When the Miami Heat signed Nick Richards a few weeks ago, the belief was that he was a frontcourt addition that would give the team some added depth for the marathon of the regular season. And while that may still indeed be the case, that's not official until opening night.
That's because Richards' deal with the Heat doesn't become guaranteed unless he's on the team's opening-night roster. Between now and then, Miami could cut him without any financial penalty. What does that mean?
In short, the Heat have a very big decision to make on Richards' future. In the next few days, the Heat will have to decide one way or another on Richards.
Nick Richards may be a safe bet - for now
Unless there's another big man free-agent out there that the Heat believe could contribute on night one, or if there's a sudden change in the Heat's confidence in Vlad Goldin being ready to be on the the official roster, I'd predict that Richards will get his contract guaranteed.
After all, the Heat are going to need another big opposite of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo, and Bobby Portis. In the event of one injury or a few load-management days off, the Heat would find themselves with an exceptionally thin frontcourt.
I can't envision the team heading into the start of the season with such limited options. So even though Richards hasn't exactly broken the boundaries of possibilities during his preseason run, he's also done enough to warrant a guaranteed roster spot.
I predict the Heat will make that official once the opening-night rosters are submitted next week.
Even in a limited role, the Heat may need Nick Richards
Again, the Heat don't necessarily need Richards to average a double-double or even to be an everyday contributor. I don't even think that was the intention when he was signed.
The Heat need Richards to be available when they need him. And when they do call on him, they need him to do what he does best. Rebound.
For the most part, that's exactly what Richards has done. In very limited minutes. In the one game that he did see "extended" playing time (25 minutes), he finished with seven points and 10 rebounds.
Honestly, that's exactly what the Heat need from a fourth or fifth big; that's exactly what Richards would be on this roster. So unless something suddenly changes between now and opening night (less than a week away), expect Richards to earn his guaranteed roster spot.
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