Miami Heat sign draft pick KZ Okpala, not first round pick Tyler Herro

The Miami Heat have signed second round pick KZ Okpala, but in order to maximize flexibility in case of a trade they have not signed first round draft pick Tyler Herro yet.

The Miami Heat announced on Sunday that they have signed second round draft pick KZ Okpala to a 3-year contract, starting at the NBA minimum salary of $898,000. They used a portion of their now-available mid-level exception for this contract, which they were able to utilize thanks to getting under the luxury tax apron after stretching and waiving Ryan Anderson‘s contract.

All three years of the deal are guaranteed which will allow the Heat to hold his full Bird Rights for the purposes of re-signing him at the end of the contract. The Heat currently have 13 players under contract for the 2019-20 season, and notably not among that number is Tyler Herro, their first round pick in this summer’s draft.

Herro has yet to be signed, almost certainly in order to keep him available for a potential trade, possibly for Russell Westbrook. Once signed, there is a 30-day period before a rookie can then be traded, so keeping him unsigned on an ongoing basis will give the Heat maximum trade flexibility in case such an opportunity presents itself.

It’s worth noting that thanks to Okpala’s signing of his deal, he cannot be traded for that same 30-day period, which means it’s fairly unlikely that the Heat are planning on including him in any such trade package.

Herro has been playing in the Las Vegas Summer League for the Miami Heat team, but Okpala has been held out thus far. Now that his contract has been signed, the Heat may try to work him into some game action before Summer League ends.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Herro immediately signed if Russell Westbrook is traded to another team, so keep an eye on our coverage at All U Can Heat as we break down the ongoing situation.