Heat trading Thomas Bryant to Pacers. What it means for rest of roster and potentially Dru Smith

With trade speculation swirling around Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat this week, the Heat has made a deal. But the move has nothing to do with Butler.

Instead, the Heat agreed on Friday to trade veteran center Thomas Bryant to the Indiana Pacers, league sources confirmed to the Miami Herald. In exchange, the Pacers agreed to swap 2031 second-round picks with the Heat — with Miami getting the more favorable selection in the swap.

The trade can’t be formally completed until Sunday, when Bryant becomes eligible be dealt. ESPN was the first to report the news.

Heat Check: What to know about the trade speculation surrounding Heat’s Jimmy Butler

By not taking back a player in the trade, the Heat will open a roster spot, lower its luxury tax bill by about $4.7 million and create more room under the ultra-punitive second apron. The move also will leave the Heat with a $2.1 million trade exception.

With Bryant’s $2.1 million salary off the books, the Heat goes from $1.6 million away from the second apron to $3.7 million away from the second apron. But the Heat remains a luxury tax team that is also above the first apron, which means it still can’t take back more money than it sends out in a trade.

The deal leaves the Heat with 13 players on standard contract — two short of the regular-season limit of 15 players under standard contracts. The Heat will have two weeks from the date that the trade becomes official to add a 14th player, as NBA rules prohibit teams from carrying fewer than 14 players on its standard roster for more than two weeks at a time.

The Heat’s next move could be converting one of its two-way contract players to a standard deal to fill that 14th roster spot.

Heat two-way contract guard Dru Smith is the obvious candidate for that promotion, as he has logged double-digit minutes in five straight games for Miami. Smith, who turns 27 on Dec. 30, logged a career-high 34 minutes in Thursday’s home win over the Toronto Raptors and has played the entire fourth quarter in three straight games.

If the Heat moves Smith to a standard contract in the coming days, his minimum salary for the rest of the season would be about $1.5 million. The Heat has enough room to sign Smith to that deal while still staying about $2.2 million under the second apron threshold.

Smith’s potential promotion to a standard contract would create an open two-way contract slot for the Heat. The Heat could fill that opening by signing guard Isaiah Stevens to a two-way deal.

Stevens, who went undrafted this year, was a summer league standout for the Heat this past offseason and is thriving with the Heat’s G League affiliate this season. Stevens leads the G League with 10.8 assists per game this season for the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

The expectation is the Heat will go the maximum two weeks allowed to carry fewer than 14 players on its standard roster because it saves the team more money against the luxury tax and aprons.

Bryant’s Heat tenure ends before he could complete his second season with the team. Following his first season with the Heat, Bryant returned on a one-year veteran minimum contract in free agency this past summer before being moved to the Pacers two months into his second season with the Heat.

Bryant was not a consistent member of the Heat’s rotation, falling behind starting center Bam Adebayo and backup center Kevin Love on the depth chart. Bryant averaged 4.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game in 10 appearances for the Heat this season.

Along with Adebayo and Love, the Heat also has rookie center Kel’el Ware on its roster to help provide depth at the position even after Bryant’s departure.

The Heat’s move to send Bryant to the Pacers comes well ahead of the NBA’s Feb. 6 trade deadline.

The Heat (13-10), which is on a four-game winning streak, was idle Friday and returns to the practice court at Kaseya Center on Saturday. The Heat’s next game is Monday against the Pistons in Detroit.