The Miami Heat will forever more have two things going for them with regards to player acquisition — their famed culture and arguably the most sought after location in the NBA along with Los Angeles.
Those two factors struck again on Wednesday, July 3, with a report from Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald that yet another established star free agent — DeMar DeRozan, most recently of the Chicago Bulls — has the Heat on his short list of desired destinations.
Jackson’s report came on the same day that Jovan Buha of The Athletic reported both interest in DeRozan on the part of the Los Angeles Lakers, as well as that sources around the league believe the Heat are narrow frontrunners to land the six-time All-Star in the coming days or weeks.
Kings have talked to Bulls about DeRozan sign and trade, per source. Spurs also now another possibility. Despite DeRozan interest in Miami, Heat not in position to give him what he's seeking at this time… Heat will hope opportunity on some player it wants arises this summer.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) July 4, 2024
DeRozan’s status as a free agent complicates his acquisition by the Heat because the franchise can’t swap salaries already on its books to bring him in. Miami is not only well into the luxury tax with its current roster configuration, but already past the first apron as outlined in the league’s new collective bargaining agreement.
Buha didn’t go into the machinations of how the Heat might clear enough space to bring DeRozan in on a deal he finds acceptable after earning nearly $82 million from the Bulls over the past three years and a total of $257.6 million over the course of his 15-year career.
Jackson added to his reporting on Wednesday that instead of a free agency play for DeRozan or some other available talent, Miami is instead leaving itself the flexibility to potentially make a future trade.
“Heat is trying to do something in trade market, I’ve been assured. (DeRozan seems too difficult at moment; other options less clear),” Jackson wrote on X. “That’s why they have left themselves 7 [million] under 2nd apron for now. So it’s not like they’re sitting around playing Scrabble.”
Caleb Martin May Be Heat’s Best Avenue Toward Improving Roster This Summer
Miami can’t use the full mid-level exception (standard MLE) of roughly $13 million to ink DeRozan, which wouldn’t count against the cap, because the team is already paying the luxury tax.
Even if the Heat could use the MLE in an attempt to acquire DeRozan, the soon-to-be 35-year-old is unlikely to be interested in a one-year contract for less than half of what he earned in Chicago last season. That leaves only a sign-and-trade deal, though that type of three-sided agreement could prove too complicated to achieve.
Perhaps Miami’s best option at the moment to add to its roster is a sign-and-trade agreement centered around Caleb Martin, who opted out of the final year of his deal with the Heat this summer to test free agency. Martin spent the last three years in Miami and has proven himself a viable two-way wing in the rotation over that span.
There is also the possibility that Martin doesn’t find the opportunity and/or payday he’s seeking as a free agent and eventually agrees to return to the Heat for a fourth season and potentially beyond.
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