Heat signing day updates: Details on the Kyle Lowry sign-and-trade deal, and Yurtseven news
It will be a busy day around the NBA, as the league’s moratorium period ended at noon Friday.
That means teams can now begin formally signing free agents, trades can become official, rookie-scale and veteran contracts can be extended and the clock on offer sheets extended to restricted free agents is allowed to begin.
That also means it’s going to be an eventful day at FTX Arena, with the Heat expected to make most of its own free agent signings official. So far in free agency, the Heat has added Kyle Lowry, P.J. Tucker and Markieff Morris and retained Duncan Robinson, Dewayne Dedmon, Victor Oladipo, Max Strus and Gabe Vincent.
The Heat can also now formally sign Jimmy Butler to a maximum four-year extension.
Updates will be posted here throughout the day:
9:45 p.m.: The Heat announced the Omer Yurtseven signing. “Ӧmer is one of Adam Simon’s great finds for our club,” Pat Riley said. “He will be a great developmental center/power forward to play alongside Bam, and has shown his willingness to commit to the work needed to get to the next level.”
9:15 p.m.: The Heat officially announced the signing of forward Markieff Morris, who took a minimum deal.
Pat Riley said: “Markieff Morris has been a player that we’ve followed closely for a number of years. He can play multiple positions, shoot the three, defend and post-up. To be able to add him to our nucleus was a big move. I want to thank Markieff for coming to Miami.”
Morris said “obviously I wanted more money than the minimum. The Lakers had a couple things going on. I wanted to see how things played out. Miami was always one of my destinations. I work out here in the summer.”
He said “we don’t have bulldogs that bark a lot. We have bulldogs that are biting. This is like a dream team of playing with stars who play the right way. We fit. I’ve known Kyle almost my whole life. I’ve known Jimmy for a long time. The Heat isn’t for everybody. That’s the first thing Spo [Erik Spoelstra] said to me on the phone. Everyone in the NBA knows the Heat culture. This is something I’ve wanted to be part of for a long time.”
He said: “We’re going to be a great team. We’re going to be a hard team to score against.”
Morris admires the Heat’s “will to not give up. That’s something we all have in common.”
7:00 p.m.: Lowry is meeting with the South Florida and Canadian media. (We’ll have a full story on this shortly). A couple of highlights from his comments:
“I’m looking forward to being here and the opportunity to try to compete for a championship. I’m really excited. I want to try to take this organization back to a level it once was... and get some championships....
“On paper it looks great. But we have to put the work in on the floor... If you don’t find a way to put it together, it means jack.”
Lowry said Jimmy Butler had a big impact on his decision: “He was really on me about coming to the Heat”.. A Lowry associate said playing with Butler particularly appealed to Lowry.
The inception of their friendship, Lowry said, was “how hard we work and how much we want to win. That’s all we’re both about -- winning. When you find someone genuine about who they are and what they want and as blunt as Jimmy is, it’s a good thing.”
“It was an opportunity to do something different, try to turn the page in the book,” Lowry told a Toronto reporter. “Miami was the place to be.”
He said “to be wanted was cool. I’ve showed people I’m a winner. No matter what happens, I’m going to help a team win.”
Lowry said he didn’t talk to Pat Riley or Erik Spoelstra because it was a sign-and-trade. Lowry said “fiery” is how it’s “going to look” on the court with Lowry and Butler. On the new look Heat, he said: “I think people know what we’re going to be.”
6:10 p.m.: The Heat announced the acquisition of guard Kyle Lowry in exchange for center Precious Achiuwa and guard Goran Dragic in a sign-and-trade deal with the Toronto Raptors. It remains to be seen if Achiuwa and Dragic will stay in Toronto or if they will be moved to another team.
“Kyle Lowry is a great leader and an exceptional defender,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a statement. “As a point guard, he will bring important skills to run the offense, score the ball and defend with the very best.”
5:50 p.m.: Omer Yurtseven watch has come to an end!
According to a league source, Yurtseven has agreed to a deal with the Heat. The center’s deal is a standard contract — not a two-way contract — worth $3.5 million over two seasons at the minimum.
The Heat’s roster is up to 13 players on standard contracts: Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, Bam Adebayo, Duncan Robinson, P.J. Tucker, Tyler Herro, KZ Okpala, Markieff Morris, Dewayne Dedmon, Victor Oladipo, Max Strus, Gabe Vincent and Yurtseven.
There’s still one roster spot to fill to get to 14 players, which is one shy of the NBA regular-season maximum of 15 players but still acceptable under NBA roster rules. Miami has gone with 14 players in previous seasons when up against the luxury tax or hard cap.
Here’s our story on Friday’s Yurtseven news ...
4:40 p.m.: The Heat announced that guard Gabe Vincent signed his new contract. Like Strus, the 25-year-old Vincent is returning to Miami on a two-year minimum contract worth $3.5 million after spending last season with the Heat on a two-way contract.
“Gabe has proven to us that he is more than just a point guard,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a statement. “He’s a two-way guard that can run the offense, make threes and pretty much defend any guard in this league. It’s good to have him as part of our young core of players that we feel blend perfectly with our veterans.”
Vincent represented Nigeria in the Tokyo Olympics and is on the Heat’s summer league roster. He’s known as a three-point shooter but impressed as a perimeter defender with the Heat last season, averaging 4.8 points while shooting 37.8 percent from the field and 30.9 percent on threes, 1.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 50 regular-season games (seven starts).
4:30 p.m.: The Heat announced that wing Max Strus formally signed his new deal with the team. Strus, 25, is returning to Miami on a two-year minimum contract worth $3.5 million after spending last season with the Heat on a two-way contract.
“As one of our young developing players, Max proved he can be very productive for us,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a statement. “He stepped up when needed last season and produced. His shooting and overall game is going to help our team immensely.”
Strus is currently playing with the Heat’s summer league team. He shined in Wednesday’s summer league win over the Golden State Warriors in Sacramento, finishing with a game-high 27 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field and 5-of-11 shooting on threes.
3:40 p.m.: The Heat announced that veteran center Dewayne Dedmon has formally signed his new deal with the Heat. Dedmon, 31, agreed Monday to a one-year minimum deal to return to Miami.
“We love Dewayne and his aggressive attitude at the center position,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a statement. “He’s a great screener, rebounder and can stretch the floor. He came in after missing most of the season and had a tremendous impact for us. His veteran presence and physicality are going to help anchor our defense and with a whole year under his belt, he will be even better.”
Dedmon’s return provides the Heat with much-needed size in the frontcourt at 7 feet and 245 pounds, especially with center Precious Achiuwa in the Kyle Lowry sign-and-trade deal. Dedmon impressed after signing with the Heat as a late-season addition in April, averaging 7.1 points on 70.8 percent shooting and 5.4 rebounds in 16 regular-season games off the bench.
Dedmon took over as the Heat’s backup center shortly after he signed and provided much-needed quality minutes when starter Bam Adebeyo went to the bench. The expectation is that Dedmon will again play as Miami’s backup center next season.
Of how he approached free agency this offseason, Dedmon said: “It’s free agency. Just see what offers are out there, see what teams are looking for, see what else is available. But I feel like I had a good stint here in Miami. It’s the team that I ended the season with and kind of was getting familiar with. So might as well come back and get another crack at it.”
2:30 p.m.: The first Heat announcement of the day: Forward Duncan Robinson has officially signed his new contract with the team.
Robinson, 27, agreed to a five-year deal worth $90 million to return to the Heat early in free agency on Monday. The total value of the contract, which a league source said includes a player option in the fifth year, is the largest ever for an undrafted player.
“I’m just super blessed and feel humbled and honestly it has been a whirlwind,” Robinson said during a Zoom session with reporters after signing his new contract. “There’s a lot emotions right now for sure. I just feel fortunate to be in this situation right now, and I can’t wait to just get it started and get the ball rolling.”
Robinson, who was a restricted free agent, has quickly earned the reputation as one of the NBA’s top shooters after spending most of his rookie season in the G League. In the past two regular seasons combined, only Sacramento’s Buddy Hield (553) and Portland’s Damian Lillard (545) have totaled more made three-pointers than Robinson (520).
“Duncan is the epitome of everybody who’s ever had a dream about being a great NBA player,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a statement. “I have never been around a player who worked as hard, fastidiously working on what he needed to do in order to improve his game. Not just his shooting, but his overall game. Having Duncan back was very critical for us.”
Robinson’s family surprised him at the arena Friday to be by his side as he signed his new contract.
“My agent Jason Glushon facilitated them being here this morning,” Robinson said. “I had no idea. I thought I was just going up to put pen to paper and touch base with Andy [Elisburg] and Pat [Riley]. I went up into the room and they were all in there. It was just truly a special moment.”
When asked if he received an offer from another team in free agency, Robinson said: “It ever came down to like this offer in comparison to another offer. The comparison was like pursing another opportunity further, and that would be walking away from what was on the table. Obviously, I wasn’t ready or willing to do that.”
1:30 p.m.: Veteran forward Andre Iguodala has decided to return to the Golden State Warriors on a one-year, minimum deal, according to multiple reports. Iguodala, 37, became an unrestricted free agent when the Heat declined the $15 million team option in his contract last weekend.
“Who would have thought I’d have the opportunity to go back to the place where I was able to have, whatever you want to call it, legacy years, in terms of the accomplishments, winning multiple championships, the relationships that I was able to build with some of my closest friends and teammates?” Iguodala said to the New York Times. “The relationship with the fans, the relationship with the Bay, the opportunity to end it here, was just something special.”
There are just two players from the Heat’s season-ending roster who remain free agents: Udonis Haslem and Omer Yurtseven. The expectation is that Haslem will again return to play at the veteran minimum next season.
This story was originally published August 6, 2021 at 1:33 PM.
