to happen with Lillard, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Wood reportedly had been watching the trade requests involving Lillard and James Harden to see if a situation might open up that would offer him regular playing time, but he decided not to wait any longer to find his next team.
Erik Spoelstra’s experience as an assistant coach with Team USA during the World Cup provided him with another example of the need for size on the front line, Winderman adds. The Americans were routinely outrebounded by larger opponents, just as Miami was in losing to the Nuggets in the NBA Finals. The Heat finished 27th in the league in rebounding last season, which may affect Spoelstra’s decision on whom to start at power forward.

Heat Notes: Richardson, Bryant, Swider, Bouyea, Lillard

August 25th, 2023 at 7:53am CST by Luke Adams

After briefly discussing the Heat‘s offseason moves during an ESPN interview last week, head coach Erik Spoelstra went into more detail while taking part in a Zoom call with reporters on Wednesday. As Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes, Spoelstra is looking forward to having former Heat wing Josh Richardson back on the roster in 2023/24.

“To be able to get somebody like J-Rich, who we are all really comfortable with, who we spent so many hours and years spending time developing him and where he feels also comfortable in our system and how we operate, we just feel very fortunate that we were able to get him when we were able to get him,” Spoelstra said.

“He’s already been in the gym working and it’s almost like, I mentioned to him the last time I saw him in the gym, it’s like the time away never happened. The relationship just started off right where we left it. That’s when you know you have strong relationships back and forth from our standpoint and his standpoint. Also, his versatility is going to be super important. His ability to play multiple positions.”

Here are a few more notes on the Heat, including Spoelstra’s thoughts on some of the team’s other recent additions:

According to Spoelstra, newly added center Thomas Bryant is a player the Heat have had their eye on for several years. They worked him out prior to the 2017 draft and were fans of the big man at the time. “His time with (the Lakers last season), I thought was really important,” Spoelstra said of Bryant. “You could see how he could be effective in our system and how he can play with multiple guys. He’s big, he’s physical, he plays with a motor and he can also stretch the floor. So he can have a presence at the rim and in the paint, but he also can space the floor and be efficient behind the three-point line. We’re excited to be able to add him to our roster and add some depth to our frontcourt and some versatile depth.”
Spoelstra expressed enthusiasm about forward Cole Swider, who signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the team earlier this month.“He has positional size, he has exceptional three-point shooting and range and versatility with his three-point shooting,” the head coach said. “He can shoot on the move, he can also space the floor and he has the size to be able to get his shot off with great accuracy. So we’re excited to be able to add him to our mix late into the summer. We’re looking forward to developing him and working with him.” Our Tristan Tucker recently identified Swider as a candidate to eventually earn a two-way or standard deal.
Spoelstra also believes the Heat will see “bigger jumps” from Jamaree Bouyea, who remained with the club on another two-way deal. “He improved being able to run a team, get guys organized,” Spoelstra said, referring to Bouyea’s play in the G League. “And defensively and the things that he can do with his speed are just super unique. So we wanted to have an opportunity to continue his development and have a second year at it.”
Following Damian Lillard‘s public confirmation of his trade request in an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald breaks down that interview from a Heat perspective, noting that trade talks with the Trail Blazers have been “largely dormant” for several weeks.

Erik Spoelstra Discusses Heat’s Roster, Offseason Moves

August 18th, 2023 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

There’s a sense that the Heat‘s offseason remains unfinished, with the Damian Lillard saga unresolved and Miami still looking like the overwhelming favorite to trade for the Trail Blazers star sooner or later.

However, speaking to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst on NBA Today on Thursday (YouTube link), head coach Erik Spoelstra suggested that he’d be happy to head into the 2023/24 season with his current roster, noting that the team “had most of our work done” by the time he reported to Team USA for the summer.

“We’re bringing back the majority of our players and that’s a luxury in this league,” Spoelstra said, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “Things are so transient, things are moving fast. It seems like it’s moving faster now than even four, five, six years ago.

“We feel great about our group. We made some nice additions, we feel. Josh Richardson, getting another family member back into our program. Thomas Bryant, who we’ve been a big fan of. And [Jaime] Jaquez as our draft pick. We’re excited. He’s a guy you can plug and play right now. He’s a little bit older and he has a great deal of experience. So we’re adding those guys to our mix and bringing everybody back. Tyler [Herro] is healthy, Jimmy [Butler] and Bam [Adebayo], that’s a great core. So we’re excited about it.”

Spoelstra obviously can’t publicly discuss the possibility of adding Lillard and is unlikely to be directly involved in trade negotiations for the star guard, which will be handled by the front office. So the fact that he’s speaking positively about his current group is no surprise.

Still, Spoelstra is putting a positive spin on what has been an up-and-down offseason so far for the Heat. While Miami did well to get Richardson and Bryant on minimum-salary deals, the team lost two key rotation players – Gabe Vincent and Max Strus – in free agency. The Heat should be competitive again with no additional roster changes, but acquiring Lillard would almost certainly increase the club’s ceiling.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, J. Richardson, D. Robinson, Gallinari

August 2nd, 2023 at 7:29pm CST by Rory Maher

Restricted free agent P.J. Washington and the Hornets remain at an impasse in contract negotiations and there have been “no indications” of that changing anytime soon, league sources tell Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer.

Boone examines the team’s roster and depth chart entering the 2023/24 season, writing that No. 2 overall pick Brandon Miller projects to come off the bench behind veterans Terry Rozier and Gordon Hayward.

Assuming Washington is on the roster, he’ll have the inside track for the starting power forward position, with Miles Bridges suspended for the first 10 games. However, Boone wonders if the Hornets will eventually pivot to Bridges if they get off to a slow start.

2021 first-round picks James Bouknight and Kai Jones will likely find minutes tough to come by, Boone adds.

Here’s more from the Southeast:

Appearing at the Heat‘s youth camp on Wednesday, returning swingman Josh Richardson said Damian Lillard is the best player he’s played against, as Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel relays. Lillard’s status, of course, has been one of the primary stories of the offseason, as the longtime Trail Blazers star requested a trade to Miami. Richardson, a free agent signee, said his game is malleable and he’s ready for whatever role he’s given. “I mean, you know how (head coach Erik Spoelstra) Spo is, he’s kind of like, ‘I can put you out there and do anything,’” Richardson said of not sweating how the roster or his role ultimately could shake out. “So it’s kind of what I’m good at. I’m kind of a jack of all trades. Our talk was good before, but I’ll guess we’ll see more concrete once the games get started.”
In a subscriber-only mailbag for The Sun Sentinel, Winderman notes that while losing Max Strus‘ shooting could make Duncan Robinson more valuable to the Heat, the latter certainly isn’t irreplaceable. Robinson’s name has popped up in trade rumors for several months and he could be used as a salary-matching piece in a possible Lillard deal.
Wizards forward Danilo Gallinari, who was acquired from Boston as part of the Kristaps Porzingis trade, says he’s looking forward to competing against the Celtics next season, according to Daniel Donabedian of Clutch Points. “I can’t wait to play against Boston,” Gallinari said on the Italian A Cresta Alta podcast. “When the schedule will be unveiled, I’ll put an X on the games we will play at Boston against the Celtics.” Gallinari grew up idolizing Celtics legend Larry Bird and hoped to win a title in Boston, but missed all of last season after tearing his ACL last year.

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