When Josh McRoberts signed in Miami, he was going to be part of the post-LeBron relaunch of the team — and it seemed like a smart signing. However, in two seasons injuries have limited McRoberts to 59 games total, meaning 891 minutes. When he has played, he has been a shell of his former self. Which is too bad, because healthy McRoberts was a lot of fun to watch — he could shoot the ball to space the floor, plus was an active defender.
The Heat have tried to move McRoberts in a trade for a while now, but with no takers — the Heat were going to have to throw in a pick or other sweetener to get a deal done, so they backed off. Now, the Heat have pivoted and are telling McRoberts he is part of their future plans, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.Though he was mentioned in trade rumors previously, the Heat has indicated to Josh McRoberts’ camp that he’s in the team’s plans for this season, his agent said, adding Miami called to go over his offseason training and make sure everyone is on the same page.
McRoberts will make $5.8 million this season and has a $6 million player option for 2017-18. But the Heat will need to dump someone with a guaranteed deal if it wants to keep point guard Briante Weber.
Why the change? Miami has a question mark at the power forward spot: Will Chris Bosh play? If so, will he be limited in minutes or travel? While there are hints from the organization Bosh will be on the court, nothing is set in stone. Behind him at the four spot are McRoberts, Derrick Williams, and the veteran Udonis Haslem.
Meaning it might be wise for Miami to hold on to McRoberts to see if he both can play and is needed. However, I’d be shocked in I didn’t hear his name come up in trade rumors again.
