Reports out of France are that Pietrus was on TV talking about how much he wanted to join the Miami Heat for the upcoming NBA season.
Meanwhile, the Heat have shown interest in the 6'6" French swingman, but what would set off Pietrus to practically demand a move to Miami? It could be that he learned Golden State and Miami were in discussions - his agent was the one who most likely informed him of this:
Golden State restricted free agent Mickael Pietrus, perhaps the best small forward still available, wants to play for Miami, agent Bill McCandless said, but it will only happen through a sign-and-trade. Talks between the Heat and Warriors are ongoing, but it's unclear if a deal will get done, McCandless said Tuesday. Miami Herald
The Sign & Trade? Most likely James Posey.
The Warriors have offered a 3.5M contract to Pietrus and any team that offers him a deal will have to exceed that amount to get him. Most likely the Warriors will match any offer, since the most Pietrus could get is the full MLE (5.3M) from teams still on the free agent hunt. Knowing this, they also know Pietrus has value and the Warriors also have a 9M trade exception they could use due to the draft day deal of Jason Richardson.
Will Mickael Pietrus land in Miami? He definetly wants to be here but the Warriors are playing hardball. Of course, the sign-and-trade could be Posey for Matt Barnes, too. Check out the San Jose Mercury News as they report that talks with Miami are ongoing, but that it is Barnes that should be the target and not Pietrus. Posey is viewed as an improvement over Barnes, in this case.
1 comment:
Kapono may have helped the Heat, incidentally. His signing with the Raptors pretty much means that Pietrus won't get the full MLE and as a result, a team offering 4M might get Air France.
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