Veteran power forward Juwan Howard has re-signed with the defending champion Miami Heat to a 10-day contract Saturday making this his 19th NBA season.
Heat president Pat Riley spoke on the decision to sign re-sign Howard:
"Juwan is a key part of the championship culture here in Miami," Riley said Saturday in a statement released by the Heat. "He is essential to this team and can still play this game at a high level in some of our biggest games yet to come. He has a unique veteran savvy and will provide leadership and experience to our team."
The Heat created a roster spot at the trade deadline, sending Dexter Pittman to the Memphis Grizzlies for a trade exception.
Howard had been a respected leader on the Heat and was popular with teammates, coaches and management. He played sparingly in three Miami playoff victories on the way to his first championship ring in 2012.
Howard has played in 1,201 career games, including 85 over the past two seasons with Miami, which originally signed him in July 2010. Heat players like Dwyane Wade and LeBron James both consistently raved about Howard's leadership role in the locker room during his stint with the team, and Howard has been seen at several Miami games this season.
According to STATS LLC, the signing of Howard means Miami has four of the NBA's top 19 active scoring leaders, the others being Ray Allen (No. 5, 23,533 points), James (No. 8, 20, 562 points) and Wade (No. 19, 16,109 points). Howard, for now anyway, is No. 18 on that list, 29 points ahead of Wade.