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Heat Notes: Butler, Young Core, Adebayo, Rozier, Richardson

January 16th, 2025 at 8:53pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Despite the fact that Heat star Jimmy Butler reportedly made it clear he no longer wants to play for the franchise, he may suit up for Miami on Friday, writes Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. Butler is eligible to return against Denver from his team-issued suspension and was not listed on Thursday’s injury report.

The six-time All-Star was expected to meet with Arison and CEO Nick Arison on Thursday afternoon to discuss a path forward.

As has been reported, there has been little progress on a potential trade. The Heat would prefer to get a trade done sooner rather than later but will only accept a deal that will help the team both now and moving forward.

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Miami went 3-4 during Butler’s suspension, including three consecutive wins against the Warriors, Jazz and Trail Blazers. The most promising aspect of the trip, The Athletic’s James Jackson writes, is the fact that Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware and Nikola Jovic all showed promise. Ware continues to play a larger role as the season goes on. Teammate Tyler Herro expressed optimism about what he saw from those players during the stretch. “Ups and downs with a young player are normal,” Herro said. “I went through it myself. I think that’s the hardest thing: just finding consistency night in and night out. That’s a challenge for any young player. I think getting the reps every night is ultimately what young guys need, to be able to continue to get better and go through ups and downs, play through mistakes. But they’re all playing very well. You can see how good they can be, and I’m really excited for them.“
Ware and Jovic have looked particularly good coming off the bench for Miami, often assisting on each other’s makes, Chiang observes in a separate story. On the other hand, Bam Adebayo and Terry Rozier remain off the mark offensively, with Adebayo shooting a career-low from the field and Rozier shooting his lowest since the 2018/19 season.
Despite being active earlier this month and looking like he was on track to return soon, Josh Richardson went home from the team’s West Coast road trip early for an MRI on his heel. Richardson was ruled out due to that heel issue, according to the team (Twitter link). It’s unknown at this time when Richardson will be able to return or what the results of the MRI were.

Community Shootaround: First Half’s Pleasant Surprises, Disappointments

January 11th, 2025 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The fact that Bulls point guard Lonzo Ball has been able to play in 19 games so far this season is an achievement in itself, given that he missed the previous two-and-a-half years while dealing with ongoing knee problems. As Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps write for ESPN.com (Insider link), what’s even more impressive is how impactful Ball has been during his time on the court.

Although his numbers, including 5.8 points per game on .359/.318/.750, don’t look especially strong, Ball is once again making the sorts of winning plays that don’t show up in the box score. Chicago has a +6.9 net rating when he’s on the court, compared to a -5.0 mark when he’s not.

“Someone is going to get him next year and look smart,” one executive said to ESPN of Ball, who is on an expiring contract.

Ball is among several players identified by Windhorst and Bontemps as the pleasant surprises of the first half of the 2024/25 NBA season. Here are a few more of the names on that list:

Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks: “He’s been everything the Knicks were hoping for and more, and his absence has left a larger hole than the Wolves would’ve ever thought,” a scout told ESPN.
Cade Cunningham, Pistons: “When the Pistons gave him the max, there were quite a few people who thought it was a risk, and he’s been very strong,” a general manager said.
Victor Wembanyama, Spurs: “What he’s doing is just ridiculous,” an executive said. “Say whatever you want about him meeting expectations; if he gets that roster to the playoffs, he should get MVP votes. And he might.”
Norman Powell, Clippers: “He’s gotten more minutes and shots, but no one would’ve believed he’d take this leap at this stage of his career,” an exec said to ESPN.

James Harden (Clippers), Dyson Daniels (Hawks), and Cameron Johnson (Nets) are among the others mentioned by ESPN’s duo.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, Heat teammates Terry Rozier and Jaime Jaquez, and Sixers center Joel Embiid are among the season’s biggest disappointments, as identified by Windhorst, Bontemps, and the sources they spoke to. Here are a few more of the players in that group:

Paul George, Sixers: “Philly probably knew there was a chance they’d have a rough PG year on this contract but they probably thought it would be year four — not year one,” an executive said.
Kyle Kuzma, Wizards: “I know he’s dealt with an injury,” one scout told ESPN, “but I think this has been the most disappointing season of his career.”
Scoot Henderson, Trail Blazers: “I thought it was a guarantee he’d play much better this year than last and show some things,” an exec said. “I’ve been wrong. His numbers are down, and the eye (test) confirms it.”

We want to know what you think.

Which NBA players have you been most pleasantly surprised or disappointed by so far this season? Are there any names on ESPN’s lists – or scouts’ and executives’ comments – that you strongly agree or disagree with?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

Southeast Notes: Rozier, Johnson, Jaquez, Banchero, Williams

January 11th, 2025 at 11:58am CST by Tristan Tucker

Terry Rozier is waiting on his three-point luck to turn around, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. A career 36.3% shooter, Rozier is connecting on just 33.2% during his Heat tenure, including 29.2% this season.

“I shoot the same every year. It will work for me. It’s just ups and downs,” Rozier said. “Once it starts clicking, it’s going to start clicking. I don’t care what my percentage is; I know it’s always 50 percent chance of going in.”

Rozier was removed from the starting lineup for 14 games but has been a starter in five of his past six outings. He’s averaging 12.0 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game on the season. The Heat traded a first-round pick and Kyle Lowry to acquire Rozier ahead of last year’s deadline.

“We all want to start in this league,” Rozier said. “Nobody wants to be a starter and go to the bench no matter what they say. I’m happy being in the starting lineup. It might not be [permanent]; you never know.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

In the same article, Jackson notes that Heat rookie Keshad Johnson received a call from Charlotte after going undrafted in 2024, but Johnson knew he wanted to sign with Miami. “Here is where dreams come true,” Johnson said regarding the Heat’s previous success with undrafted players.
Second-year Heat forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. is enjoying the best stretch of his season, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes. He’s averaging 16.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists while shooting 54.5% from the floor and 36.4% on three-pointers in his last four games — he also pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds on Monday and scored a season-high 20 points on Thursday.
Paolo Banchero made his return for the Magic on Friday after missing the last two months with a torn oblique. He scored 34 points in a narrow loss to the Bucks in his first game back, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press writes. “I didn’t see that one coming, I can tell you that,” coach Jamahl Mosley said. “But that’s who he is. The kid’s been working his tail off to get back in. And so, what he was able to do with poise, taking the right shots at the right time, defending, taking matchups on, this tells you how much he wants to go get it and get after it. That’s who he is. He’s a star for a reason.” While the Magic stayed afloat without Banchero, Josh Robbins of The Athletic writes that his return and tremendous play gives the team more hope going forward.
Mark Williams has picked up where he left off for the Hornets after returning from health issues that sidelined him for a full year, averaging 12.2 points and 7.7 rebounds in 13 games (10 starts) this year. In an interview with Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina, Williams opened up about his recovery and having his minutes restriction lifted. “In my time that I was out, I was working on my game,” Williams said. “Obviously my teammates are finding me. There are a lot of spots that I’m comfortable in on the floor, whether it’s my floaters or my dunks. I’m also finding them at the same time for kicks and handoffs. That’s just us regaining the chemistry back with my teammates.“

Heat Notes: Butler, Adebayo, Rozier, Riley, Porter Jr.

January 4th, 2025 at 5:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jimmy Butler‘s standoff with the Heat is the NBA’s hottest story and has overshadowed everything else going on with the team, but Butler’s teammates will have to take the court without him beginning on Saturday vs. Utah as he begins serving his seven-game suspension. As Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald relays, Bam Adebayo spoke to reporters at today’s shootaround about the awkward spot he and his teammates find themselves in.

“It’s disappointing when you see the organization and a player going head to head like that,” Adebayo said. “But the rest of us got to figure out how to win games. So for me as captain, it’s worrying about the other guys and getting them locked in and ready to go to try to compete and win a game.”

Butler has been one of the Heat’s leaders since joining the team in 2019, but his days in Miami appear numbered. He won’t play in the next seven games and may have suited up for Miami for the last time. That means the rest of the roster has to prepare to move forward without him while leaning on its other veterans for stability.

“Obviously, we still have a great opportunity, a good basketball team. So we don’t want to get caught up in all the news that’s been going around,” Terry Rozier said. “But we have a great locker room. We got guys like (Kevin Love), a vet who’s always keeping guys on their toes and making guys laugh. We got a lot of great guys in there. So we move on and we’ll find out what’s best.

“It’s tough because that’s one of your locker room guys, that’s one of your teammates,” Rozier added. “So it sucks to see that he won’t be around. But our main focus is to try to win games and control what we can control. Obviously, that’s out of our control with the guys in the locker room. But we got a lot of love for him and we wish him the best. We’re just trying to win games now.”

Here’s more on the Heat:

Team president Pat Riley may want to reconsider his trademark candor in the wake of the Butler situation, suggests Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. After the Heat were eliminated from the playoffs, Riley reacted to Butler’s claim that they could have beaten the Celtics and Knicks if he hadn’t been injured by saying it’s best to “keep your mouth shut” if you’re not able to play. Riley has become known for direct statements during his long NBA career, but Winderman says that trait may have become counterproductive in player relations.
The Heat have given Butler special treatment for years, but now they’re calling his behavior “conduct detrimental” after he became unhappy about not receiving an extension, Winderman adds in a subscriber-only story.
Excessive pride from Butler and Riley has led to the current situation, but a change is also necessary because the current Heat roster isn’t good enough to compete for a title, argues Greg Cote of The Miami Herald.
Although Butler suggested during his comments to the media on Thursday that his role and his lack of “joy” playing basketball were the reasons for his dissatisfaction, it all comes down to money, contends Chris Mannix of SI.com. According to Shams Charania of ESPN (YouTube link), Butler – who was upset about not being offered a maximum-salary extension by the Heat during the offseason – wouldn’t want to sign that extension if it were offered now. That’s a moot point, since Miami certainly doesn’t intend to put it on the table at this point, but it’s a reflection of how much the relationship has deteriorated.
Exploring possible trade scenarios involving Butler, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald states (via Twitter) that Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., who would need to be included in any deal with Denver, was flagged by the Heat “long ago” for medical reasons. Porter, who had back problems earlier in his career, has been healthier in recent years, and Jackson notes that his talent would be “enticing,” though Miami’s appetite for taking on multiyear salary is unclear.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

NBA Suspends Amen Thompson Two Games, Terry Rozier One Game

December 31st, 2024 at 2:17pm CST by Luke Adams

Rockets swingman Amen Thompson has been suspended for two games, while Heat guard Terry Rozier has received a one-game suspension, the NBA announced today in a press release (Twitter link).

Thompson and Rozier are being suspended for the roles they played in the on-court altercation that occurred during the final minute of the Heat/Rockets game in Houston on Sunday. In addition to the suspensions, the league announced that Rockets guard Jalen Green has been fined $35K and Heat guard Tyler Herro has been fined $25K for their involvement in the fracas.

Rockets head coach Ime Udoka has received a $50K fine for verbal abuse of a referee and not leaving the court in a timely manner after being ejected.

Additionally, Rockets point guard Fred VanVleet has been fined $35K for making “reckless” contact with official Marc Davis. That incident occurred moments before the altercation that led to the other penalties.

With Miami up by five points and about to inbound the ball with 35.7 seconds left in Sunday’s game, Herro and Thompson began exchanging words and bumping one another (Twitter video link). Thompson grabbed Herro by the jersey and threw him to the floor, which led to Rozier tackling Thompson as Green went after Rozier and several other players and coaches converged on the melee.

Once the dust settled, those four players, along with Udoka and Rockets assistant coach Ben Sullivan, were ejected. Sullivan is the only one of those ejected who wasn’t fined or suspended today.

Tensions were already running high leading up to the melee, as VanVleet was tossed from the game after arguing that a timeout should have been awarded to Houston before Davis called the team for a five-second violation on its inbound play (Twitter video link).

VanVleet made contact with Davis during the argument, which the veteran official deemed to be intentional, resulting in the guard’s ejection. Udoka was also sniping back and forth with Davis at that time and was eventually ejected for “unsportsmanlike comments,” per the crew chief.

The suspension will keep Thompson out of action for Wednesday’s game vs. Dallas and Friday’s contest vs. Boston. It will also cost him $127,586, which is 2/145ths of his $9,249,960 full-season salary, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Rozier, who will have to sit out Wednesday’s game vs. New Orleans, will forfeit $143,242, which is 1/174th of his $24,924,126 salary.

Heat/Rockets Altercation Likely To Result In Suspensions, Fines

December 30th, 2024 at 7:03am CST by Luke Adams

An on-court altercation broke out during the final minute of Sunday’s Heat/Rockets game, resulting in several ejections that will likely to lead to suspensions and/or fines for the players involved.

With Miami up by five points and about to inbound the ball with 35.7 seconds left in the game, Heat guard Tyler Herro and Rockets guard Amen Thompson began exchanging words and bumping one another (Twitter video link).

Thompson grabbed Herro by the jersey and threw him to the floor, which led to Heat guard Terry Rozier tackling Thompson as Rockets guard Jalen Green went after Rozier and several other players and coaches converged on the melee.

Once the dust settled, those four players, along with Rockets head coach Ime Udoka and assistant Ben Sullivan, were ejected. Crew chief Marc Davis explained the decision after the game to pool reporter Kelly Iko of The Athletic.

“During the dead ball, Thompsons grabs the jersey and body slams Herro,” Davis said. “Herro responds and they are both ejected for fighting fouls. Green is ejected as his actions escalated the altercation. Rozier as well is ejected as his actions were escalators to the altercation. Coach Sullivan is assessed a technical foul and ejected for his unsportsmanlike comments directed at me as I was attempting to redirect (Alperen) Sengun.”

Tensions were already running high leading up to the play, as Rockets point guard Fred VanVleet was tossed from the game moments earlier after arguing that a timeout should have been awarded to Houston before Davis called the team for a five-second violation on its inbound play (Twitter video link).

VanVleet made contact with Davis during the argument, which the veteran official deemed to be intentional, resulting in the guard’s ejection. Udoka was also sniping back and forth with Davis at that time and was eventually ejected for “unsportsmanlike comments,” per the crew chief.

Naji Marshall (four games), Jusuf Nurkic (three games), and P.J. Washington (one game) received suspensions on Saturday for their roles in an incident involving the Mavericks and Suns in Friday’s game, so it would be a surprise if similar penalties aren’t handed out in response to this latest skirmish.

Thompson seems likely to face the most significant punishment from the league, with Rozier and Green at risk of possible suspensions as well. It’s unclear how the NBA will view Herro’s role, given that he didn’t reenter the fray after initially being thrown to the floor.

Although it took the NBA less than 24 hours to make its ruling after the Mavs/Suns altercation, that was at least partly because both teams were in the middle of back-to-back sets and the league wanted to announce suspensions prior to Saturday’s games. Neither the Heat nor the Rockets play until Wednesday, so the NBA may take a little more time to review this case.

Thompson didn’t speak to reporters after Sunday’s game, but Herro suggested with a smile during his post-game media session that his own big night (27 points, nine assists, six rebounds) led to Thompson’s frustration.

“Guess that’s what happens when someone’s scoring, throwing dimes, doing the whole thing,” Herro said (Twitter video link). “I’d get mad, too.”

Heat Notes: Butler, Spoelstra, Johnson, Stevens, Rozier

December 26th, 2024 at 12:09pm CST by Rory Maher

Although his contract situation is the leading factor (he wanted an extension and the Heat haven’t offered one), another part of the reason Jimmy Butler prefers a trade out of Miami is that he’s been hoping the team would be able to acquire more impact players, but it has been unable to do so, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter video link).

“Over the last three years, Jimmy Butler has wanted the Heat to go get him some help in that roster,” Charania said. “They just have not been able to land players. They’ve gone after Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving. They have not been able to land that next big fish with Jimmy Butler.

“The writing, in a lot of ways, is on the wall, for the Heat and for Jimmy Butler.”

Charania, who first reported that the Heat were willing to entertain offers for the star forward earlier this season, reiterated that Miami doesn’t feel any urgency to move Butler, which has been confirmed by multiple local reporters, including Anthony Chiang and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Head coach Erik Spoelstra responded to the latest reports on Thursday, as Chiang and Jackson relay.

“That’s just the deal,” Spoelstra said. “You have to compartmentalize in this business. We want Jimmy here. There’s no ifs, ands or buts about it. And it’s just unfortunate that you have to control or deal with a lot of the noise on the outside. In terms of this morning, this was a pretty focused group coming off of the last game that we came [to Orlando, when the Heat blew a 22-point fourth-quarter lead].”

ESPN and The Miami Herald have reported that Butler hasn’t formally requested a trade, but he’s not happy with his situation and is prepared to leave while still being professional. When asked directly if Butler has asked him to be moved, Spoelstra declined to answer.

“That’s all I’m going to talk about it,” Spoelstra said. “The more any of us talk about it, the more fuel it gets. It’s just really unfortunate that it just continues to build momentum outside of our building.”

Here’s more on the Heat:

All-Star center and team captain Bam Adebayo also addressed the Butler rumors, per Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “You go out there and you win games,” Adebayo said. “That’s how you keep the distractions out. You go out there and win games, do it together. Like I said, they’ll handle everything behind closed doors. Obviously, you have the business side of it. So at the end of the day, we’re all a family, we’re all in a brotherhood. So we’ll worry about the basketball games that we have to play.”
Dru Smith, who is on a two-way contract, was on track to be promoted to a standard deal before sustaining a torn left Achilles tendon, which will sideline him for the remainder of the season. In the wake of the devastating news, the Heat instead converted rookie forward Keshad Johnson‘s two-way contract into a standard deal. Johnson’s two-way spot was filled by Isaiah Stevens, with both signings officially completed today. “It’s well earned, we’re really happy for them,” Spoelstra said of Johnson and Stevens, per The Herald. “We congratulate them on that.”
Will Terry Rozier be able to step up in Smith’s absence? Winderman ponders that question in a subscriber-only mailbag.

Injury Notes: Doncic, R. Williams, Leonard, Jones, Heat, Wade

December 23rd, 2024 at 7:11pm CST by Rory Maher

After missing the past two games with a left heel contusion, Luka Doncic was upgraded to available for Monday’s contest vs. Portland, the Mavericks announced (via Twitter). The perennial All-NBA guard had previously been listed as questionable.

For the same game, big man Robert Williams was ruled out due to a left ankle sprain, per the Trail Blazers (Twitter link). Williams was questionable this afternoon, so his latest injury doesn’t appear to be anything significant.

Here are some more injury notes from around the NBA:

A Clippers source tells Law Murray of The Athletic that Kawhi Leonard (right knee) will not suit up for Friday’s contest vs. Golden State (Twitter link). Murray predicted last week that Leonard, who has been going through contact practices and recently traveled on a three-game road trip, would play on Friday, but his season debut will be delayed by at least one more game.
Although they won’t have Leonard back yet, the Clippers did receive some good injury news last week, as Derrick Jones returned early from a right hamstring strain, Murray writes for The Athletic. The 27-year-old forward made an immediate impact against his former team, helping Los Angeles defeat Dallas on Thursday. “Derrick was a big part of our success last year,” Mavs head coach Jason Kidd said. “He was the last to sign with us … he made us a little bit more athletic. He could guard one through five. He shot the three well for us. And he’s a pro. He comes to work every day to do his job. We’re happy for his new contract. Unfortunately, he’s on the other side. But the Clippers got a pro.”
The Heat were shorthanded on Monday vs. Brooklyn, with Jimmy Butler (stomach illness) missing his second straight game and Josh Richardson (right heel inflammation) missing his fifth, as Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald relays. Terry Rozier was a late addition to Monday’s injury report after experiencing left knee inflammation, his first absence with that injury, Chiang adds.
Forward Dean Wade experienced some soreness after taking knee-to-knee contact in Saturday’s contest vs. Philadelphia and the Cavaliers decided to be cautious and keep him out of Monday’s contest against Utah, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Wade is expected to return for Friday’s contest vs. Denver, Cleveland’s next game, sources tell Fedor. Sam Merrill started in place of Wade, who himself was an injury replacement for Isaac Okoro (shoulder sprain).

Eastern Notes: Ball, Mobley, Heat, K. Johnson

December 9th, 2024 at 4:54pm CST by Luke Adams

There was some skepticism coming into the season about whether Lonzo Ball would be healthy enough to play – and what sort of impact he’d have – for the Bulls after being sidelined due to knee issues for two-and-a-half years. Ball has only appeared in eight of 25 games, but his multi-week absence was the result of a new wrist injury rather than his surgically repaired knee, which the Bulls guard says has held up just fine so far, as Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times relays.

“To be honest, I’m a lot better than I thought I was going to be, early on for sure,” Ball said, referring to both his knee and his defense. “There’s still some mishaps, definitely on the ball sometimes. But for the most part I feel comfortable out there. I feel like I haven’t really missed a beat, so I just try and give good minutes when I’m out there.”

As Cowley writes, the positive effect that Ball has on Chicago’s lineup has been apparent even in his limited playing time. The club has a +6.5 net rating in his 134 minutes on the court; the team’s net rating is just -5.4 in the 1,066 minutes he hasn’t played. That’s easily the biggest on/off-court disparity among Bulls players who have logged at least 100 minutes.

According to head coach Billy Donovan, Ball’s minutes restriction was recently increased to 20 minutes per game (Twitter link via Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune). As long as he remains healthy, that limit should continue to increase.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

The ankle injury Evan Mobley suffered in Sunday’s loss to the Heat isn’t considered serious, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required), who notes that the Cavaliers big man told reporters after the game he was “good.” The Cavs play just one game in the next week, giving Mobley some time to heal, which is good news, since it was evident in the second half on Sunday how much they need him on defense. “He is one of the top five defensive players in the league,” head coach Kenny Atkinson said. “You lose a guy like that and we had to play some small ball with Dean (Wade) at the five. He was fine, but they just took it to us. We had some spurts because of our talent. But not good enough.”
Sunday’s game was another good one for the Heat‘s current starting lineup of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, and Haywood Highsmith. As Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald observes, substituting Robinson and Highsmith in place of Terry Rozier and Nikola Jovic has made a huge different for the team — the new-look starting five has a net rating of +20.8 in 118 minutes together, whereas the old group was -20.8 in 91 minutes. “We got a lot of firepower,” Herro said of the current starting five. “Duncan brings a different element to the lineup. He’s able to create so many different advantages, which has opened up the court for me, Bam and Jimmy. Having Haywood out there as a defensive presence, you don’t have to put me or Duncan on one of the best players. It makes sense.”
It was an eventful week for Heat two-way rookie Keshad Johnson, who made his NBA debut last Monday and was named the G League Player of the Week last Tuesday, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. While Johnson has only made two brief appearances for Miami at the NBA level, the team loves the way the forward has impacted winning with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to Erik Spoelstra. “He’s done some dynamic things in terms of his scoring, getting to the rim, his three-point spacing has improved,” the Heat coach said. “Defensively, he’s played a lot of dynamic small ball five. He’s been able to switch and guard different kinds of guys. All of that has been good for his development.”

Heat Notes: Smith, Bryant, Love, Rozier

December 9th, 2024 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Dru Smith was still recovering from an ACL injury when the Heat signed him to a two-way contract in July, and the third-year shooting guard is rewarding their faith in him, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Smith was nine games into last season when he hurt his knee on a fall off the courtside ledge in Cleveland. He was dropped from the roster so the Heat could add veteran help, but he remained in the team’s future plans.

Smith scored 11 points in the fourth quarter Sunday as Miami topped the East-leading Cavaliers. He admitted there was some satisfaction in having a big night against the team he was facing when his season ended so abruptly.

“I think it was definitely full circle,” he said. “I think despite whatever it was, it was just nice to have those moments. I don’t have any hard feelings toward the team or the organization.”

Winderman notes that Smith still wears a brace on his right knee and a sleeve to protect the leg, but otherwise there are no indications of the severe injury he suffered a little more than a year ago. He has become a recent fixture in the Heat’s rotation, playing 25:38 on Sunday after logging a career-high 29:19 on Saturday and being on the court for the entire fourth quarter in both games.

“The ball finds energy,” he said, “so just continuing to try to play hard and just make the right play, and eventually things work out.”

There’s more from Miami:

Thomas Bryant discussed several topics in an interview with Cyro Asseo de Choch of HoopsHype, including the possibility of being traded after re-signing with the Heat on a one-year, minimum-salary contract. “You deal with that throughout the NBA, man,” Bryant said. “So it’s a business. You can’t take anything personal. And for me, I’ve never looked at a team to be like, I wanna be traded from here, this or that. No, I look at it as this is who I’m with. This is the guys that I’m trying to build with and build the chemistry and win games with. So I never go into the season thinking that mindset.”
Bryant played ahead of Kevin Love as the Heat’s primary backup center in the second half of Sunday’s game, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Coach Erik Spoelstra explained that it was a situational decision after Cleveland outscored Miami by 11 points in Love’s 4:50 on the court. “The way they were shifting us and moving us around, it’s not an indictment on K-Love at all,” Spoelstra said. “It’s just what they do for this particular night was kind of getting us scrambled. So we went a different way, and TB gave us a spark. We were able to stabilize.”
Terry Rozier was more aggressive about looking for his shot in his new role off the bench, Chiang adds. Rozier put up nine shots in the first half on Sunday, and then five more after halftime. “All my coaches and all my teammates always just remind me to be who I am and telling me to attack and be myself,” he said. “I just got to do that every night.”