Long-range plans
Heat sign 3-point shooter Wayne Ellington.
LAS VEGAS — Wayne Ellington will continue to dial from long distance with the Miami Heat, with the veteran guard reaching an agreement with the team Thursday in NBA free agency, the Sun Sentinel has confirmed.
Ellington agreed to a one-year, $6.3 million contract, matching his salary from this past season. Because of the one-year term of the deal and Ellington’s status as a Bird Rights free agent next summer, his contract comes with a no-trade clause, requiring his permission for a move during the 2018-19 season.
Ellington, 30, is coming off a season when he converted a franchise-record 227 3-pointers, averaging a career-high 11.2 points per game. Ellington closed sixth in the NBA in 3-pointers made, an NBA record for 3-pointers scored as a reserve.
The Heat’s situation with Ellington was complicated by the fact that shooting guards Dion Waiters, Tyler Johnson, Josh Richardson, Rodney McGruder and Derrick Jones Jr. all return, with Dwyane Wade potentially again added to the mix if he opts to put off retirement.
The Heat’s remaining free agents are Wade, Udonis Haslem, Luke Babbitt, Jordan Mickey and Derrick Walton Jr., with the Ellington agreement making it highly unlikely that Walton returns.
Heat President Pat Riley said after last
month’s NBA Draft that Ellington would be a priority in free agency, following up on that vow later in free agency than some expected.
“The guy’s had a great, great two years with us,” he said. “There’s no doubt that we want to keep him. We’re going to try to find a way to do that. But we’re up against the tax. I think it you add up the numbers, you know what that means. But we’re going to do everything we can do to try to keep him.”
Ellington has been a regular at the Heat’s training facility since the team’s first-round playoff elimination at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers.
“He’s here every day, working out, making threes,” Riley said. “I have a video screen in my office, so I can watch him every day. He’s still putting the same kind of work in now that he did last year. So, that is something we’re going to have to be very creative with.”
Ellington said closing with the franchise singleseason record for 3-pointers was particularly meaningful in a season that also saw him return to participate in the NBA playoffs in his hometown.
“I’m just so appreciative to be able to get that record,” he said. “Obviously, in this great organization, to be at the top of the list in any statistical category is an unbelievable accomplishment. I’m just grateful, humbled and appreciative.”
The Heat now have 12 players under contract for next season. NBA teams are allowed to carry up to 20 players during the offseason, with rosters limited to 15 players, plus as many as two additional players on two-way contracts, during the regular season.