With a spot on the Miami Heat’s roster reserved for forward Udonis Haslem, he has yet to make a final decision on whether he will return for a 20th NBA season or retire.
Haslem, who turned 42 on June 9, said Monday that he’s still thinking about his NBA future. The expectation has been that he will continue his playing career and sign a one-year deal at the NBA veteran minimum of $2.8 million to return to the Heat, but that’s not reality yet.
“I don’t know. We’re thinking about it,” Haslem said Monday afternoon from Nova Southeastern University, where he teamed up with FTX to award two South Florida minority-owned small businesses with $50,000 grants. “But either way, I’m always going to be a part of that Heat family. I ain’t going nowhere. Whether I play or not, I’m always going to impact that organization.
“Hopefully one day we talk about ownership and being in that situation where I continue to be somewhat of a leader, but more be a hybrid owner. An owner that gets out there and does more than just sit on the sideline, cross his legs and watch. I want to work. I want to continue to push the culture and continue to impact the next generation of winning for the Miami Heat.”
Monday marked the one-year anniversary of the Heat’s announcement that Haslem would return for a 19th season. Why is he taking longer to make a decision this summer?
“For me, there’s just a lot going on,” Haslem said. “I had a lot of things that I had to really, really think about. Twenty years was a conversation that I had with my father. But as he passed, we think about now and things change. He’s not here no more and goals change, my vision has changed a little bit. But it’s still something that I battled with because it’s something that we talked about and it’s something that we wanted to do in a specific way.”
Haslem told the Miami Herald in November that he has a goal of reaching the 20-season mark because of the historical aspect of it and it’s also a milestone his late father, Johnnie Haslem, wanted him to reach.
If Haslem does again choose to delay retirement, he would join a short list of players to appear in at least 20 NBA seasons that currently only includes Vince Carter, Robert Parish, Kevin Willis, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant and Jamal Crawford. LeBron James, who is on the Los Angeles Lakers’ roster, and Carmelo Anthony, who remains unsigned as a free agent, can also become part of that group next season.
In addition, Haslem would have the opportunity to become just the seventh player in NBA history to appear in a game after their 42nd birthday. Nat Hickey (final game at 45), Willis (final game at 44), Parish (final game at 43), Carter (final game at 43), Dikembe Mutombo (final game at 42) and Abdul-Jabbar (final game at 42) are the only players who have accomplished that rare feat.
“My dad told me that. That was part of his thought process,” Haslem said of the exclusive group he would enter if he returns for a 20th season. “I think with all the sacrifices and all the things I’ve done and the success, he wanted me to have that for myself. To be in that class, to be there, it’s something that he wanted for me. Because he hates the sacrifices. He hated me passing up money, he hated me passing up playing time, he hated it.
“That’s just what a father does. They want the best for their son, they want to see their son out there. So he wasn’t always happy with those things. So for me, he wanted me to have those 20 years. I go back and forth with myself about it. It’’s not a physical thing. I can still do it. It’s more mentally that my dad is not around, is it the same?”
The Miami native, who attended Miami High, has spent his entire NBA career with the Heat and currently holds the longest streak by any active player with only one team in the league.
Undrafted out of Florida in 2002, Haslem has played a role on each of the franchise’s three championship teams and is the Heat’s all-time leading rebounder. He’s the only undrafted player in NBA history to lead a franchise in total rebounds.
Haslem has appeared in 872 career regular-season games (500 starts), averaging 7.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 24.8 minutes while shooting 48.9 percent from the field and 75.6 percent from the foul line.
Along with holding the title of the Heat’s all-time leading rebounder, he’s also the team’s all-time leader in offensive and defensive rebounds and also ranks among Miami’s all-time leaders in games played (second), minutes (second) and field goals made (fifth). Haslem became the oldest player to appear in a game for the Heat in franchise history during the 2020-21 season.
But Haslem hasn’t played much in recent seasons. He has appeared in just 28 games since the start of the 2018-19 season and has not played in a playoff game since 2016, as he has moved into more of a leadership role while serving as the Heat’s captain in each of the last 15 seasons (the longest tenure in team history).
Haslem’s situation is unique and special.
Haslem is only the fifth player to spend an entire NBA career lasting at least 19 seasons with one team. That list also includes Nowitzki (21 seasons with Dallas Mavericks), Bryant (20 seasons with Los Angeles Lakers), John Stockton (19 seasons with Utah Jazz) and Tim Duncan (19 seasons with San Antonio Spurs), and Haslem is the only one to do it in his hometown.
The Heat’s roster for next season currently includes 13 players on standard NBA contracts: Jimmy Butler ($37.7 million), Bam Adebayo ($30.4 million), Kyle Lowry ($28.3 million), Duncan Robinson ($16.9 million), Victor Oladipo ($8.7 million), Caleb Martin ($6.5 million), Tyler Herro ($5.7 million), Dewayne Dedmon ($4.7 million), Nikola Jovic ($2.2 million), Max Strus ($1.8 million), Gabe Vincent ($1.8 million), Omer Yurtseven ($1.8 million) and Haywood Highsmith (partially guaranteed $1.8 million).
“I had lunch with Haywood Highsmith yesterday,” Haslem said Monday. “Me and Omer are actually supposed to get together today. So I keep in touch with these guys, man. I was in the [FTX Arena] gym maybe last week or the week before. I’m always tapping in and making sure I’m available for these guys if they need me.”
But Haslem didn’t commit to joining the Heat’s roster on Monday. Instead, he celebrated a big day for The Udonis Haslem Foundation by awarding $50,000 grants to two South Florida minority-owned small businesses in Lil Greenhouse Grill and Kazmaleje.
“I don’t have to watch the news or anything to understand what the people need,” Haslem said. “I’m there every day. I was just in Overtown the other day. So it’s easy for me to understand what the want is. It’s about just having the resources to do it and bridging the gap.”
LOWRY’S SITUATION
Asked about the impact that a private family matter had on Kyle Lowry last season, Haslem offered unique insight on Monday.
“My heart went out to Kyle when he was dealing with that situation,” Haslem said. “I checked in with him almost every day. I understand what it’s like. I was in a situation where we come from out of town, I land and I would go to the hospital and sit with my mom until 2 or 3 in the morning until the next day. So I understand it’s hard to be the best version of yourself for your teammates and for anybody when you’re affected in that shape, form and fashion. So my conversation with Kyle is: ‘This is just basketball. This is nothing. That’s real life and that’s what you should be focusing on.’”
The family matter, which has remained private, kept Lowry away from the Heat for nine consecutive games from Jan. 17 to Feb. 1 and another four games from Feb. 28 to March 5. Lowry said earlier this month that it’s an issue he’s still dealing with.
