Marc Berman
| Special to The Post
The Florida Panthers celebrate their first-ever Stanley Cup
The Florida Panthers celebrated their first-ever Stanley Cup on Monday night, besting the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 on Sam Reinhart’s game-winner.
The Miami Heat went big in Wednesday’s NBA Draft, taking sophomore 7-foot center Kel’el Ware of the University of Indiana with the 15th pick.
ESPN guru Seth Greenberg told The Palm Beach Post the Heat would take a center to take the pressure off Bam Abedayo and move him out of the post. Greenberg thought Ware would be a reach at 15 because of his lack of a high motor.
Ware, 20, is considered a good defender in drop coverage and has a 7-foot-5 wingspan. He averaged 15.9 points and 9.9 rebounds with Indiana. He transferred from Oregon after his freshman year.
“I feel like I’ll be able to fit in well with the Heat,’’ Ware said. “Playing the 5, I can help Bam out with him potentially going to the floor and being able to space the floor out. Everything will be much easier for the whole team, especially when we’re in a fast space. I feel I can bring a lot to the team.’’
Ware’s 3-point shooting improved in Indiana, though didn’t shoot much. He hit 42.5 percent of his 3’s on 1.3 attempts per game.
Ware said he was happy with his Miami workout. “I wanted to show what I was capable of doing and I see they liked it,’’ he said.
One player whom Miami worked out and coveted for his defense, Providence combo guard Devin Carter, was selected two slots before 15 by Sacramento. Carter, the Big East Player of the Year, is a Miami native and his father played point guard for the Heat.
The Heat are on a mid-first-round roll after selecting a year ago do-everything forward Jaime Jaquez of UCLA. He went on to earn First Team All-Rookie honors.
The Heat, who lost in the first round to Boston amid a raft of injuries, still have to figure out Jimmy Butler’s future as he prefers a massive long-term contract extension and Miami is concerned about his age and durability. Butler can opt out after this season.
The Sixers reportedly have been the most aggressive in asking about Butler. The Knicks likely moved on from Butler by trading for two-way wing Mikal Bridges for five first-round picks in a blockbuster deal. More importantly, the Knicks, Miami’s arch rival, moved themselves further ahead of Miami on paper.
More: Title Town: How South Florida’s 6 championships since ’97 compares to traditional sports towns | D’Angelo
Meanwhile, the Heat are reportedly going to extend center Adebayo on a three-year, $166 million deal, though he has two years left on his pact.
Source link : https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/sports/nba/2024/06/26/miami-heat-select-indiana-center-kelel-ware-with-15th-pick-of-nba-first-round/74223468007/
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Publish date : 2024-06-26 22:04:18
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