Richardson’s here to stay — for a lot of reasons
MIAMI — Josh Richardson is not only playing like someone the Miami Heat were smart not to let get away, in one respect he really can’t get away.
Because of the contract extension Richardson signed in the offseason, he falls under an arcane NBA rule that prevents him from being traded for six months from that September agreement, which carries him past the Feb. 8 trading deadline.
Then again, at $42 million over four years starting next season, he also sets up as quite the bargain going forward, especially in light of efforts such as Monday’s 21 points in the victory over the Atlanta Hawks.
Still earning just $1.5 million this season on the contract he signed as a second-round pick at No. 40 out of Tennessee in 2015, Richardson said there never has been second thought about trading potential future riches for security now.
“Because I knew where I wanted to be at,” he said of bypassing next summer’s free agency. “I know I wanted to come back here and go back to war with my brothers. I grew to love these guys last season, so it’s hard to just up and leave ’em. I’m a very loyal person. So when it comes to that, I definitely weighed my options, I definitely thought about it.
“But let’s be real, $42 million is a lot of money. So I can live on that forever. I don’t really worry about what everybody else is doing. I don’t like comparing myself to other people. So when they came to it, it was kind of like a no-brainer.”
At the time of the agreement, nothing was definitive when it came to a starting role. Then Rodney McGruder was lost to leg surgery and Justise Winslow developed more comfort with the second unit. So Josh Richardson, reserve shooting guard and part-time backup point guard, became a starting small forward.
As it is, at $9.4 million next season, Richardson currently stands seventh on the Heat’s 2018-19 salary scale, behind Hassan Whiteside, Tyler Johnson, Goran Dragic, James Johnson, Dion Waiters and Kelly Olynyk, with those first three to earn twice as much as Richardson next season.
Richardson said getting the cash in hand had nothing to do with doubts about his potential free-agent value.
“I’m very confident. I think I’m a great player. I think I’m better than a lot of people. But I don’t really worry about it,” he said.
“The number they gave, I was good with it. If it was lower and I wasn’t good with it, then I definitely wouldn’t have signed it. So I’m just excited to be back.
“And it gives peace of mind, going forward that the team wants me here. That the organization wants me here.”
The benefit for the Heat has been peace of mind at small forward, with McGruder expected to miss months, if not the full season, on a roster considerably thin at the position.
With Richardson in place of McGruder, the Heat are realizing the same type of undersized scrappiness at small forward, with the bonus of greater scoring — plus a touch of nostalgia, with Richardson’s chase-down blocked shots rekindling Dwyane Wadelike memories in at least one respect.
“Those are the type of plays at the rim that we had a former two-guard here make, those kinds of blocks,” coach Erik Spoelstra said, as the Heat turned their attention to Wednesday’s nationally televised game against the San Antonio Spurs at AmericanAirlines Arena. “There’s just not that many twos in the league that can make those kinds of plays, then guard one through four. He’ll continue to build his confidence in so many different facets.”
Richardson said it is comforting to have the financial security in a place he wants to play, for a coach who offers such plaudits.
“It is just cool to know he shows that much faith in me and sees that in me,” he said of Spoelstra said.
“I just want to live up to my potential. The biggest thing is I don’t want to retire with any regrets.”
i win der man@ sun sentinel .com, Twitter @iraheatbeat or facebook.com/ ira.winderman