What Monday means for Heat two-way contract players. And ‘Shaqtin’ a Fool’ for Spoelstra?
The Miami Heat has needed its two-way contract players to start the season.
With Jimmy Butler, Dion Waiters, James Johnson and Udonis Haslem unavailable for the first three games of the season — including Sunday’s matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves — the Heat’s two two-way contract players (forward Chris Silva and guard Daryl Macon) have provided some depth to a shorthanded roster.
But the Heat will soon have to start monitoring the days its two-way contract players spend in the NBA because the 45-day NBA clock on those deals begin with the start of G League training camps on Monday. That clock runs until the March 28 end of the G League season.
Two-way contracts allow a player to spend up to 45 days with an NBA team during the G League season and the rest of the time must be spent with the team’s developmental affiliate, and the contract prevents the player from being signed by another NBA team. In Silva and Macon’s case, they are expected to spend most of the season with the Heat’s developmental affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
What skills have Heat coaches told Silva and Macon to work on during their time in the G League?
“Coming from college, I was foul prone and known to be physical,” said Silva, who has appeared in each of the Heat’s first two games and impressed with eight points, six rebounds and three blocks in Wednesday’s season opener. “Coming from Frank [Martin], I was always like in a fist fight. So I’m trying to use my head and play smart and avoid fouls during the process.”
For Macon, it will be about working on the mental aspect of the game.
“It’s just showing that I can be a leader,” said Macon, who has logged a minute of playing time over the Heat’s first two games. “It’s not all about the points you’re scoring, it’s just about developing and being ready when your number is called.”
One thing Silva and Macon will take to Sioux Falls is a belief they can turn this two-way opportunity into a standard NBA contract. They don’t have to look far for examples, with forwards Duncan Robinson and Derrick Jones Jr. moving from a two-way contract to a standard NBA deal with the Heat.
“I talked to these guys and they let me know how it goes and the process and how to approach it,” Silva said. “It’s going through my mind that I might go from realizing my dream today to actually like having a chance to turn this into a big thing.”
Macon, who signed a two-way contract with the Dallas Mavericks last season, said of the Heat: “They really, really care for their development guys down in the G League and they take that serious. That’s one thing Spo told me when he said I got the two-way, he was like they really do pay attention to their G League team. Him and [Skyforce coach] Eric Glass are real, real close.”
Silva and Macon have spent training camp, the preseason and the start of the regular season with the Heat. The impression they’ve left on coach Erik Spoelstra is evident
“Chris, obviously, reminds us of guys that we like at the big position,” Spoelstra said. “It’s not necessarily [Udonis Haslem]. It could be Joel Anthony, any of these guys that come in here with such overwhelming effort and consistency to that effort every day. We’ve had success with those kind of guys before. We feel we can develop some of the things that may not be as advanced right now. But because of his work ethic, he’ll get a lot better.
“Daryl is somebody we really liked last summer and we felt we were going to have him in the program last year, and he ended up taking the two-way with Dallas and rightly so. It was the right move for him at that time. But we stayed on him. He worked with us the last month or so, and he earned it.”
Shaqtin’ a Fool?
The Heat’s comeback win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday produced plenty of memorable moments. One of the most bizarre ones was when Spoelstra found himself on the opposite sideline while trying to call a timeout.
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With Heat center Bam Adebayo trapped with the ball against the sideline and baseline with 8:41 to play in regulation, Spoelstra motioned for a timeout but could not get the referee’s attention. Running onto the court in an attempt to get the timeout, Spoelstra soon found himself on the opposite side of the court and in the middle of a Bucks fast break.
The result of the play was a technical foul on Spoelstra, not a timeout.
“You’re not going to ask me about that ridiculous play the head coach made? I want to apologize,” Spoelstra said, bringing up the topic during his postgame interview Saturday. “That’s a horrible decision on my part. I should have ran to halfcourt. Look, they talk about that every year at the head coach’s meetings. We’re not supposed to be on the court. I got caught too far out there trying to get people’s attention. There was nowhere else to go. So Shaq, I’m sure I’ll be seeing you soon. I haven’t seen you in a while, but I guess you’re throwing me on your show [Shaqtin’ a Fool]. I deserve it and it’s inexcusable.”
▪ Butler, Haslem, Johnson and Waiters have already been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Timberwolves. Now, forward Derrick Jones Jr. is listed as doubtful with a left groin strain suffered during Saturday’s win over the Bucks.
