Miami Heat: What you need to know about the Heat free agency so far

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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – APRIL 5: Hassan Whiteside #21 of the Miami Heat dunks the ball against the Minnesota Timberwolves on April 5, 2019 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Hassan Whiteside traded for Moe Harkless and Meyers Leonard

It didn’t take long for Hassan Whiteside to get the trade he wanted. After getting jerked around in the rotation in the late stages of last season, Whiteside clearly and understandably wanted out, and the Miami Heat were happy to oblige.

The Heat were able to complete this deal (as it stands so far) without sending out any draft picks or additional players, meaning it was a clean and easy trade of Whiteside to the Portland Trail Blazers for Moe Harkless and Meyers Leonard.

With Whiteside’s outgoing $27.1 million expiring salary, Harkless and Leonard’s salaries combine to about $22.3 million, which means the Heat actually come out of this deal saving about $4.8 million.

The Miami Heat will sacrifice no future flexibility as a direct result of this trade either, as both contracts expire next season, leaving them with the same salary outlook they had before the trade took place.

Harkless and Leonard are both useful rotation pieces, so they should expect to get regular minutes, perhaps even starting minutes depending on how the rest of this tumultuous free agency period goes for the Heat.

This deal also has implications for the Jimmy Butler trade, as we’ll discuss next.

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