One particular piece of bookkeeping during the offseason for the Miami Heat has dealt with the possibility of extending a contract extension offer to Justise Winslow.
While that’s yet to occur, it remains a topic of conversation for the Heat front office, since getting Winslow signed in that fashion will avoid the prospect of him becoming a restricted free agent next July.
There’s no guarantee that any offer will even come from the Heat, but if it does, it has to be presented by Oct. 15, or else Winslow will enter next year’s free agent market. His restricted status means that the Heat would be able to match any offer from another team. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald presented the situation facing the Heat:
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“One opposing NBA general manager said he could see Winslow next summer receiving offers starting at $9 million per year.”
For the upcoming campaign, Winslow is scheduled to make $3.4 million during his fourth season in the NBA. All three of his previous years have been as a member of the Heat, averaging 7.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists last season. While those numbers don’t stand out, Winslow managed to improve his long-range shooting by connecting on 38 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc and remains an excellent defensive player who has the versatility to play at both forward and guard.
Heat president Pat Riley offered a positive update last week about that possible extension:
“Well, it’s heading in the right direction, but I think there’s some timing issues there. I think issues during the regular season, but we’re committed to Justise. He’s committed to us. We have until October the 15th to make that decision, but we’ve been in constant communication with his agent and with Justise.”
While no offers have been publicly noted, one frame of reference might be Josh Richardson‘s four-year, $42 million contract that was announced last Sept. 13 after roughly a month of negotiations.
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