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ASK IRA: Are Heat victims of NBA order of operations with Kawhi Leonard, Terry Rozier?
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- ASK IRA: Are Heat victims of NBA order of operations with Kawhi Leonard, Terry Rozier?
Q: Hey Ira, any chance the NBA commissioner would funnel one of those Clippers' first-round picks to the Heat to right a wrong done by the league? – David, Venice.
A: None. It's almost an NBA sort of double-jeopardy, with it case closed once the Heat took last June's second-round pick from the Hornets to wrap up the Terry Rozier gambling-investigation issue. Should the Heat have held out for more? Perhaps, if they knew the NBA was capable of clawing back five first-round picks elsewhere with the Kawhi Leonard cap-circumvention issue. A case could be made that the Heat should have pushed harder. And if the order of operations were reversed, with the Clippers' issue being adjudicated first, perhaps the Heat could have pushed for and received more. But the last thing the NBA wants at the moment is to be associated with the name Terry Rozier. Still, it would have been fun to see a nasty lawyer letter from the Heat like the one Clippers' ownership put out immediately after the ruling against Steve Ballmer & Co.
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Q: Ira, I am trying to better understand why the NBA treated the Kawhi Leonard situation so much differently than Terry Rozier. I know they are quite different, but Kawhi was the one putting the pressure on and they basically treat him with a one-game fine (based on the money lost) but hand down five first-round picks and suspension for the Clippers. They held up a trade of Kawhi. Terry is arrested for a gambling situation and the NBA knew way before the arrest. In real time, the NBA allows a trade to happen. Basically then they don't make the situation right. In one way, the NBA says they had to let the Raptors know what was going on, but on the other say we didn't have to let Heat know? The Heat don't get their first-round pick back, but Kawhi is gonna play again and Terry might get banned from the NBA. I'm totally confused by all of this. They treated the team aspect in reverse in my opinion. They handed down a death sentence to the Clippers. – Kristopher, Oceanside, Calif.
A: Foremost, clearly the NBA's investigation of Terry Rozier was not nearly as thorough as the investigation of the Clippers. That's what media pressure can do. But at the time of holding up the Kawhi Leonard deal to the Raptors, the NBA already knew something was off with the Clippers' situation. They had insisted they had no such knowledge with the Rozier situation at the time of the Hornets trade. Basically, a blind eye toward gambling, but don't mess with our salary cap. The irony, of course, is the NBA now has five extra first-round picks available at its disposal.
Q: The Heat's backcourt is clearly not championship caliber. They must know that. Do you see this getting addressed prior to the start of the season? – Brian.
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A: With Klay Thompson and Tim Hardaway Jr., the Heat clearly prioritized their backcourt with their remaining resources after the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade. You can only do so much in a single offseason. So for now, figure on a wait-and-see approach, knowing there remains the possibility of putting the Bobby Portis and Nikola Jovic salaries into a trade at some point should a significant backcourt upgrade come available.
