Spencer Dinwiddie declined the player option on the final year of his contract and will hit unrestricted free agency on Aug.
He has recovered from the injury, however, and was fully cleared to return to basketball activities on June 22, one of the fastest recoveries from an ACL tear in NBA history.
Even if Kawhi Leonard were to decline the player option on his contract and leave the Clippers in free agency, the team still would not have the cap space to sign Dinwiddie to a competitive contract.
“We’ll deal with Spencer when the time comes,” Nets GM Sean Marks said in his end-of-the-season press conference.
He averaged about 21 points, seven assists and 3.5 rebounds per game last season and shouldered the Nets’ offense while Kyrie Irving and Caris LeVert each missed more than 20 straight games with injuries.
For reference, Oklahoma City’s Kemba Walker signed a four-year, $140 million max contract with the Celtics, who dealt him to the Thunder in a deal highlighted by Al Horford.
The basketball world has not seen him since late December, when the Nets were adjusting to playing with superstars, and the rest of the roster was included in trade rumors.
The Hoop Analysis Network is reporting the Miami Heat have interest in signing Dinwiddie to join Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo in South Beach.
The Mavericks are another team with interest in Dinwiddie, according to a source, and the Nets guard will be one of the more coveted players in free agency.
He averaged 19 points and five assists per game this season but only averaged 12 points on 32% shooting from the field and 14% shooting from three in Boston’s first-round playoff series against the Nets.
Nets assistant coach Ime Udoka has left Brooklyn and accepted the Celtics’ head coaching position.
Vaughn is also interviewing for the New Orleans Pelicans head coaching job, where he is in the mix both to replace Stan Van Gundy and lead Zion Williamson.