In an appearance on the STUpodity podcast, Shams Charania of The Athletic said that the Miami Heat never aggressively pursued Kevin Durant. Miami last spoke with the Brooklyn Nets about a trade before or during Summer League in mid-July.

The Heat were aware that to acquire Durant, they would have had to gut their roster. As Miami was the top seed in the Eastern Conference and made it to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, they didn't see a need to drastically alter their roster to add Durant.

The Heat would have had to trade several players to match salary in a trade for the Nets superstar. That would have left the team with little depth behind several veterans with lengthy injury histories.

Miami, along with the Phoenix Suns, were the teams Durant reportedly wanted to be traded to. The Suns ability to complete a trade waned after Deandre Ayton signed an offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers. That meant Ayton could no longer be used as a trade chip in talks for Durant.

Donovan Mitchell hasn't requested a trade from the Utah Jazz as the team itself has made the decision to put him on the block, but he has a trio of teams he would prefer to join should a deal be consummated.

Mitchell has the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat on his list. Mitchell cannot be traded to either the Nets or Heat without Ben Simmons or Bam Adebayo being sent outgoing in a deal due to the rookie max extension provision.

The Knicks are widely considered the frontrunners to trade for Mitchell, but the Jazz have been waiting for them to improve their offer.

The Jazz are seeking a collection of young players and future picks in return for Mitchell. Utah also reportedly is comfortable entering the season with Mitchell on the roster even as they have stripped down the roster around him.

Pat Riley announced on Tuesday that the Miami Heat will retire Udonis Haslem's jersey.

“From the first day that I saw him compete, to the last day when we retire his jersey at our FTX home, UD will go down in our team’s history as one of the best to ever play for the Miami HEAT,” said Riley.

The 42-year-old Haslem officially resigned with the Heat on a one year, $2.9 million deal.

Next season will represent Haslem's 20th year in the NBA.

Udonis Haslem announced at his youth basketball camp that he'll be returning for a 20th NBA season. All 20 seasons for Haslem will have been played with the Miami Heat. He'll join Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki as the only players to play at least 20 seasons with only one franchise.

For the last several seasons, Haslem has had more of an impact on the Heat locker room than on the floor. Haslem has played in just 58 games over the last six seasons.

Despite his limited on-court impact, the Miami said they would hold a roster spot open until Haslem made a decision about the upcoming season.

Haslem is a Miami institution. Outside of playing one year as a professional in France, Haslem's entire basketball career has spent in the state of Florida. He spent four years at the University of Florida, following his time as a standout at Miami Senior High.

Haslem returned to Miami and joined the Heat for the 2003-04 season. He was a starter on the 2006 title team. Haslem was then a rotation regular, and often starter, on the Heat's back-to-back championship teams in 2012 and 2013.

Udonis Haslem will announce whether he will return to the Miami Heat for a 20th season or retire this coming Sunday from his basketball and cheer camp at Miami High School. Haslem attended Miami Hight School before attending Florida.

The Heat have reserved a spot for Haslem on their roster, which would put them right below the luxury tax.

Haslem last played meaningful minutes during the 14-15 season. Since 16-17, Haslem has appeared in 16, 14, 10, 4, 1 and 13 games.

Tyler Herro became eligible for a contract extension with the Miami Heat this offseason, but there have been more rumors of a trade than a new contract.

“I mean, every summer, that’s just what it is,” Herro said. “I mean ever since I’ve been here, my name has been in rumors. So rumors, they don’t bother me. Whether I’m on the Heat or somewhere else, I’m getting ready for the season.”

Herro will earn $5.7 million this upcoming season in the final year of his rookie deal, is eligible this offseason to sign a contract extension worth as much as $188 million over five seasons with a first-year salary (2023-24) of $32.5 million.

“I mean, I know as much as you know,” Herro said when asked where negotiations stand surrounding a potential extension with the Heat. “I’m just waiting on my turn and we’ll see what happens. There’s a deadline, but I’m going to let my agent take care of that and see what happens.”

The Miami Heat announced today that Ruth Hunter has been named Senior Director of Team Development. In her new role, she will be involved with Player Programs, Analytics and Basketball Operations and report to Senior Vice President, Basketball Operations/General Manager Andy Elisburg.

“Ruth Hunter has been part of the Heat family since the early 2000s when she played with the Miami SOL,” said Heat President Pat Riley. “The knowledge she has accumulated over the years, most notably having worked in the San Antonio front office, makes this one of the most significant hires we’ve made in a long time. We’re extremely happy to welcome her to Basketball Operations full-time and her new role in basketball development.”

Hunter, an Olympic Gold Medalist, two-time WNBA Champion, WNBA Finals MVP, NCAA Champion, Sports Business Leader, Global Humanitarian and a 2019 Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, recently served as Broadcast Analyst & Basketball Analytics/Player Programs Manager. She also spent the previous four seasons as the team’s radio analyst on all home games as well as a television studio analyst for all home and road games. Since being drafted by the Miami SOL after graduating from Notre Dame Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Psychology in 2001, she has garnered a wealth of experience and basketball knowledge including a 13-year playing career in the WNBA as well as serving as General Manager of the WNBA’s San Antonio Stars, First Vice President of the WNBA Player’s Association, an NBA/WNBA Ambassador and Global Director of the NBA Academy’s Women’s Program.

“During the last four seasons, Ruth rapidly developed into an invaluable and respected member of the broadcast team,” said Vice President & Executive Director of Heat Broadcasting Ted Ballard. “Her exceptional versatility, insightful perspective and unmatched dedication were exceeded only by the unquestioned quality of her character, which was on all levels inspiring. It remains a great honor and pleasure to call Ruth a colleague and friend, and we are thrilled that she will continue to be an impactful presence in this organization. Together with our broadcast partners, we will now embark on the process of evaluating and considering candidates to replace the roles Ruth filled so exceptionally.”

Udonis Haslem remains undecided on whether he will continue his playing career this coming season.

“I don’t know,” Haslem said after completing a presentation on behalf of his foundation. “We’re thinking about it. But either way, I’m always going to be a part of the Heat family. I ain’t going nowhere, whether I play or not. I’m always going to impact that organization.”

The Heat have kept a roster spot open for Haslem should he want it.

Last year, Haslem announced his return for a 19th season on Aug. 15.

Haslem is expected to become only the third player to spend an entire career of at least 20 seasons with one franchise, joining retired Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (21 seasons) and late Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (20 seasons). 

Haslem’s role largely has been one of mentor for the Heat in recent years. He appeared in 13 games last season, none during the Heat’s run within one game of the NBA Finals. 

Victor Oladipo was candid and emotional in his recent appearance on The VC Show with Vince Carter of ESPN. Oladipo expressed a high level of confidence in his ability as a player, even after several injury-plagued seasons.

When asked about pushing himself hard in offseason workouts, Oladipo said it's with proving one thing in mind.

“That I’m one of the best players in the world. Period,” Oladipo said. “I think that my injury has kind of built a misconception of who I am as a player.”

Oladipo said he believes he can get back to the All-NBA level he was at before getting hurt.

“Why can’t I come back from this injury and what I’ve been through and have an even greater career than I thought I could have prior to it? Why can’t I?” Oladipo said. “And I don’t see no reason why I can’t."

Oladipo said this is the first offseason in years where he's felt like himself and that he's been able to push himself while working out. That's fueling what he's calling his "Revenge Tour".

“I make sure people know that I’m coming for everybody,” the veteran guard said. “At the end of the day, it really don’t matter who it is. I just want to prove that I’m Victor Oladipo and I stand for who I am.”

The Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat remain the most significant candidates to complete a trade with the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant at this venue, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Boston's package centered on Jaylen Brown is seen as a viable deal.

Joe Tsai and the Nets have privately made clear they will attempt to extract every last asset from a team that trades for Durant.

Durant has grown close with Ime Udoka from their time together with Brooklyn as well as Team USA.