The Heat have declined overtures from point guard Troy Hudson, a proven scorer.

Hudson was a longtime member of the Wolves before his contract was bought out.

Gary Payton, unhappy how last season ended, decided he wants to play another season, his agent said.

Payton reportedly thought he likely would return to the Heat before Pat Riley said otherwise publicly last week.

A talent evaluator who watched Heat first-rounder Daequan Cook in summer league said he must improve his defense, footwork and balance on his shot and doubts he'll contribute a lot as a rookie.

But Pat Riley said Cook has made ''great strides this summer. Whether or not he cracks the rotation will be up to him.''

Cook, incidentally, likens his game to Boston's Ray Allen and said there's no reason he can't be as good.

The Heat tried again last week to put together a sign-and-trade for Golden State restricted free agent small forward Mickael Pietrus, and the Warriors declined.

Miami's efforts to acquire Pietrus are ongoing.

The lure of Jason Kidd is a strong reason the Nets could land one of the more attractive remaining free agents, small forward James Posey.

"We've been talking and talking for a while," Posey's agent, Mark Bartelstein, confirmed yesterday. "And while it's hard to get into specifics, yes, the Nets are in the running. I would think there will be a decision soon."

Bartelstein was hoping for a decision last night, but said it might go into the weekend before Posey makes his choice.

Though attracted to playing with Kidd, Posey, 6-foot-8, 30 years old, who spent his last two seasons in Miami, is considering offers from the Celtics and Cavaliers. The Nets are at a financial disadvantage and have the biannual exception, $1.8 million, unless they can work a sign-and-trade with the Heat.

Boston has $3.6 million of its mid-level exception remaining.

The Miami Heat announced today that they have signed free agent forward Alexander Johnson. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Johnson appeared in 59 games (19 starts) as a rookie with the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2006-07 season, averaging 4.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 0.59 blocks and 12.8 minutes per game while shooting .538 from the field which tied Pau Gasol for the team lead. Johnson led the team in blocks on nine occasions, steals six times, rebounds four times and points once.

Johnson was originally drafted by the Indiana Pacers with the 45th pick in the 2006 NBA Draft. His rights were then traded to the Portland Trail Blazers along with two future second-round picks in exchange for the draft rights to James White. His draft rights were then traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. Prior to that, he spent three seasons playing at Florida State University where he finished 14th on the Seminoles all-time career blocks list with 66.

Pat Riley is now downplaying the possibility of getting Ron Artest; at the same time the interest is obviously there. He has called Sacramento to inquire.

Just Thursday, Riley told Miami Herald radio partner 790 The Ticket when asked a hypothetical obviously about Artest: ``I leave things in the past. I've been able to manage players with tough backgrounds who might be thought of as disciplinary problems. I'll look at any situation.''

Former Florida State power forward Alexander Johnson, who played for the Memphis Grizzlies last season, has agreed to join the Heat and will sign a contract today, Miami-based agent Jason Levien said.

The Heat has been searching for depth at power forward behind Udonis Haslem because Antoine Walker will be needed to play a lot at small forward this season and Wayne Simien is recovering from knee surgery.

Johnson, 6-9, is expected to sign a two-year, $1.5 million contract, with the second year at the Heat's option.

Gary Payton is not expected back with Miami next season, Heat coach Pat Riley said Thursday.

Payton averaged 6.6 points in two seasons with Miami, and helped the Heat win the 2006 NBA title. Payton said several times last year that he's considering retirement, but the nine-time All-Star hasn't declared whether he's officially ruled out what would be an 18th pro season.

Pat Riley called ex-Heat power forward P.J. Brown to try to convince him to join the team. Agent Mark Bartelstein said the Heat's a strong contender for Brown if he decides not to retire.