The Miami Heat lost LeBron James this offseason after he decided to go back home and play for the Cleveland Cavaliers but they had a rather nonexistent mourning period this weekend. Rather than sulk and kick stones over losing LeBron, Pat Riley has taken the leash off and is going hard after free agents, namely Luol Deng.
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After hearing early interest from the Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards, the Miami Heat threw themselves at Deng this week and seem to be getting closer and closer to landing him in South Beach as the newest member of the Big 3.
According to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein, the Miami Heat are being viewed as the closest thing to frontrunners as possible in the wake of losing LeBron James and making a push for the former Bulls and Cavaliers swingman.
"The Miami Heat spent much of Saturday negotiating with free-agent swingman Luol Deng, according to sources close to the process.Sources told ESPN.com that Miami is the closest thing to a front-runner in the chase for Deng in the wake of LeBron James’ blockbuster announcement that he’s returning to his home-state Cleveland Cavaliers."
At the moment, Deng stands to make $20 million over two seasons with the Heat but that’s a price that very well could balloon to $12 million per season and $24 million total. Either way, the Heat are going after Deng and the harder they push, the more likely it is they end up signing him before next weekend arrives.
Stay glued to FanSided.com and our NBA Rumors page to stay up to date on the latest news and whispers from the world of NBA Free Agency.