Nearly three months removed from Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier getting arrested by the FBI amid a months-long gambling investigation, there appears to be — still — no end on the horizon to the situation.
This will ultimately take time for the NBA to settle, but several damning details — such as Charlotte and the NBA allegedly knowing about a possible scandal before he was traded in Jan. of 2024 — have since been uncovered. Miami still doesn’t know whether or not it can trade Rozier, nor will there be any uproar from the organization publicly.
Nevertheless, Rozier’s unresolved situation does add multiple wrinkles to its trade flexibility ahead of February’s deadline. It’s difficult to ignore the implications — and how shady this appears to be, on the surface, by the NBA. Even one of the Heat’s biggest self-proclaimed haters, former ESPN analyst and founder of The Ringer, Bill Simmons, agrees.
“My guess is the (Charlotte Hornets) knew. These teams always know,” Simmons said on a recent episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast regarding Terry Rozier’s allegations. “So they trade him to Miami — odds are they knew that he was being investigated for a gambling scandal. That’s pretty f–ked up. … Teams will do this from time to time, but that’s pretty f–ked up.
“It doesn’t seem like Miami can get the pick back. But it seems like they should. And I don’t want to defend the Heat because I hate the Heat. But I think it’s unfair — it’s their 2027 first-round pick. And it’s crazy that they’re not going to have that pick because they traded for Rozier, who’s under a gambling investigation, and the other team didn’t tell them. They should get pick back.”
While it remains unclear whether there will be any sort of resolution ahead of the deadline, getting their 2027 lottery-protected first-round back from the Hornets would unlock the Heat’s 2026 and 2028 first-round picks to use in a trade. Currently, Miami can only trade its 2030 and 2032 first-round picks.
Miami is currently hard-capped below the $195.9 million first apron, a threshold it’s currently $7.2 million under. Rozier’s $26.6 million may be untradable because the league may prohibit any trade involving the 10-year vet. It may also be untradable because, well, Rozier’s prototype isn’t valuable and he’s coming off one of the worst seasons of his career. As we’ve belabored, it may be best for the Heat to let his contract expire.
This is a messy situation the NBA is embroiled in — not only from a PR perspective, but from an ethical perspective. But alas, the Heat have their hands tied behind their backs with one ankle hand-cuffed to a telephone poll, at this point.
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wembys back if healthy they can maybe challenge okc
Any team with a legit ss, a solid supporting cast/deep bench and a good coach can challenge OKC in a 7 game series. Getting out of the West (OKC, Spurs, Denver, Houston, Lakers, Minnesota, etc.), is going to be a lot harder than getting out of the East.
Another couple of gems from Michael Saenz..
The Heat’s secret weapon is Kasparas Jakucionis
…”In eight games with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Heat’s G League affiliate, Jakucionis is averaging 17 points, six rebounds, and six assists on 42 percent shooting from the field and 33 percent shooting from 3-point range.
As a true playmaker, there’s reason to believe that he could help solve some of Miami’s offensive woes. Over the last few games, the Heat has struggled to create offense, both on the break and in the half-court.
Perhaps it may be foolish to think that Jakucionis, especially in his first year in the NBA, can solve their entire issue, but he could emerge as a spark for the team on that end of the floor. And, sometimes, that’s all teams need to get back on the right track.”…
Nikola Jovic is quietly playing his way directly off the Heat
…”With his poor play to start this season, Nikola Jovic may be playing his way not only out of the Miami Heat’s long-term plans, but he may find himself off the team completely if things don’t turn around quickly.
As the next trade season quickly approaches, you can’t help but wonder if Jovic will be on the block with how much he’s struggled to fit in with the team. It’s been a huge surprise that Jovic hasn’t been able to hit his stride in Miami’s new fast-paced offense. So much so that nothing can be considered off the table at this point.
Nikola Jovic has fallen out of the Heat’s rotationThrough the first quarter-plus of the season, Jovic is averaging eight points and four rebounds per game on 39 percent shooting from the field overall and 28 percent shooting from 3-point range. Perhaps most concerning, Jovic has almost completely fallen out of the team’s rotation over the last couple of weeks.
Considering that Jovic was a popular breakout candidate heading into the start of this season, this has pretty much been a worst-case scenario for both Jovic and the Heat.
At this point, even though there’s still a good portion of the season left, it’s hard to imagine how he’s going to break out of his recent slump, much less reach the expectations that were placed on his shoulders before the season.”
jovics been up and down his whole time with us.this year just down.has a nice nba body.does alot of things out there just nothing very well.lots european guys cant handle the pace and power of nba
He played well with fellow Serbian Jokic. Maybe Heat can work out a trade for him this summer with Denver for someone like Cam Johnson.
Pelle is out, Simone cant hit anything, JJJ and Dru are struggling, Ware is off again. Johnson is what it is.
Nico cant be much worse that those above. So maybe is time to give him a chance.
Silver to Riley: We are just waiting for the court’s decision, if Terry is found guilty you’ll get Giannis.
😄😆😜
If not, you’ll get a large tub of KY Jelly.
Lol I don’t even want to know what they would use that for. Or where
3 guesses and first 2 don’t count.
The only way the Heat will get this fiasco resolved in its favor is to sue TF out of Charlotte, Silver and the NBA for return of the money paid to Rozier, its 2027 first round draft pick and legal damages!!! Until/unless that happens, it appears Charlotte is getting the gold mine and Miami and its fans are getting the shaft (without lubricant), thanks to Adam Silver and the NBA!
Now it all makes perfect sense why Charlotte was willing to let a 23.2 ppg, 6.6 apg player go for a washed up player (Lowry) and a pick. By failing to disclose relevant material facts that would have had a direct bearing on Miami’s decision, Adam Silver was also a willing participant/co-conspirator in the deception.
RILEY MUST IMMEDIATELY SUE TF OUT OF CHARLOTTE, SILVER AND THE NBA OR ACCEPT FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES AND REPURCUSSIONS TO THE TEAM AND THE FANS!
YOU MAKE THE CALL, PAT!!!
did charlotte know what was going on with terry is the ?
It appears the Charlotte Hornets were aware of suspicious betting activity involving Terry Rozier before the January 2024 trade to the Heat, as the NBA had flagged irregular wagers on his performance months earlier, though the Hornets declined comment on their knowledge, and the Heat were kept in the dark, leading to potential NBA grievance action from Miami.
The Hornets, when asked by ESPN whether they were aware of the league’s investigation before the trade, declined to comment.
I have read in multiple articles that Charlotte was aware of the investigation. Legally, they or the league were not required to inform the Heat. But, from an ethical standpoint, it is outrageous.
In civil law, failure to disclose relevant facts prior to entering into (Charlotte) or approving (Silver/NBA) a binding legal contract is grounds for rescission/nullification/termination.
This matter goes beyond violation of NBA rules, it is a civil matter with potential damages owed to the injured party (Miami).
maybe theyre still pissed about the mourning trade
True, but if it was that simple, it would already be resolved. Is there precedent in the NBA? Has any team sued the league? What would be the ramifications to the team and the league? I agree that if the league doesn’t give the Heat relief in this matter, the only 2 options are suing in civil court or not pursuing at all. Hopefully they choose the former.
What Arison and Riley do now will tell us everything we need to know about their characters and backbones.
“Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them. You will find that they haven’t half the strength you think they have.”
~ Norman Vincent Peale ~
Why Teams Sue:
In essence, while the NBA prefers internal dispute resolution, teams have used civil courts to address significant issues, especially when they feel league processes are inadequate or biased.
Why Teams Sue: …”player contracts”…