The Miami Heat had a massive offseason grab. Bringing in Kyle Lowry, P.J. Tucker, and Markieff Morris, and all while bringing back Duncan Robinson, Victor Oladipo, and Dewayne Dedmon… while also keeping Tyler Herro to boot… they won!
That’s pretty much all that needs to be said there. On the heels of that though, the NBA Community was in an uproar (looking at you… you sour Bucks fans).
How was the deal done so quickly?
Announced a day before legally able to be by NBA scoop-master, Adrian Wojnarowski, it was, practically, a done deal at that point. Well, the NBA and NBA decision-makers had to save face.
Listen, it’s Pat Riley that’s being discussed here, so you better believe he crossed all of his T’s and dotted all of his I’s, but the league has to investigate. So shall it be, the Heat are being investigated for tampering.
Or… are they? According to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, it isn’t technically tampering, but “gun jumping”.
To clarify: Heat not being investigated for "tampering" but for "gun jumping," over timing of Lowry move. Been told process almost assuredly will not "unwind" the acquisition, but could involve draft pick, fines, sanctions. Expectation of process, "a couple of weeks, at least."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) August 8, 2021
Either way it stands, the Miami Heat did something they, apparently, weren’t supposed to. While it isn’t being called “tampering” here, it amounts to as much.