Inside The Heat

The Miami Heat Have Tried To Trade Terry Rozier, To No Avail

Ethan J. Skolnick|
Mar 31, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) drives to the basket during the second quarter against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images
Mar 31, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) drives to the basket during the second quarter against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

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Miami Heat

The Miami Heat, from coaches to front office officials, were as mystified by Terry Rozier's decline as fans were last season.

Acquired around the 2024 NBA trade deadline for Kyle Lowry's expiring contract and a first-round pick, Rozier played passably before injuring his neck and missing the playoffs. But he played poorly from the start of the 2024-25 season, leading to his exit from the starting lineup and eventually, finally -- after coach Erik Spoelstra kept playing him on the hope it would turn around -- out of the rotation altogether.

So, according to sources for the Five on the Floor podcast (part of the Five Reasons Sports Network, the Heat have been actively shopping the expiring final year of Rozier's contract (worth $24-26 million depending on incentives) for just about anything, but specifically frontcourt help.

They have found no takers. Other teams saw Rozier's dramatic decline as well: including a lot of overdribbling into bad shots.

The Heat coaches had no issue with Rozier's work ethic or team commitment, but no one seems to be expecting a turnaround. And now there are more issues. The Heat have a very crowded guard room, which leaves little space for Rozier to rehabilitate his value with playing time.

Also, while Rozier was cleared by the NBA for any role in a fantasy sports and gambling scandal tied to his tenure with Charlotte, prior to joining the Heat, the FBI launched its own investigation. There is no timetable on when that investigation will conclude. Until it does, one league insider told Five Reasons Sports that Rozier is considered "toxic" in a trade.

Perhaps this will change closer to the February trade deadline, if a team is desperate enough to use Rozier's expiring money to clear cap space. But at the moment, it appears likely that Rozier will be with the Heat in training camp at FAU in October, a former hope for offensive creation now reduced to a bystander waiting for his next real place to play.

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Ethan J. Skolnick
ETHAN J. SKOLNICK

Ethan has covered all major sports -- in South Florida and beyond -- since 1996 and is one of the longest-tenured fully credentialed members of the Miami Heat. He has covered, in total, more than 30 NBA Finals, Super Bowls, World Series and Stanley Cup Finals. After working full-time for the Miami Herald, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, Bleacher Report and several other outlets, he founded the Five Reasons Sports Network in 2019 and began hosting the Five on the Floor podcast as part of that network. The podcast is regularly among the most downloaded one-team focused NBA podcasts in the nation, and the network is the largest independent sports outlet in South Florida, by views, listens and social media reach. He has a B.A. from The Johns Hopkins University and an M.S. from Columbia University. TWITTER: @EthanJSkolnick and @5ReasonsSports EMAIL: fllscribe@gmail.com

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