Lance Stephenson made headlines during the Eastern Conference Finals, not for his impressive play, but for his on-the-court antics. The Indiana Pacers shooting guard took time to blow in the ear of LeBron James as a distraction tactic. He got into a fight with Udonis Haslam and failed to impress stats wise. However, when he wants to be good, he is and as a free agent, the Miami Heat are taking notice.
According to Bleach Report's Ethan J. Skolnick, the Miami Heat have contacted Stephenson regarding his free agency status and could be interested in signing the guard. The issue is money. Right now, the Heat are approaching free agency like James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are all going to re-sign. That would leave them with around $12 million in cap space once they pay money to players like Norris Cole and newly drafted Shabazz Napier. That leaves them with little options to fill roster holes.
Stephenson is asking for a lot in free agency. He has already turned down a five-year, $44 million offer from the Indiana Pacers as their contract negotiations have stalled out according to the Indianapolis Star. The Miami Heat cannot afford those demands, so unless he is willing to take a pay cut in order to potentially win a championship, Stephenson is not headed to South Beach.
Finances ended the Heat's pursuit of Kyle Lowry. He opted to re-sign with the Toronto Raptors since the team could afford to pay him more. Could this become a trend? Miami would like to be an option for Pau Gasol. He has already received a call from Pat Riley. Trevor Ariza and Luol Deng are also options.
ESPN.com is reporting that Miami is trying to sell players on rings, not money. Their cap space is tight with the potential return of the Big Three, but joining up with them can guarantee wins. Miami will be in contention again, so players must consider that part in their free agency plans.
All signs point away from a Carmelo Anthony, James teamup. Multiple sources were reporting that Anthony and James had discussed teaming up in South Beach. The Heat would have had to pull off multiple roster moves to make it happen, but the long shot was possible. However, the Heat and Anthony have no meeting scheduled for free agency and it does not look like one is being made. That leaves the team looking at other options they hope will sign.
