Gordon Hayward Rejected Udonis Haslem’s Miami Heat in 2017, Unwilling to Trigger Potential Rivalry With Celtics

Gordon Hayward’s most lucrative offer came in 2017. The season after he had a breakthrough, making it to the All-Star 7 years into his career. The then 27-year-old had quite a few options to pick from thereafter, having declined his player option for a franchise he had played thus far. But the small forward, headed towards Boston Celtics for one reason or rather one person.

During a recent appearance on ‘The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz,’ Hayward was asked why he did not land in the Miami Heat despite the interest. He admitted it was a “super tough” decision, revealing that he and his wife were very excited about the idea of living in Miami. Hayward and his agent, Mark Bartelstein, were in discussions with three teams: Boston, Miami, and Utah.

Interestingly, Hayward’s initial excitement about Miami was intense. After meeting with the Heat, he told his agent, “We don’t even need to do the other meetings. Like Miami is the place I want to be.” Hayward reveals to have had a lot of respect for the franchise and the Head Coach, Erik Spoelstra.

The Heat even tried to convince him with big names like Udonis Haslem, Juwan Howard, and Pat Reilly among others. The same way they had done with LeBron James according to the host. Despite this, everything changed after further consideration.

Ultimately, the real reason behind his choice to join the Celtics, where he would sign a 4-year $128 million contract, came down to one person: Brad Stevens. Hayward revealed he didn’t want to compete against Stevens, who was the Celtics’ coach at the time and had been Hayward’s college coach at Butler.

Reflecting on this, Hayward said, “It was reuniting with Brad [Stevens] … Brad was the one that sold it. It’s hard to compete with somebody that I played under at Butler. He had a huge impact on my life… That was kind of the key thing… being able to play for him again. “

Brad Stevens had a long term vision involving Gordon Hayward

Back in January, during an episode of ‘Podcast P’, Gordon Hayward reflected on his move to Boston, calling it “one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to make.” But upon landing, Hayward was greeted by Stevens himself alongside assistant coach Micah Shrewsberry – who was also a coach in Butler University. Seven years had passed since they had all been together in the same atmosphere, yet, the small forward felt at ‘home’.

“He was one of the first to tell me he thought I had a chance to play in the NBA, so we just had a great relationship, and I felt like that was the place for me to be,” Hayward shared speaking of his coach. It took them a few years to play together but it wouldn’t prove as fruitful as desired. The 34-year-old encountered numerous injuries and failed to secure a championship – one of the other reasons he had picked the franchise.

But having him there, Stevens certainly was happy enough to plan a long term vision. A vision to have Hayward, Kyrie Irving, and Al Horford to pass on the torch to young talents, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum.

Hayward played for the franchise for three seasons, averaging 13.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game, shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from beyond the arc. Just as the next talent started taking off, Hayward singed with the Hornets for a 4-year, $120 million deal.

“Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.”