After reportedly declining to sign a two-year extension worth $80 million with the Chicago Bulls during the season, wing DeMar DeRozan went shopping this offseason.
DeRozan, 35, ultimately decided to join De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis in Sacramento, Calif., signing a three-year, $74 million with the Sacramento Kings in a three-team sign-and-trade involving the San Antonio Spurs.
Though on a recent appearance on Paul George’s podcast, Podcast P with Paul George, DeRozan revealed a few other “legitimate” destinations in free agency–one being the Miami Heat.
“Philly definitely was an option. Lakers was an option always. Clippers was an option. And the Heat,” DeRozan told George. “Those teams, for sure, were real personal, legitimate options for me that I was considering.”
DeMar DeRozan revealed that the Miami Heat were one of the teams that was a “legitimate” option for him in free agency.
He signed a three-year, $73.9 million deal with the Sacramento Kings in a three-team sign-and-trade in July.
— Hot Hot Hoops (@hothothoops) September 11, 2024
DeRozan led the NBA in minutes played last season, racking up a 2,989 total (37.8 mpg) across 79 games, his most minutes played since 2013-14, when he recorded over 3,000 in his fifth season with the Toronto Raptors (3,017).
He averaged 24.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists, shooting 48.0 percent from the floor, including 33.3 percent from deep (on low volume) and 85.3 percent from the free-throw line. The six-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA honoree has also finished in the top-3 in Clutch Player of the Year award in the two seasons it’s been rewarded, including second last year behind Golden State’s Stephen Curry.
While I’m not completely discounting the Heat as an “option,” since DeRozan’s had interest in Miami before, I still contest that the Heat showed mutual interest in DeRozan to where they could be considered an actual “legitimate option.” They only had the affordability of offering the taxpayer’s mid-level to remain below the second apron. DeRozan wasn’t going to take the full MLE (~$12.8M), so why would he have taken half that?
Of course, Miami could’ve “dumped” at least one of Duncan Robinson ($19.0M), Terry Rozier ($24.9M) or Tyler Herro ($29.0M) to get below the $178.1 million first apron, but that practice is far easier said than done. Plus, would that risk-reward be worth being hard-capped (for one calendar year) for a 35-year-old player that doesn’t quite fit with the Heat’s top players? I guess we will never know. The thrill of the unknown, I suppose.
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