It’s one of the strangest aspects of NBA free agency this summer, especially from the Heat’s perspective.
By all accounts, Kelly Oubre is a pretty good player, a wing who can defend a little, shoot a little, and can certainly score in the right situations – he averages 20.
2 points in last season with Charlotte along with key players Miles Bridges and LaMelo Ball out..
But here, in mid-September, Oubre remains unsigned, still a free agent.
He has received offers to sign minimum contracts elsewhere, but according to veteran reporter Marc Stein, Oubre is awaiting a Miami Heat-Damian Lillard deal, with Oubre heading to South Beach when/ if it completes.
“Several teams I’ve talked to recently expect free agent Kelly Oubre Jr.
,” Stein reported this week.
will eventually land with the Miami Heat…provided the Heat are ultimately successful in their bid to trade for Portland’s Damian Lillard.
” Reaching a deal with Lillard remains an uncertain prospect in Miami, though it remains the most likely outcome.
Insider Shams Charania reported this week that Miami and Portland are the only two camps Lillard will report to when practice begins in less than three weeks.
This is a good sign for Heat.
But the sides remain entrenched and have fewer options to break the deadlock.
One problem is that by mid-September, the window to attract other groups to the transaction will close if it hasn’t already closed completely.
The crux of the matter is that the main player the Heat would include in the Lillard deal – Tyler Herro – has no value to Portland.
Herro lost trade value across the league as Miami advanced to the NBA Finals with Herro injured, and teams saw how much better the Heat defended in those games.
Sending Herro to a third team and acquiring assets that way would be helpful, but there isn’t a huge trade market for Herro entering the season.
The Heat could improve the situation by trading Portland center Jusuf Nurkic, but that option doesn’t result in a deal either.
If a deal happens, Herro will likely be elsewhere and the Heat will be very thin on the wing behind Jimmy Butler and returning free agent Josh Richardson, especially if 2023 rookie Jaime Jaquez is involved in a trade.
“The assumption is that Miami will likely have a clear need for a wing if they can finally manage the trade package necessary to lure Lillard from the Pacific Northwest after a frustratingly quiet summer on the frontcourt.
That’s for the Heat.
Oubre is by far the most successful player available on the free agent market to fill such a need after nearly finishing in the top 50 in scoring last season while averaging 20.
3 points per game with Charlotte.
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One of the consequences of making a deal with Lillard is the possibility that Miami could shed some big salaries and actually create more room under the so-called second apron of the luxury tax, which This would free up more money for Oubre than just a minimum deal.
At least that’s his hope.
And honestly, that’s the hope of most Heat fans right now.
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA and NFL for Heavy.com.
He has been writing for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for Sporting News.
Deveney is the author of seven non-fiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley Became Wrigley” and “Facing Michael Jordan.
” Learn more about Sean Deveney