Former Celtics forward signs training camp contract with Heat
The Miami Heat have officially announced the signing of forward Justin Champagnie, who the Boston Celtics waived on Aug. 1.
The Heat also signed 25-year-old center Brandon McCoy, former USC forward Drew Peterson, former Los Angeles Lakers forward Cole Swider,
former Wake Forest guard Alondes Williams and former Villanova guard Caleb Daniels, though they would subsequently waive McCoy and sign 24-
year-old forward Jamal Cain to a Two-Way Contract.”
While the terms of the deal for Champagnie weren’t officially disclosed, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reports that Champagnie and Daniels
“[signed] Exhibit 10 contracts,” while noting that the Heat’s preseason roster has now reached its 21-man limit. That said, Champagnie’s deal with
Miami is essentially just a training camp invite at this point, although the Heat do need to address their backend depth on the wings.
Just 22-years-old, Champagnie went undrafted out of Pitt in the 2021 NBA Draft, signing a two-way contract with the Toronto Raptors within the
next couple of weeks. Spending the bulk of his rookie season in the G League, Champagnie would average 21.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.1
blocks per game for the Raptors 905, showing off the game that led to him being an AP All-American Honorable Mention in 2021 and inspiring
confidence about his NBA future.
However, due to injuries and a looming deadline for his contract to become fully guaranteed, the Raptors waived Champagnie in December. The
Celtics seem to have waived Champagnie for similar reasons; a desire to clear up a bit of cap room before his contract became guaranteed.
Nonetheless, he will get a chance to prove he should stick on with the Heat — a team that cares more about heart and IQ than skill work — as a deep
reserve.
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NBA Rumors: Celtics Opponent For Opening Game Revealed
The Boston Celtics already have an opponent for Christmas Day, and now they know who they will face to start the 2023-24 season.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Friday that the Celtics will host the Miami Heat on Oct. 27 in Boston’s season opener. The Celtics and Heat
have formed a strong rivalry in recent years, meeting in three out of the last four Eastern Conference finals.
The last time the Celtics took the floor was against the Heat as Miami won Game 7 at TD Garden to prevent Boston from making history after being in
a 3-0 series deficit in the conference finals.
The Celtics shook up the core of their roster this offseason after that demoralizing defeat. They traded Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies as part
of a three-team deal to land Kristaps Porzingis. The Heat have seen some roster changes as well with Gabe Vincent and Max Strus both departing.
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NBA reporter Marc Stein reported earlier this week that the NBA plans to unveil the entire schedule for the league sometime next week.
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