Live blog: Miami Heat players discuss their futures in Monday sessions with media
In the wake of their first-round sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat players were scheduled to speak with reporters after conducting exit interviews with Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley and cleaning out their locker-room at AmericanAirlines Arena on Monday.
Players were not required to speak.
Here’s a live blog with highlights from the nine players who chose to speak to the media:
2:30 p.m.: Nemanja Bjelica, an impending unrestricted free agent, said after his trade from Sacramento, “I was trying to do my best. I showed I can play here. I can fit very good.
“It’s a great organization, how they handle things, how they treat people; all these things matter. All the small details are key to winning and be great. Miami is one of the best organizations in the league. Everyone wants to play for this team.”
Bjelica will play for the Serbian national team this summer.
2:15 p.m.: Duncan Robinson, who will be a restricted free agent this summer, said he has given free agency “some thought but I haven’t yet transitioned into that being the priority. It likely will be this summer, along with developing and improving, which is probably the main priority.”
What will affect his decision? “First and foremost, a fit, a place I can really feel comfortable. Winning is a priority for me. And also a business and there’s an opportunity to take care of people that I love.”
He made clear that “I love this organization for many different reasons.”
The Heat will have the right to match any offer for Robinson, presuming he is tendered as expected. His 2021-22 cap hit for the Heat will be modest (no more than $4.7 million), but his salary easily could top $15 million a year.
He said the Bucks “tried to be super physical and take me out of rhythm” and said he needs to continue to improve his body from that standpoint.
He said: “I’m a firm believer my best basketball is ahead of me. I can continue to expand my game. There’s a lot of growth still to be made.”
2:05 p.m.: Udonis Haslem declined to say if he will play next season, adding that “basketball is the last thing on my priority list right now. I haven’t thought about [the future]. Me and Spo [Erik Spoelstra] will have the time to have those conversations.”
Haslem, 40, appeared in only one game and was ejected: “It was exciting the two minutes I had, and based on that, I deserve the max,” he cracked. “When I get those minutes, you see I can do some [expletive] out there.”
Haslem said: “Everything Spo gives me is earned” and spoke of being ready to summon Bam Adebayo and Precious Achiuwa to go to the gym with him.
“I roll up my sleeves,” Haslem said. “Just because people don’t see it doesn’t mean work isn’t being done behind the scenes. There’s a standard that has to be set and I’ve got to be able to play at a high level. These guys listen to me because the body of work is still being put in. For them to be the best version of themselves, I have to put in the work...
“I don’t have an offseason. I’m 40 years old. If I have an offseason, I might as well retire. Straight from the season to back in the gym. I’m calling Bam; his [butt] is coming with me. I’m calling Precious. He’s coming with me.”
Haslem spoke of Tyler Johnson and others who thrived here. Haslem pushed all of those players.
“These guys were best version of themselves when they were in a Miami Heat uniform,” he said. “That’s not by accident.”
Haslem - who said he will be in the gym again beginning on Tuesday - wasn’t looking for credit as much as he was trying to make clear that he isn’t simply taking a roster spot without contributing.
Haslem made clear he doesn’t want to coach. He implied ownership would interest him.
2 p.m.: KZ Okpala said he needs “to clean up all realms of my game” and having a full summer to improve is “a blessing. I’m as hungry as anyone. I’ve got to take advantage of it.”
Okpala led all Heat players in defensive field goal percentage against and said: “I love the defensive end. I really do. I am comfortable in that aspect.”
Offensively, he shot 37.5 percent and just 24.0 percent on threes (12 for 50) and spoke of the need to be “more consistent [and] efficient.”
1:45 p.m.: Omer Yurtseven said he plans to play for the Turkish National Team that is attempting to qualify for the Olympics. Turkey is one of 24 teams competing for four remaining spots.
If Turkey fails to make the Olympics, Yurtseven said he will play in Heat summer league.
He hasn’t talked to Pat Riley about his game: “I don’t know if he’s familiar with it. After the bubble I added a lot to my game. “
He has been spending time working with Heat assistant coach Malik Allen.
Of the Heat’s summer league program, Yurtseven said: “I’ve heard the summers are really butal here and that’s what gets me the most excited.”
1:05: Guard Gabe Vincent, who contributed as a two-way player, said “I did a lot the past two years to show not only my growth but that I’m capable of playing at this level.
“Not having my jumper fall for me, but still being impactful and making winning plays. Once my jumper starts falling consistently, as we’ve all seen it can,... we’ll see what happens next.”
He said he needs to get his jumper “where it needs to be.”
Vincent - who was a high-volume three-point shooter in the G-League - shot 30.9 percent on threes for the Heat this season (36 for 149) but was very good defensively.
He will train with Nigeria’s national team and “hope to make the final roster for the Olympics.”
1:20 p.m.: Small forward Max Strus, who had some good moments while on a two-way contract, said: “I showed I can play at this level. I’m able to defend multiple positions.
“My shooting ability; honestly I didn’t even shoot it that well. I’ve got to be a more consistent shooter and that comes with playing more consistent minutes. I’m not too worried about that. I showed I can put the ball in the basket.
“You look at Duncan [Robinson]. I think I can be like him. He shoots 40 percent from three... just adding everything to my arsenal, being able to shoot off any action.”
Strus shot 33.8 percent on threes: 50 for 148.
Strus said he doesn’t know if he will play in Summer League in August in Las Vegas: “I’m not afraid to compete. If that’s something we talk about doing, we’ll probably do it.”
1:10: Center Dewayne Dedmon, who will be an unrestricted free agent beginning Aug. 2, said: “I would hope to be back but that’s up to the people upstairs.”
Unless the Heat wants to give him part of its mid-level exception money or bi-annual exception, he might need to accept the $2.6 million veteran minimum.
Dedmon said a full offseason here “would help a lot. There are still plays I don’t really know. To have a preseason working with the team would do wonders.”
He said “I have the three-point shot in my game” but wants to work on “finishing around the basket.”
He said “the big man has always been needed in the league. You need a big presence whether it’s the skill set of Nikola Jokic or a [Rudy] Gobert....There’s always room for someone to come in and do the hard plays and make plays for other people.”
He said “there is room for” him and Bam Adebayo to play together, a combination Spoelstra used sparingly.
1 p.m.: Rookie Precious Achiuwa said his jump shot “will be a big focus” for him this summer. “I’m going to put a lot of time into that and shoot the ball at a higher or better clip.”
He shot 33.3 percent on jump shots this season (9 for 27), according to basketballreference.com.
He played only 13 minutes alongside Adebayo this season, because Spoelstra likes one of his bigs to be a high-percentage or established three-point shooter to help with offensive spacing, and neither Adebayo nor Achiuwa is that.
But asked if he needs to improve his three-point shooting to make the case to play alongside Adebayo, Achiuwa declined to address that specifically, only reiterating the need to improve his jump shot.
He said he has talked about playing for the Nigerian National Team and it’s a “big opportunity” but hasn’t made a firm decision whether he will play for his country.
If he does that, he likely would miss NBA Summer League in August in Las Vegas because Nigeria has qualified for the Olympic men’s basketball tournament.
“I didn’t get a summer league last year,” he said. “They [the Heat] allowed me to play through a lot of mistakes. Playing in summer league will help [shore] things up for me a little bit, understanding the NBA game, especially on the defensive side.”
But he declined to say whether he would opt for the Olympics over Summer League.
This story was originally published May 31, 2021 at 1:09 PM.
