Mario

Chalmers

The Heat have been hit extremely hard by health and safety protocol issues, hence the franchise using another hardship exemption to sign a player. And they’re certainly familiar with the newest addition, as Chalmers began his NBA career in Miami and won two NBA titles with the franchise. As for when he’ll be able to play in a game, that is up in the air. The first game of Miami’s seven-game road trip (Wednesday vs. San Antonio) was postponed due to the Heat’s COVID-19 issues, and the team also had to cancel Thursday’s practice. Miami is scheduled to visit the Rockets Friday night.

“I definitely think I can still help a team, especially with my resume,” Chalmers said. “I have a lot of knowledge since I’ve been to four NBA Finals and won two NBA championships and a college national championship. I just feel like I can provide a lot of knowledge to a young point guard and be a mentor. That’s the role that I’d come back to the NBA and be, so I’m open to it if it happens.” His career went downhill fast after tearing his Achilles back in 2016, and so far we’ve yet to hear of any teams express an interest in the 34-year-old veteran.

Chalmers has been out of the NBA since the end of the 2017-18 season, and is currently playing in the BIG 3 League. “It’s been kind of tough,” Chalmers said. “I’ve had a great NBA career. I’ve had a lot of fun playing. I still want to play. I still want to play at a high level.” Even if Chalmers signs a training camp contract next month, he won’t have any fantasy value.

Chalmers’ contract is for the rest of this year with an option for the 2019/20 season. He didn’t play at all in the NBA this season and is likely hoping for this stint in Europe to get him one last call in the States.

Chalmers, a former NBA champion with Miami, played 66 games for the Grizzlies last season, will spend the rest of the 2018-19 campaign in Italy.

This will be the first time we’ve seen Butler on the court since he went down with the injury on January 1. Michael Beasley, whose dealing with a wrist injury, is also set to play in the event, while Mario Chalmers was a late scratch due to an alumni event at Kansas.

Let’s just say this one got away from Chalmers, who had been performing pretty well coming into tonight. Owners will want to dust themselves off and move on, but we’ll be keeping him on a shorter leash than most.

Once again, Chalmers’ minutes were rather limited (24), but the large margin of victory likely had something to do with that. The performance was a step in the right direction, but it’s still hard to rely on him consistently at this point.

Chalmers is a decent fantasy option going forward, as the Heat go 4-5 over the next two weeks for weekly games played. And in ESPN leagues, the Heat have seven games in the final week of the season, making Chalmers an appealing add, despite his inconsistency.

The Heat went away from fielding a PG for about 20 minutes of game action tonight, which obviously cut into Chalmers’ scoring numbers tonight. He has been a bit hit-or-miss, but is worth a look because of his 3-point shooting, assists, and steals.