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Miami Heat sign Michael Beasley

While a growing number of teams have felt that Michael Beasley’s on and off-court decisions aren’t what they’re looking for, the defending NBA champions apparently feel differently.

The Miami Heat announced today that they have signed Beasley. According to Yahoo Sports, it’s just a training camp contract, and Beasley must still compete to make the roster to earn his one-year, minimum contract deal of $1 million.

“Michael had the best years of his career with us,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “We feel that he can help us.”

According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, “Beasley becomes the 17th player on the Heat’s training-camp roster, one of four invited to camp without guaranteed contracts. Teams may carry between 13 and 15 players during the regular season, but up to 20 in training camp. While Beasley will receive the five-year veteran minimum of $1,027,424, the Heat’s actual salary-cap hit will be only $788,872, under the NBA’s minimum-salary policy. In addition, Beasley is still collecting on the final two seasons of his bought-out Suns contract.”

According to the Miami Herald, “Beasley agreed to a one-year, nonguaranteed deal with Miami after recently being released by the Phoenix Suns. He was arrested for possession of marijuana in Scottsdale, Ariz., in August. Beasley, now 24 years old, has been linked to marijuana at every stop in his NBA career and his colorful history with the Heat is well documented. But at such a bargain, the team decided giving the inconsistent forward one more shot couldn’t hurt. With the league’s highly punitive luxury-tax system kicking in after this season, the Heat has gone with reclamation projects to fill out its roster and add depth.”

Beasley, a five-year NBA veteran, has appeared in 354 NBA games (197 starts) and averaged 14.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 26.4 minutes while shooting 44.7 percent from the field. Last season, he averaged 10.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 20.7 minutes of action while shooting 40.5 percent from the field with the Phoenix Suns.

Beasley, who was originally drafted by Miami in the first round (2nd overall) in the 2008 NBA Draft, appeared in 159 games (97 starts) with the HEAT and averaged 14.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 27.3 minutes while shooting 46.1 percent from the field. In his two seasons in Miami, Beasley helped guide the HEAT to two consecutive postseason berths, appearing in 12 playoff games (four starts) and averaging 11.4 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 40.9 percent from the field.

Miami Heat sign Eric Griffin and Justin Hamilton

The Miami Heat announced today that they have signed forward Eric Griffin and center Justin Hamilton. We assume these are non-guaranteed deals for training camp, and neither player is assured of making the regular season Heat roster just yet.

Griffin appeared in 10 games (seven starts) for the Heat’s 2013 Summer League team and averaged 6.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.25 steals and 19.0 minutes while shooting 57.4 percent from the field. He appeared in 28 games with Fileni BPA Jesi of the Italian Lega2 last season and averaged 17.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.82 steals, 1.29 blocks, 1.2 assists and 32.0 minutes while shooting 55.6 percent from the field. The Campbell University product finished with the school’s highest career field goal percentage (.559) and ranks third on the school’s all-time blocks list with 134 rejections.

Hamilton, who was drafted in the second round (45th overall) by Philadelphia in the 2012 NBA Draft, was acquired by the Heat on draft night, along with a future first round draft pick, in exchange for Arnett Moultrie (27th overall). He split last season with VEF Riga (Latvia) of the VTB United League and Cibona (Croatia) of the Adriatic League appearing in 30 total games and averaging 10.5 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 60.2 percent from the field. Additionally, Hamilton appeared in three 2012 Summer League games with the Heat totaling 27 points and 12 rebounds in 56:43 minutes of action while shooting 8-of-17 from the field and a perfect 11-of-11 from the foul line.

Shane Battier not declaring a retirement date just yet

Shane Battier isn’t sure he’s the retiring type, but considering the Miami Heat forward turned 35 Monday, he appreciates the end could be near.

Last week during a Twitter question-and-answer session, Battier was asked about his inspiration for a potential third consecutive championship. He replied, “Go out on top, if this is it.”

Monday, before a motivational appearance with the students at St. Mark’s Episcopal School, he said with his three-year contract expiring at season’s end, it only makes sense to take stock.

“I’m realistic to where I am at this point in my life,” he said, after playing most of last season as a reserve and seeing limited action for an extended stretch of the playoffs. “I’d like to finish my contract strong with the Miami Heat, and then we’ll see where we go.”

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel

Miami Heat have workouts in the coming days

The Sun Sentinel confirmed Monday through league sources that among those who will work out in coming days for the Heat are free-agent guard Julyan Stone, who played last season for the Denver Nuggets; Vander Blue, a guard out of Marquette who went undrafted this past June; swingman Yakhouba Diawara, a journeyman forward out of France who spent the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons with the Heat; and point guard Larry Drew II, who went undrafted out of UCLA and was sidelined by injury after being scheduled to play for the Heat in summer league.

In addition to the 13 players under guaranteed contract, the Heat now have three players attending camp on non-guaranteed contracts

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel

Justin Hamilton hoping to make Miami Heat

While the Miami Heat’s 2013 second-round acquisition is preparing to spend the coming season in Australia, a 2012 Heat second-round acquisition has moved a step closer to training camp.

Justin Hamilton, the center out of LSU acquired in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft, posted Sunday on Twitter that he finally has been cleared to return from the hamstring issue that kept him out of the Heat’s two summer-league appearances.

Hamilton, an outside-shooting 7-footer who had an uneven run in Europe last season, has been working out at AmericanAirlines Arena almost the entire offseason, but had been limited to non-contact work. He then posted Sunday on his Twitter account, “Fully cleared! Going to be a big week to improve!!”

The Heat typically run a variety of prospects through drills in advance of camp, which opens Oct. 1 at AmericanAirlines Arena. Heat 2013 second-round acquisition James Ennis, the swingman out of Long Beach State who participated with the Heat’s summer league teams in Orlando and Las Vegas, has since signed with the Perth Wildcats, although he has an opt-out to return to the Heat if summoned.

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel

LeBron James hits a Dallas Cowboys game

Miami Heat forward LeBron James made his appointed rounds Sunday at AT&T Stadium, including a visit with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

“Me and The Boss!! #OneOfTheGreatestOwnersOfAllTime #GoCowboys,” James posted with Instagram photo he posted of himself and Jones.

With Dwyane Wade’s Chicago Bears winning earlier in the day, the stakes were high for LeBron.

Jones announced last week that James would be among his guests for the Cowboys’ season opener against the New York Giants.

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

LeBron James to produce scripted comedy on Starz network

Having produced two NBA championships with the Miami Heat, the next step for LeBron James will be producing scripted television comedy.

The Starz cable network announced Tuesday that the Heat forward along with Tom Werner, Mike O’Malley, Maverick Carter and Paul Wachter will develop a half-hour scripted comedy series, Survivor’s Remorse, for Starz, with James serving as an executive producer.

Mike O’Malley will serve as executive producer and writer. He previously worked as consulting producer and writer on Shameless and as an actor in Glee, Justified and My Name is Earl.

To James, who is not scheduled to appear in the series, it expands a presence that already has moved beyond the confines of the court.

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Heat D-League team to offer tryouts in Miami

Walk into AmericanAirlines Arena and try out for the Miami Heat? That’s not going to happen. Try out for the Heat’s D-League affiliate? You only need apply.

The Sioux Falls (S.D.) Skyforce, whose basketball operations were purchased by the Heat earlier this year, have announced open tryouts in both Sioux Falls and South Florida.

Per the release issued by the Skyforce:

“The Sioux Falls Skyforce, the exclusive NBA Development League affiliate of the back-to-back NBA Champion Miami Heat, announced today that the team will hold open tryouts for the 2013-14 season in Sioux Falls on Saturday, Sept. 21 and Miami on Saturday, Oct. 12.

“Open tryouts offer players an opportunity to showcase their talents in front of Skyforce coaches and Heat personnel while they compete to earn an invite to the NBA D-League team’s training camp in November.

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra addresses the Seattle Seahawks

Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra clearly has the football bug. He apparently also carries a message that resonates beyond basketball.

Three weeks after attending practice and then addressing the University of Tennessee football team in Knoxville as a favor to friend and Volunteers coach Butch Jones, Spoelstra was in Renton, Wash., on Tuesday, addressing the Seattle Seahawks.

“Just having him here in front of the team and just having him in meetings with us and having him out here in practice is an unbelievable experience for everybody,” quarterback Russell Wilson said after Tuesday’s practice. “For him to be able to talk about how his basketball team was successful and the way that they went about their business in terms of sacrificing . . . just that whole idea of sacrificing everything, the players, LeBron [James] coming to Miami, and Dwyane Wade sacrificing all that, all that type of sacrifice that it takes to be great and to be great so often, is kind of what he talked about for the most part. And having that discipline, as well, too, is something that he talked about, and just working hard, continuing to work hard, continuing to believe in yourselves and ignore the noise.

“That’s the main message he gave. And it clicked right with us.”

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Police officer who escorted LeBron James to concert violated policy

En-route to Friday’s Justin Timberlake and Jay Z concert, Miami Heat superstar LeBron James was given a police escort to navigate the bumper-to-bumper traffic into Sun Life Stadium.

A grateful James posted the clip of the good deed on his Instagram account with the caption: “They treat us so well! Needed it cause traffic was nuts!!” James has a little under 3.5 million Instagram followers.

“Light police escort on the wrong side of the street,” James said. “Headed to the big homie concert, JT. Holla.”

On Monday, Miami-Dade police said the officer who gave James and his fiancée the wrong-way escort into the stadium “violated departmental policies.”

Reported by the Miami Herald staff