During a recent episode of his podcast, NBA journeyman J.J. Redick took a subtle jab at New Orleans Pelicans executive David Griffin.
Redick insinuated that Griffin was responsible for the NBA launching an investigation into the Miami Heat’s deal with the Toronto Raptors for Kyle Lowry.
“It’s a little bit for show probably, I guess,” Redick said. “I don’t know. I think you would probably have to ask the guy who’s asking for the investigation. Some teams cleared a ton of cap space to get Kyle, and it didn’t happen. And then Lonzo [Ball] leaving so you have to ask that guy, that guy complaining.”
The investigation was launched over possible tampering violations. Tampering has always been a gray area in the NBA. It seems that almost all teams engage in discussions with players before those conversations are technically allowed to start.
Typically, the league looks the other way in these situations. This time around, something provoked the NBA to look into Miami’s deal with Toronto. An investigation was also opened into the sign-and-trade deal that sent Ball to the Chicago Bulls from the Pelicans.
It was recently reported that there is virtually no chance that either deal will be voided.
That’s a good thing for the Heat, as they’re getting a star player in Lowry. In the 2020-21 season, he averaged 17.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game. He is a solid scoring option as well as a great distributor.
Miami is hoping to make a title run in the 2021-22 season.
