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The Miami Heat had an incredibly exciting first week of free agency, landing Kyle Lowry from the Toronto Raptors, stealing P.J. Tucker from the Milwaukee Bucks, and making Duncan Robinson the highest-paid undrafted player in the NBA.
While the Heat’s front office made a lot of great moves, it didn’t make any sense as to why the team bypassed Omer Yurtseven‘s non-guaranteed 2021-22 contract on August 1. However, that was all part of a grand plan.
UPDATE: The Miami Heat signed Yurtseven to a two-year $3.5 million contract on Friday.
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Getty/HeavyOmer Yurtseven agrees to a deal with the Miami Heat.
Prior to Friday’s news, the bewilderment over the decision had since grown exponentially as the 7-foot center, nicknamed “Turk Nowitzki” on Twitter, displayed his superstar potential in the Heat’s summer league.
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The Heat added Yurtseven to the roster at the end of last season, and their subsequent decision to bypass his $1.5 million non-guaranteed contract offer, didn’t make sense. The Georgetown alum, however, remained with the Heat’s summer league where he’s blown up on everyone’s radar.
On August 4, Yurtseven scored 25 points and eight rebounds against the Golden State Warriors, and in the season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers, he nailed 27 points with 19 rebounds. Is the Heat really going to allow this young raw talent to get poached by another franchise?
Keith Glass, Yutseven’s agent, cleared up the confusion while speaking the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson. Glass confirmed that Yurtseven is not going to blindside the Heat by suddenly signing with another team, nor did Miami blindside his client by not signing his option on August 1.
“It’s clear the Heat are interested in Omer and as importantly, Omer is interested in them,” Glass said, noting that there’s no contract from Miami in place for the unrestricted free agent. However, Glass requested one not to be presented when Yurtseven first signed with the team on May 14.
Glass didn’t want to exercise the August 1 option “so that when they gave me the option, they could go back to me and do a new deal. They kept their word. The only thing they didn’t do at that time [last Sunday] was make a deal. Now it’s a different time.”
Miami Is Still Interested in Signing Yurtseven & He’s Still Interested in Staying With the Heat
Every Heat fan watching Yurtseven tear it up in the summer league can breathe a sigh of relief. Miami is still interested in signing the 23-year-old center, but it’s unclear whether he’ll be offered a standard contract or one of the team’s two-way contracts, both of which are still available.
Glass also assuaged the concern that if Yurtseven receives an attractive offer from another team, they’ll run off. “That’s not who I am, especially after the [Heat] spent time and money on one of my players. Omer is not leaving the gym without talking to Miami.”
Before signing with Miami in May, Yurtseven appeared in 14 games (one start) for the Oklahoma City Blue of the G League. He averaged 15.2 points and 9.3 rebounds in 21.1 minutes per game while shooting 62.6% from the field.
Yurtseven’s Agent Admitted His Phone Is Blowing Up With Offers
In response to Yurtseven’s breakout performances at the California Summer League in Sacramento, “I’m suddenly very popular,” Glass said. “Teams are calling me during games.”
Glass is amused by the sudden high interest in his longtime client, but he also can’t forget that it was the Miami Heat who took a chance on Yurtseven when no one else would even take a look.
“After I made 300 phone calls on behalf of Omer, they were the only ones that stepped up to the plate and there’s a value to that,” Glass said. “We do feel a certain appreciation toward the Heat and on a practical level, we’ve seen what they’ve been able to do [developing young players]. He’s unique in that he’s 7 feet and has a skill set that’s not normal.”
“He’s willing to learn, and he has things that you cannot teach. Miami knows that and now apparently have some others. We’re thrilled with how he’s playing.”
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