Udonis Haslem is going back to the Miami Heat for at least one more season.
Haslem, heading into his 19th NBA season and 20th overall as a professional, is re-signing with the Heat on a one-year deal worth $2.6 million, according to The Athletic‘s Shams Charania. The 41-year-old Haslem played in one game during the 2020-21 season, appearing for a total of three minutes before getting ejected for trying to fight Dwight Howard.
Udonis Haslem will return to the Miami Heat on a one-year, $2.6M deal for his 19th NBA season with the franchise, source tells @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 11, 2021
Haslem hasn’t been a rotation player since at least the 2014-15 season, when he appeared in 62 games and averaged 16 minutes. Since then, he appeared in no more than 37 games and under 50 minutes total in the last two years. This is very clearly the Heat bringing back a player they view as essential to their team culture and for leadership purposes in the locker room. From a certain point of view, he’s the league’s best paid assistant coach and just happens to wear a jersey instead of a team-issued polo.
With his 19th season, Haslem is also coming closer to the only two players in NBA history — the late Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki — who have spent more time with a single franchise. Bryant spent 20 years with the Lakers, while Nowitzki spent 21 seasons with the Mavericks. He may not get to two decades-plus — who knows if he’ll want to re-sign for another year after this one — but he’s getting as close as anyone may ever get again.