NBA’s Miami Heat is willing to trade three of their players – Hassan Whiteside, Dion Waiters and Tyler Johnson – in order to cut down them on paying luxury tax, Barry Jackson writes in his column for the Miami Herald.

The 29-year-old Whiteside still has two years on his contract with the Heat that will pay him 24.4 million and 27.1 million US dollars respectively in the next two years. The 2.13-meter center is still a reliable rebounder and blocker, but since he could not adapt himself to today’s small-ball era, Miami had to put him on the bench at key moments of some games, like they did in the first round of playoffs last season against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Though the Heat knew Whiteside’s trading value was shrinking, they will not take in toxic contracts or accept insincere offers just to send Whiteside away. After all, they have Pat Riley as the team’s president.

Waiters still has three years on his contract that is worth some 36 million dollars with Miami. Returning from an ankle injury in the new season, there will be a big question mark about what performance he will be able to deliver. Even though he is a big-hearted player when a game is on the line, Waiters has never been known for high efficiency – in the 30 games before injury last season, Waiters could get 14.3 points per game but had an FG rate of only 39.8 percent and a 3-point rate of 30.6 percent.

Tyler Johnson has the contract that the Heat wants to get rid of the most. In 2016, when the Brooklyn Nets offered him a four-year, 50-million-dollar contract, a Miami that had just lost Dwyane Wade chose to match the offer and kept him. In the past 2017-18 season, Johnson could only make 11.7 points per game, but he will receive 19.2 million dollars in 2019.

Re-signing Wayne Ellington has put Miami’s payroll three million dollars above the luxury tax line. The team has repeatedly expressed their will to have Wade back. If the “Flash” signs a 5.3-million-dollar taxpayer mid-level exception with Miami, they may have to pay over 10 million dollars as a luxury tax, which is why the Heat is trying to send away one of the big contracts.

NBA’s Miami Heat is willing to trade three of their players – Hassan Whiteside, Dion Waiters and Tyler Johnson – in order to cut down their expenditure on luxury tax, Barry Jackson writes in his column for the Miami Herald.   The 29-year-old Whiteside still has two years on his contract with the Heat that will pay him 24.4 million and 27.1 million US dollars respectively in the next two years. The 2.13-meter center is still a reliable rebounder and blocker, but since he could not adapt himself to today’s small-ball era, Miami had to put him on the bench at key moments of some games, like they did in the first round of playoffs last season against the Philadelphia 76ers.