With Heat working to finalize trade, Iguodala speaks. And where things stand with the deal.
The trade isn’t finalized just yet, but forward Andre Iguodala is already speaking about the impending deal.
As the Heat works to finalize a trade that would send Justise Winslow to Memphis as part of a package to acquire former NBA Finals MVP Andre Iguodala, ESPN and The Undefeated’s Marc Spears spoke to Iguodala about the deal Wednesday night.
Iguodala, who turned 36 last week, expressed his excitement about joining the Heat.
“My wife is always 100 percent honest with me,” Iguodala said to The Undefeated. “I try to play everything cool. She was like, ‘Are you excited?’ I was like,‘No, I’m cool.’ But she knows me best. I’m excited. I’m looking forward to it. I want to be smart and not go out there and try to prove anything. You turn 36 and everyone thinks your game is fading away. But that IQ doesn’t show up in analytics. So, I have to make sure that I keep making the same winning plays and be patient. I’ll be ready to go.”
Iguodala agreed to a two-year, $30 million extension with the Heat as part of the trade, but the 2021-22 season is a team option, according to ESPN. That allows Miami to maintain substantial cap space to try to sign a star free agent that 2021 offseason.
The Heat is also working acquire Thunder forward Danilo Gallinari as part of the Memphis/Iguodala trade.The objective is to add both players in deals before Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline.
The final roadblock for the Heat to finalize its three-team deal with the Grizzlies and Thunder is a potential contract extension with Gallinari, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Miami would like to preserve 2021 cap space with any extension, and Gallinari is on an expiring contract.
To acquire both Iguodala (earning $17.2 million) and Gallinari (earning $22.6 million in the final year of his contract), the Heat would need to send out at least $39.8 million in salary, which could be achieved by trading Winslow (already in the deal), James Johnson (whose camp expects him to be traded) and Dion Waiters (who was left in the locker room during the Heat-Clippers game). Their salaries add up to $40.4 million.
Those conversations were still ongoing as of Thursday morning.
While Iguodala waits for the trade to become official, he’s looking forward to getting back on the court. Iguodala has yet to play this season, as he and the Grizzlies mutually agreed that he would stay away from the team after Golden State traded him to Memphis this past summer.
Iguodala told The Undefeated that he’s expected to take a physical with the Heat in Sacramento on Friday in advance of the Heat’s game against the Kings, but he’s uncertain when he’ll make his debut since he has not played in an NBA game since June.
“I need to put on some weight, which is usually the opposite,” Iguodala said to The Undefeated. “Usually, it’s like, ‘He needs to lose some weight and shed some pounds.’ But for me, I was doing a lot of boxing. I was on the court a little bit. I was working strategic. I was working smarter, not harder, on the court getting into basketball shape. I was always getting my reps. But in terms of my endurance, I am ready to go.”
Iguodala added that the Heat “kind of came in late as a team. They were really smart. If you get in too early, you can get leveraged because you show you have interest. Then, you can be used as leverage for someone else. They moved in silence, which was pretty smart.”
Before Iguodala was traded to the Grizzlies this past summer, he spent the previous six seasons with the Warriors. The 15-year veteran won three NBA championships with Golden State.
“Pat [Riley] really reminds me of [former Warriors executive] Jerry West,” Iguodala said to The Undefeated. “They’re very good. I am a huge fan of Jerry. He’s my guy. They’ve been around the league so long. They have been around so many eras. They’ve seen so much. I read Pat’s book [”The Winner Within: A Life Plan for Team Players”] about four years ago. [West and Riley] have that smoothness to them. They can sell you anything, but it’s genuine. It’s not a fake dream. It’s a dream, something you can see in your realm.”
▪ Iguodala also spoke about playing with Jimmy Butler: “Someone was asking me what I thought about playing with Jimmy. Everyone has their perception of somebody. I was like, ‘It is going to be very easy.’ I played with superstars when I was rookie in the league and some of the top players in the league in my 15th season. I’m going to complement him very well, and I’m looking forward to it.”
▪ As for the extension Iguodala signed, he said: “I got a 2-year-old and a 12-year-old. It was more so getting comfortable with living so far away and what that would look like. One thing I didn’t want it to be was a rental-type situation where you can be there for like 80 days. You can’t really buy into that? You can’t settle into 80 days on any job. So, it’s let’s build for something.’ That really piqued my interest.”
This story was originally published February 6, 2020 at 10:44 AM.
