The Miami Heat have made their first free agent signing that was not a part of their roster from last season in the form of former New York Knicks guard Alec Burks according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The deal is reportedly to last one year and is at the veteran minimum of $3.3 million per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
Burks brings the Heat backcourt depth to a room that already consists of stars Tyler Herro, who has been with the organization since he was drafted in the first round in 2019, and Terry Rozier as the team acquired him via trade last season. The 32-year old has been in the league for 13 seasons where last year, he started with the Detroit Pistons until he was bought out by the Knicks after the trade deadline.
While he averaged 12.6 points per game with the Pistons in the first half of the season, he had a more limited role with New York after, averaging 6.5 points though with all the injuries for them towards the end, he was utilized more. Burks is also coming off of a three-year, $30 million deal that he had with the Knicks but was then traded to the Pistons until the team decided to move into a different direction in their rebuild process.
This was the type of deal the Heat can only make in free agency since the team is under heavy limitations being close to the dreaded second apron. Besides Burks, Miami has also re-signed players such as Kevin Love and Thomas Bryant after both declined their player options before free agency opened last weekend.
Burks' contract with Heat helps them
The contract for Burks actually helps the Heat save over a million dollars as according to The Miami Herald, “Because he signed a one-year minimum contract, his cap hit is just $2.1 million despite his $3.3 million salary for next season because of NBA rules that lower the cap hit on most one-year minimum deals.” The same applied to Bryant's contract where he also got a minimum one-year contract to return to Miami where he spent one season.
Still, Burks does give the Heat a spark plug that can score at will as he was even an option for the Heat to get at the trade deadline last season since he was a buyout option. Depending on how other ventures go for the Heat where the rumor is there is mutual interest with free agent and Chicago Bulls star DeMar DeRozan, one of Rozier or Herro could be traded along with their sizable contract to free up space.
In any sense, Burks has seen every inch of the league since he was drafted with the 12th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz coming out of the University of Colorado. He now joins a team in the Heat known for utilizing their veterans in any way possible, plus the team will look to contend once again after making the NBA Finals in 2023.
However, Burks also joins a squad that finished at the eighth seed for the second straight season with a 46-36 record.
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