Udonis Haslem has played in the NBA for 14 years and he wants to play more. He has played only for the Miami Heat and he intends to stay there for at least one more season. Even though he hasn't played much in the last few years, Haslem is a true definition of a "Heat Lifer", and his locker room presence is invaluable to the team.
Haslem appeared in 17 games in 2016/17 season and he hasn't contributed to the team much in terms of the production on the floor. However, his teammates, coach and the Miami Heat front office realize his importance and they want to bring him back.
Fortunately for them, Udonis wants to be back and he wants to spend rest of his career in Miami.
Udonis Haslem will be on the Heat next season
Haslem made it clear that he wants to be back on the Heat, and there is no doubt that the team will allow him to do that. Head coach Erik Spoelstra expressed his wish to have Haslem on the roster next season, and the Heat front office will do their best to grant that wish. Miami could have gotten rid of Haslem this past season and used his roster spot on someone else as they dealt with numerous injuries, but they didn't want to waive their most loyal player.
One thing UD made clear last night. He wants to play next season and he wants to play for the Miami Heat.
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) April 13, 2017
It is uncertain what the Miami Heat will look like next season as many key players have expiring contracts, including Udonis Haslem.
The power forward signed a one-year contract last summer, which is worth exactly four million dollars. It is expected of him to resign once again to a similar contract, or possibly even for less money which would allow the Heat to spend money on resigning other free agents.
No player can replace Udonis Haslem
Even though Udonis Haslem only played in 17 games, he is priceless to the Miami Heat.
This was the second straight season that Haslem averaged under 10 minutes per game, yet he has still done a great job off the court and he helped his teammates in numerous ways. He is a 14-year NBA veteran who can introduce new players to the Heat's culture of winning, and that is something he has done successfully for the past few years.
Erik Spoelstra commented about Haslem recently, calling him "the last samurai from the championship years". Haslem has been with the Heat throughout all three of their championship runs, and he is the only player who is still on the roster. "He embodies everything that we want from a Miami Heat player. I’ve said it time and time again. You want to see what a Miami Heat player is? Look at a picture of UD,” added Spoelstra.