NBA Rumors: Mikal Bridges didn't request Knicks trade, Pelicans-Ingram extension, Heat re-sign key piece

As NBA Free Agency unspools and the offseason begins to slow down, there is still plenty of stuff happening around the league. Teams are in uncharted territory as far as the new collective bargaining agreement is concerned. The second apron has already wrought drastic changes. The Clippers let Paul George walk. The Wolves traded into the NBA Draft lottery. LeBron James took a pay cut. All because of how the new CBA restricts front office spending.

Here are the latest NBA rumors to fuel your Monday.

NBA Rumors: Heat re-sign Haywood Highsmith despite outside interest

After weeks of speculation, Haywood Highsmith has officially re-signed with the Miami Heat on a two-year, $11 million contract. It is fully guaranteed without options, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Highsmith had "significant interest" around the league, but opted to remain with the Heat to continue building under Erik Spoelstra.

Highsmith received minimum offers from the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Heat were reportedly "noncommittal" with Highsmith early in the process, but he didn't receive a better offer, which allowed the Heat to circle back. Highsmith now steps into an elevated role with Caleb Martin leaving for the Philadelphia 76ers.

This feels like the right outcome. Highsmith spent a year on a two-way contract in Philadelphia before making his way to Miami. The Heat developed Highsmith from a G League stud into a viable NBA role player, helping him carve out a name in the league. He even received a free agent pitch call from Damian Lillard, which doesn't happen without his immense growth in Miami.

Last season was the best of Highsmith's career to date. The 27-year-old averaged 6.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists on .465/.396/.639 splits in 20.6 minutes. Not the sexiest numbers, but Highsmith is a scrappy perimeter defender with useful length and athleticism at 6-foot-7. He can also hit spot-up 3s, finish off of cuts to the rim, and supply solid connective tissue on the offensive end.

Now that he is slated to start games on a full-time basis, Highsmith's usage and production could balloon a bit. He's nothing more than a solid role player, but few teams squeeze more out of solid role players than the Miami Heat.

NBA Rumors: Pelicans could ink Brandon Ingram to an extension after all

Brandon Ingram has felt like a dead man walking for weeks. He was supposed to get a one-way ticket out of NOLA, with the New Orleans Pelicans seemingly destined for a new team-building strategy centered on maximizing Zion Williamson's unique skill set. Alas, with several stars changing teams over the last week, Ingram is still on the Pelicans' roster. Potential trade destinations are drying up quickly and it's unclear if there's genuine interest in the former second overall pick.

There should be, but Ingram's skill set is a tricky variable to slide into an established contender. He's a 6-foot-9 wing who requires on-ball reps and runs hot or cold from 3-point range. The defense is fine, but far from elite, and Ingram's streakiness was a huge issue during New Orleans' most recent postseason run.

The Sacramento Kings were interested at one point, but now DeMar DeRozan is in Sactown. The 76ers made sense right up until Paul George signed on the dotted line. The Golden State Warriors are cool on paper, but Ingram has a distaste for Steve Kerr. The Atlanta Hawks were once the obvious landing spot, but apparently Atlanta doesn't want to give Ingram his next contract.

So, where does the 26-year-old end up? Well, according to William Guillory of The Athletic, he could end up right back in New Orleans.

"Without an Ingram trade, the Pelicans would have to find some middle ground with their forward on an extension. There’s some optimism within the building that the two sides could come to terms on a deal that makes each happy. Both the Pelicans and Ingram agree that going into training camp without an extension is a distraction they’d prefer to avoid. That scenario certainly wouldn’t make sense for the Pelicans; finding value for him now is difficult enough, but trying to move him on an expiring contract at the trade deadline would be a nightmare."

This is quite the 180 for Ingram and the Pelicans. It has long felt like New Orleans wants to move on, but the market never really materialized. Ingram is too talented to trade for scraps, but not quite good enough to field the competitive trade market the Pelicans' front office desired. As such, it only makes sense to forge a path forward — even if it's temporary.

Ingram is eligible for a four-year, $208 million max contract. The Pelicans are shying away from that number, but there is middle ground to be mined. If Ingram doesn't feel great about his chances of getting that number next summer, he could acquiesce to a slight discount to stay in New Orleans. Or, perhaps they agree to a shorter-term deal that allows New Orleans to revisit trade scenarios down the line.

Fitting Ingram and Dejounte Murray around Zion is a tall task, but the Pelicans certainly have enough talent to contend. There are fates far worse than re-signing Ingram.

NBA Rumors: Mikal Bridges didn't demand trade from Nets to Knicks

The New York Knicks made the first major splash of the offseason, acquiring Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets in a crosstown blockbuster trade. We rarely see teams in the same division engage in such a consequential transaction, not to mention the same city. Bridges will, in theory, haunt the Nets for the next half-decade at least. Brooklyn, meanwhile, controls New York's draft future in a serious way.

As soon as this trade was announced, there was rampant speculation about how Bridges wound up in New York, reunited with former Villanova teammates Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo, and Josh Hart. There was a serious conspiracy bubbling up around NBA Twitter and other corners of the ol' internet — did Bridges request a trade to the Knicks?

Frankly, it's clear Bridges wanted this outcome. If he was going to change teams, of course he would prefer to stay in New York and join his closest NBA friends. The 'Nova Knicks' bit has been stretched to its logical extreme, but there's merit to stockpiling players who enjoy each other's presence and operate unselfishly as a result. Chemistry matters, especially for a Knicks team whose success is rooted in its competitive DNA.

Still, Brooklyn GM Sean Marks wants to make it abundantly clear that Bridges did not demand or request a trade across town. This was a move born solely out of the Nets' best interest.

The Nets received five first-round picks and a future pick swap, in addition to filler salaries, to facilitate Bridges' relocation to MSG. That is an absolute haul — a borderline heist for the Nets, who transform a supercharged role player into a renewed future for the franchise. Brooklyn even engineered a separate deal to reacquire their own first-round picks from the Houston Rockets, clearing the runway for a proper rebuild.

Bridges is surely psyched to get started with the Knicks — that team is going to pester the Atlantic Division for years to come — but he didn't leave Brooklyn fans hanging, as some suspected. This is a happy twist of fate, a potential victory for all those involved. It is not a secret mission from Bridges to destroy the Nets.