Terry Rozier Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Mann, Ball, Fultz, Heat, Wizards

February 22nd, 2024 at 12:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

There wasn’t much playing time available for Tre Mann on a talented Oklahoma City team, but he moved into a starting role after being traded to the Hornets, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. With LaMelo Ball still injured, Mann has been tasked with running Charlotte’s offense and he’s averaging 13.7 points and 7.3 assists in his first three games.

“I think I’m fitting in pretty well,” Mann said. “I’m just coming out, trying to play hard around a bunch of talented guys. We’ve all got really good IQ, so it’s easy playing with guys like that. I think I’m playing well. I’m just trying to show off my playmaking ability as much as I can and it’s been fun.”

Ball will miss his 12th straight game tonight in Utah, but he’s making progress toward returning from a sprained right ankle. A source tells Boone that Ball has resumed on-court activities and is steadily increasing his workload. Mann believes the two guards can form an effective combination whenever Ball comes back.

“I think he can play a little bit off ball and I can do the same,” Mann said. “So, It’s his team and I’m going to adjust to whatever is better for him. For right now, I’m just trying to go out there and play team ball.”

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

The Magic will be without Markelle Fultz for their first game after the All-Star break, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. The seventh-year guard continues to deal with a nagging left knee injury, which has limited him to just 21 games thus far in 2023/24. It’s unclear how much more time Fultz will miss beyond Thursday’s contest in Cleveland, but it’s a situation worth monitoring down the stretch, as the 25-year-old will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Star forward Jimmy Butler missed the Heat‘s final three games leading into the break due to the death of a family member, but he was back at practice on Thursday and will be available for Friday’s game in New Orleans, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Josh Richardson (right shoulder dislocation) and Terry Rozier (right knee sprain) will both be out Friday, but they’re traveling on the team’s four-game road trip, Jackson adds. Veteran big man Kevin Love said Rozier was moving well at Thursday’s practice, though he did not do any live drills (Twitter link via Jackson). Richardson, meanwhile, was in street clothes and wearing a sling. Head coach Erik Spoelstra indicated Rozier had a chance to suit up during the road trip, but the prognosis for Richardson was less optimistic, per Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link). Guard Tyler Herro is questionable for Friday’s contest due to right foot soreness.
Key labor unions in northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., publicly announced on Tuesday that they are opposed to Monumental Sports’ plan to move the Wizards from D.C. to Alexandria, Virginia, according to The Associated Press (link via ESPN.com). The Northern Virginia AFL-CIO and member unions cited in part an inability to reach a deal for union members to work on construction projects. It’s the latest obstacle in the proposed move, which has drawn opposition from several key figures in the region.

Rory Maher contributed to this post.

Heat Notes: Love, Williams, Wright, Jaquez

February 18th, 2024 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

There were reasons to believe Kevin Love‘s career might be nearing the end when he agreed to a buyout with the Cavaliers during last year’s All-Star break, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Instead, the past 12 months have included a trip to the NBA Finals and a new contract with the Heat, as well as the birth of his first child, all of which have combined to make Love very content in Miami.

“I think the thing that’s most gratifying to me is that going to a new location or a new team or a new organization, new city, especially at this stage in your career, you never know what’s going to happen,” he said. “And after that run last year, I got so much fun out of it, as well as guys I’ll have relationships for life, bigger than basketball. My daughter was born on June 10th, right after Game 4 (of the NBA Finals). We bought a new house in Miami. It’s almost like we got to start our life in a place where we have a lot of friends and a lot of great teammates and people in the organization who have become family in a pretty quick time, so it has been a very happy year.”

Love was stuck on the bench in Cleveland, but a big forward who could shoot and rebound and had previous Finals experience was just what the Heat needed. He started 17 of the 21 regular season games he played after signing with Miami and maintained a rotation role throughout the team’s playoff run.

In addition to his on-court contributions, Love has become a veteran leader in the locker room, especially after the retirement of Udonis Haslem, Winderman notes. Love believes he can play for at least another year or two and then may transition into a mentorship role.

There’s more from Miami:

Alondes Williams was impressive in Friday’s Rising Stars competition, and he might get a shot at more playing time after the break, Winderman states in a mailbag column. Winderman speculates that the two-way player may be in line for a standard contract if the Heat decide to waive Dru Smith, who’s out for the rest of the season after undergoing ACL reconstruction surgery.
Delon Wright was likely promised regular minutes to get him to commit to the Heat, Winderman adds in the same piece. However, the extent of Wright’s rotation role won’t be clear until Terry Rozier and Josh Richardson return from their current injuries.
Jaime Jaquez, who jumped over Shaquille O’Neal for his first entry in Saturday’s Dunk Contest, said clearing the Hall of Fame center was a difficult thing to prepare for, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “Listen, I ain’t gonna lie. I didn’t practice jumping over Shaq,” Jaquez said. “I used Bam [Adebayo] as practice. But there’s a big height difference. So I was really nervous when I saw Shaq out there. I’ve seen him a bunch of times. But when he’s standing there, I was definitely feeling nervous.”

Heat’s Terry Rozier Week-To-Week With Right Knee Sprain

February 12th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Rory Maher

The Heat received good news on Monday, as an MRI revealed that Terry Rozier avoided a major injury, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), who reports that the veteran guard is considered week-to-week with a right knee sprain.

According to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel (Twitter links), there’s “legitimate optimism” that Rozier could return either right after or a few games after the All-Star break, though Winderman acknowledges the Heat tend to be cautious when it comes to injuries.

Rozier sustained the scary-looking injury (YouTube link via ESPN) midway through the third quarter of Sunday’s game vs. Boston. He landed awkwardly on his right leg on an attempted layup and trainers had to help him to the locker room.

The Heat traded Kyle Lowry and their lottery-protected 2027 first-round pick to acquire Rozier from Charlotte last month. If the pick doesn’t convey in ’27, the Heat will send their unprotected 2028 first-rounder to the Hornets instead.

Rozier, 29, was having a career-best season in Charlotte, averaging 23.2 PPG, 6.6 APG, 3.9 RPG and 1.1 SPG on .459/.358/.845 shooting in 40 games (35.5 MPG), but he has struggled early on in his tenure with the Heat, averaging just 12.6 PPG, 5.6 APG, 4.5 RPG and 0.8 SPG on .359/.234/.958 shooting through 10 games (29.9 MPG).

Fellow guard Josh Richardson was also injured against Boston, suffering a dislocated right shoulder in the second quarter. He’ll be reevaluated in a few weeks, per Charania.

Southeast Notes: Richardson, Rozier, Hawks, Magic, Bridges

February 12th, 2024 at 10:12am CST by Arthur Hill

Injuries have been a season-long issue for the Heat, who may have lost two more players in Sunday’s game, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. MRIs are scheduled today for Josh Richardson and Terry Rozier, creating more potential challenges as coach Erik Spoelstra works to develop a consistent lineup.

Richardson fell to the court and grabbed his right shoulder early in the second quarter, according to Chiang. After being helped up, he headed to the locker room for an X-ray that came back negative. He was wearing a sling after the game.

“I felt my shoulder pop out on the floor and then pop back in when I was laying on the ground,” Richardson said. “So thank goodness for that. But I’ll know more (Monday).”

Rozier was hurt midway through the third quarter when he landed awkwardly on his right leg on an attempted layup. Trainers had to help him to the locker room as well.

Chiang points out that if Richardson and Rozier have to miss significant time, that leaves Tyler Herro and two-way player Alondes Williams as the only healthy guards on Miami’s roster.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Hawks general manager Landry Fields said signs of progress from the current roster convinced him to stand pat at the trade deadline, per Lauren Williams of The Journal-Constitution. Dejounte Murray was considered one of the top names on the market, but Fields believes there’s value in keeping the current team together. “We’ve seen an uptick with Onyeka (Okongwu),” he said. “We’ve seen an uptick with Jalen Johnson. We’ve seen an uptick with Saddiq Bey, and I can go right down the line even down to (the G League team in) College Park where, Kobe Bufkin is developing extremely well in that environment.”
The same approach was taken by Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman, whose team was also quiet at the deadline despite having “lengthy conversations” with some teams, according to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. “We’re very happy with where we are right now from a big-picture standpoint,” Weltman said. “We weren’t going to be overly aggressive, we weren’t going to get out of our comfort zone and we certainly weren’t going to deviate from our plan.”
Hornets forward Miles Bridges, whose name was involved in trade rumors over the last several weeks, is relieved that deadline speculation is finally over, notes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Bridges said several times that he prefers to stay in Charlotte and ultimately decided to use his veto power to reject any deal the team might have made. “This was my first year dealing with all that,” he said of the deadline rumors. “Me, I’m happy so I can just focus on the season and focus on trying to get us some wins.”

Southeast Notes: Highsmith, Rozier, Jones, Wright, Magic, Forrest

February 9th, 2024 at 3:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Heat swingman Haywood Highsmith has been cited for careless driving after being involved in a car accident that left a man hospitalized, reports Angie DiMichele of The Sun Sentinel. The citation is not considered criminal, but Highsmith was described in a police report as driving in a “careless or negligent manner,” per DiMichele.

Highsmith’s agent Jerry Dianis issued a statement describing the circumstances of the accident.

“At approximately 11:20 pm, Haywood struck a pedestrian pushing an unlit disabled car down the middle of a dark road,” Dianis said. “Haywood immediately rushed to help the person pushing the car who had been injured. Haywood assisted a bystander who applied a tourniquet to the injury and stayed on the scene talking to the injured man offering words of comfort until an ambulance took him to the hospital.

“Mr. Highsmith had not consumed alcohol or drugs and was not speeding. This was an unfortunate accident. We have been notified that the person sustained significant injuries but is in stable condition. Haywood and his family are praying for him. Haywood is of course shaken by this and appreciates the support and prayers he has received from the Miami Heat and fans.”

Highsmith returned to Heat practice on Friday after missing Wednesday’s game in the wake of the incident.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

Terry Rozier was acquired by the Heat on January 23, but due to the nature of the team’s in-season schedule, he didn’t take part in a full practice with his new club until Friday, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. “It feels good just to get up and down with these guys and put a lot more things in that we can get better at in the game,” Rozier said after the session.
Josh Robbins of The Athletic takes a look at why the Wizards‘ trade deadline was quieter than anticipated, with guards Tyus Jones and Delon Wright among the trade candidates who stayed put. Teams were only willing to offer second-round picks for Jones, Robbins reports, so Washington decided to hang onto him and will strongly consider re-signing him in free agency this summer. Robbins adds that the offers for Wright were “underwhelming” and would’ve required the Wizards to take on salary beyond this season.
Franz Wagner has no problem with the Magic opting to stand pat at the trade deadline, telling Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link) that he views it as a sign of trust from the front office.
The Hawks will have to make a decision soon on guard Trent Forrest, tweets Brad Rowland of Locked on Hawks. As Rowland explains, despite only appearing in 19 games so far, Forrest has been active for 49 — players on two-way contracts are limited to a maximum of 50. Atlanta would have to promote Forrest to its standard roster, which is currently full, to allow him to exceed that limit.

Southeast Notes: Rozier, Hornets, Isaac, Keefe

February 1st, 2024 at 10:02am CST by Arthur Hill

Even though Terry Rozier hadn’t won with the Heat until Wednesday night, he has noticed a sharp contrast between Miami and his former team, according to Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Rozier, who dropped 18 of his last 21 games with Charlotte before being traded last week, said the Hornets don’t place the same emphasis on winning that the Heat do.

“It’s the total opposite,” Rozier stated. “In Charlotte, you’re kind of used to losing. It’s in the DNA… Over here, it’s the total opposite. Nobody wants to lose. Nobody is fine with it. … This organization, when you lose, it bothers them.”

Although Rozier’s comments sound like an insult to the Hornets, his ex-coach and former teammates don’t seem upset about them, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Steve Clifford believes Rozier was referring to the added pressure to win that exists in Miami, while Miles Bridges said his team should use Rozier’s analysis as inspiration.

“I mean, he’s not wrong,” Bridges said. “I’m not saying we’ve got losing DNA, but the way that we’ve been taking losses and … I wouldn’t say we are getting used to it, but it’s like we are just moving on. We are not really taking it that serious. We’ve got to take it serious, man. Terry is getting a lot of backlash for what he said, but he’s been in the locker room. He’s been a vet in this locker room and he sees what’s going on. So, we’ve just got to turn that into motivation.”

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Hornets guard LaMelo Ball missed his third straight game Wednesday and is considered day-to-day with soreness in his right ankle, Boone adds. Gordon Hayward, who hasn’t played since straining his left calf on December 26, has started doing individual basketball activities, but there’s no timetable for his return. Mark Williams is trying to recover from a lower back contusion, but Boone considers it unlikely that he’ll return before the All-Star break if he isn’t cleared to resume team activities soon.
The Magic continue to be careful with Jonathan Isaac, who played just eight minutes Monday on the second night of a back-to-back, tweets Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. Coach Jamahl Mosley told reporters that the team’s approach with Isaac is focused on “the long game more than this moment right now.”
The Wizards have been invigorated under interim coach Brian Keefe, with a rare two-game winning streak earlier this week, per Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. Wallace notes that players have responded to Keefe’s direct style. “In film, if you’re wrong, you’re wrong. There’s no conversation about it,” Landry Shamet said. “[Keefe’s] a black-and-white guy: ‘This is what we should have been doing, and this is what we did. Here’s the divide.’ And that’s incredibly important as a coach and a leader. It’s been great.”

Southeast Notes: Ball, Miller, Rozier, Bey

January 29th, 2024 at 10:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

LaMelo Ball missed his second consecutive game due to right ankle soreness on Monday. The Hornets star guard admits his frequent absences have taken a toll mentally and that his primary focus is staying off the injury report, Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer writes.

“Facts,” Ball said. “That’s pretty much my main thing.”

Ball appeared in just 36 games last season and has missed more than half of Charlotte’s games this season. He’s working with the team’s medical staff, hoping to find ways to keep him on the court more often.

“We are pretty much just trying to put a whole game plan together right now, get everything right, see what it’s going to be, see how my body is feeling, just see what’s the best solution moving forward,” he said.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Brandon Miller‘s ability to soak up knowledge has impressed Hornets coach Steve Clifford. The second pick of the draft is averaging 14.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. “People always look at these guys and think they’re the fastest, strongest, quickest — that’s not at all what it is,” Clifford told Shane Connuck of the Charlotte Observer. “In the NBA, guys that last learn better, they’re smarter, and they pick things up faster. That’s one of (Miller’s) big strengths.”
Terry Rozier is still trying to get acclimated to his Heat teammates, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald notes. The former Hornets guard scored just 26 points in his first three games with Miami before his 21-point outing against Phoenix on Monday. “He’ll figure it out,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He’s trying to fit in and I get that. We’re all saying the same thing. We want Terry to be Terry. He’s going to unlock other things for us. You can see the burst that he gives us, the rim pressure, which we need. That’s not just the head coach saying that, that’s his teammates saying that.”
Hawks forward Saddiq Bey becomes a restricted free agent after the season and he’s been enhancing his value as of late. He scored the game-winning basket on a putback against the Raptors on Sunday. Over the past four games, Bey is shooting 44.8% from the field while averaging 18.3 points and 8.5 rebounds, Lawrence Price III of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes. “I don’t really have a specific mentality coming in besides just to play hard and just be grateful for the opportunity,” Bey said. “I try to just be the most multifaceted guy I can be…just try to affect the game in each and every way.”

Eastern Notes: Simmons, P. Williams, Sixers, Embiid, Rozier

January 29th, 2024 at 4:05pm CST by Rory Maher

Nets swingman Ben Simmons will be active for Monday’s game vs. Utah, the team confirmed (Twitter link via Ian Begley of SNY.tv). ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported last week that Simmons was likely to play Monday.

Simmons hasn’t appeared in a game since November 6, when he sustained a nerve impingement in his lower back. He has been limited to six games thus far in 2023/24, averaging 6.5 PPG, 10.8 RPG and 6.7 APG in 31.8 MPG.

According to Brian Lewis of The New York Post, Simmons’ teammates are excited to have him back.

“He definitely helps us. It’s good to see him back with the group,” starting center Nic Claxton said of Simmons. “Of course he brings this extremely high basketball IQ, being able to defend multiple positions on the defensive side of the ball, rebounding. So we are definitely happy to have him back.

“He’s been diligent, he’s been locked in on his rehab. Of course, nobody wants to go through what he’s going through with his back injury and everything but, you know, he’s happy to be back. I’m just happy to see how everything will look with him back with the group.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Bulls forward Patrick Williams is wearing a precautionary walking boot and is undergoing more testing on his injured left foot on Monday, per K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Williams, who has been managing right ankle and left foot injuries for much of the season, will miss his second straight game with left midfoot soreness on Tuesday vs. Toronto, Johnson tweets. “(The Los Angeles doctor) just recommended keeping his foot immobilized for right now,” head coach Billy Donovan said. “The biggest thing we’ve got to do is bring him back to Chicago and there will be a lot more imaging just to see where he’s at, but I think the pain is too great right now for him to play. Up to now I think it was something he was managing for quite some time, but it wasn’t something where the pain was so significant that he had to miss time. This is the first time it’s gotten to this place.”
Reigning MVP Joel Embiid was a late scratch from Saturday’s game in Denver due to left knee soreness. He was not previously on the injury report. According to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, the NBA is expected to investigate the incident, with a source telling Pompey that a Sixers fine will likely follow for failing to follow the league’s protocol. Embiid will miss his second straight game on Monday and can miss no more than five more games over his final 37 in order to be considered for MVP, Pompey adds.
Heat guard Terry Rozier has struggled in his first few games with Miami but his teammates and coaches keep telling him to stay in attack mode, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “We need him to be him. We want him to be him,” star forward Jimmy Butler said. “That’s the reason that he’s here. And the more comfortable that he gets, the more he realizes we’re all in his corner to shoot the ball and to be aggressive, to attack. “So as much as we are on him about it, we’ll be on him even more about it, because we want him to be him.”

Heat Notes: Losing Streak, Rozier, Rotation, Jaquez

January 27th, 2024 at 9:36pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat are fully healthy for the first time all season, but their long losing streak continues, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Apart from guard Dru Smith, who underwent season-ending knee surgery in December, Miami had a complete roster available for this afternoon’s game in New York. So it was discouraging that the Heat weren’t able to remain competitive against a potential playoff rival, falling 125-109 for their first six-game losing skid in nearly three years.

“Look, right now we’re going to rally around each other, rally around our identity,” coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters. “It’s a tough time right now.”

Miami is 0-3 since acquiring Terry Rozier from Charlotte on Tuesday in a move to add another weapon to the offense. Rozier is struggling badly with his shot since the trade, connecting at just 30.3% from the field and 18.2% from long distance.

“He’ll figure it out,” Spoelstra said. “He’s trying to fit in and I get that. We’re all saying the same thing. We want Terry to be Terry. He’s going to unlock other things for us.”

There’s more on the Heat:

Rozier started for the second straight game, alongside Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro and Haywood Highsmith. Spoelstra used Kevin Love, Duncan Robinson, Jaime Jaquez and Caleb Martin off the bench in the first look at what his rotation might be with everyone available. Chiang notes that Josh Richardson picked up his first DNP-CD of the season, while center Thomas Bryant also didn’t play.
Jaquez returned after missing the previous six games with a strained groin, Chiang adds. He provided six points and four assists in about 24 minutes and played 7:33 in the fourth quarter until the game got out of hand. “There are definitely some things defensively that he needs to fast track on and he knows that,” Spoelstra said. “But offensively, you can definitely see some of the intangibles that he brings. He just has a knack for the play, a knack for getting us some rim pressure and we need a lot more of that.”
Today’s loss shows the Heat need to add size before the trade deadline to have a shot at another long playoff run, states Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. He observes that Miami was outrebounded 29-19 in the first half and frequently had to throw double teams at Julius Randle, leading to open three-point shots.

Heat Notes: Rozier, Butler, Jaquez, Love

January 26th, 2024 at 7:19pm CST by Rory Maher

On Tuesday, the Heat traded Kyle Lowry and their 2027 first-round pick to Charlotte for veteran guard Terry Rozier, who was having a career season in an expanded role for a team losing lots of games.

On Wednesday, Rozier had a physical and made his Heat debut, a home loss to the undermanned Grizzlies, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. On Thursday, Miami was eviscerated at home by the Celtics, Chiang adds in another story. Rozier struggled in both games after a whirlwind few days.

Thursday marked Miami’s fifth straight loss — its worst stretch of basketball since March 2021, when the team lost six straight. Trading for Rozier was an acknowledgement that the Heat needed more offensive firepower, and while he and everyone around the team realize he won’t be averaging 18.3 shots per game like he did with the Hornets, head coach Erik Spoelstra still wants him to get in the paint and be assertive, according to Chiang.

“It’s clear to see the positives with Terry,” Spoelstra said Thursday. “He brings us a burst, a speed, a quickness, his ability to get into the paint. I think that’s going to continue to get better once he understands how important it is to our offense and how we want him to be him and be aggressive.”

Here’s more from Miami:

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic likes what Rozier will bring Miami on offense, with his ability to drive and take (and make) pull-up threes both valuable traits for a team that doesn’t generate many points in either of those areas. However, he has questions about Rozier’s defense compared to Lowry’s, and thinks the possibility of giving up an unprotected pick in 2028 (it’s lottery protected in 2027 and will become unprotected in ’28 if it doesn’t convey) for Rozier probably wasn’t worth it.
Star forward Jimmy Butler spoke to the media after Thursday’s loss for the first time since the trade of close friend Lowry. He said the players’ performance has been abysmal lately and the onus is on them to compete much harder than they have been on both ends of the court, per Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscriber link). Butler does think Rozier’s addition can help the team, however. “I mean, I think it can be a positive thing, a new face, yes,” Butler said. “The scoring that he brings, the leadership that he brings, he’s played in the playoffs a bunch with that Boston team. And I mean he’s just a hell of a player. He’s smiling. He’s happy. And I think that’s going to become very contagious. He’s going to be the ring leader for that.”
Rookie forward Jaime Jaquez will be available on Saturday against the Knicks after missing the past six games with a groin injury, the team announced (via Twitter). Jaquez won Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month in December for his second straight monthly award.
Veteran big man Kevin Love was out for the back-to-back this week due to an illness (Twitter link via Winderman) but he isn’t on the injury report for Saturday’s matchup with New York, which means he should be back in action. As Winderman observes, Thomas Bryant took Love’s minutes when he was out, over second-year forward/center Nikola Jovic.