The Sacramento Kings recently added DeMar DeRozan in what some have called one of the best moves of the NBA offseason. Yet, we’ve since learned the Miami Heat made a strong push to land the six-time All-Star before the Kings executed the sign-and-trade with the Chicago Bulls.
Miami, who has coveted a third star to pair with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo for several seasons now, hasn’t made a significant addition this offseason, unless you count selecting Kel’el Ware with the 15th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.
So, with DeRozan widely expected to leave the Bulls, Miami reportedly made a hard charge for the three-time All-NBA swingman. We know now that the Heat came up short once again, but now we finally know why.
Duncan Robinson’s untradeable contract may have prevented DeMar DeRozan move to Miami Heat
According to ESPN’s NBA expert Bobby Marks, one of the biggest issues Miami ran into during their DeRozan pursuit was not being able to find a taker for Duncan Robinson’s contract.
“[Heat] tried as heck to get DeMar DeRozan, nobody wanted Duncan Robinson. They had one first-round pick to trade. They wanted Tyus Jones. They couldn’t make a deal here.”
Bobby Marks on Miami Heat’s pursuit of DeMar DeRozan
Robinson, signed a five-year, $90 million extension with Miami back in 2021. He’s now in the second-to-last season of that contract and is set to have a cap hit of $19.6 million this year. That’s a lot of money for a 30-year-old small forward who doesn’t offer much more than being a knockdown shooter.
After scoring 12.9 PPG while shooting 39.5% from 3-point range, Robinson improved his stock last season after playing in just 42 games the year before. Yet, teams still apparently weren’t willing to take on his contract, and it’s not like the Heat were eager to attach picks to unload him either.
It should also be noted that Robinson holds an early termination option in the final year of his contract. Unless he receives a significant spike in playing time, it’s hard to envision Robinson opting out next offseason.
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