The Miami Heat’s roster is starting to take shape and looks a lot like last year’s. Jimmy Butler to play out his contract with the Heat next season, and Bam Adebayo received a new contract extensiongiving the Heat a financial break with that deal. Tyler Herro, Terry Rozier, Duncan Robinson, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kevin Love and Nikola Jokic will all return under coach Eric Spoelstra.
Thomas Bryant will also be back. Bryant opted out of his $2.8 million contract to become a free agent, but Wednesday agreed to re-sign with Miami to a one-year minimum veteran deal worth about $2.8 million. By opting out and re-signing, the Heat saved money — even though he’s making $2.8 million, he only counts as $2.1 million against the cap — and that helps with the second apron tax line, which the Heat are bumping up against but don’t want to go over. Bryant and Love re-signing, plus the Heat drafting Indiana center Kel’el Ware in the first round, means Orlando Robinson is unlikely to return to the team (the Heat have a July 15 deadline to guarantee his salary for next season).
One of the new arrivals is veteran guard Alec Burks, who spent last season with the Pistons and Knicks and averaged 10.4 points per game. He’s now heading to Miami on a veteran’s minimum contract (he’s worth $3.3 million because he’s been in the league for more than 10 years), ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported.
(Like Bryant, Burks’ salary only counts toward the salary cap for $2.1 million under NBA rules.)
Burks is a natural scorer, he can make 3-pointers (38.3% from distance in his career) and last season he scored 30+ points in several games.
There are still questions that need to be answered about the Heat roster for next season — Is free agent Caleb Martin coming back? — but Miami will largely play it back with a team that will make the postseason and be scary in a playoff series if healthy, but that doesn’t appear to be a real threat to Boston, New York and Philadelphia at the top of the East.
