Willie Reed to opt out of contract, become free agent

The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted today that backup center Willie Reed will decline his player option and become an unrestricted free agent this off-season.

The former Brooklyn Net who played admirably for Miami this year told the Sun-Sentinel’s Ira Winderman that he hopes to stay with the Heat. Heat executives have a couple options for finding the money to re-sign Reed -- Miami can either use some of their expected $37 million in cap space or the $4.3 million mid-level exception for teams that start the off-season under the salary cap. Yet another option would be to sign Reed for the $3.3 million bi-annual exception.

The 27-year-old center fits what Miami wants out of Hassan Whiteside’s backup — he’s athletic, can rebound, finish around the rim and offers a nice burst of energy off the bench. On certain nights, Reed offered good production when Whiteside drifted away. I hope “Showtime Willie Reed” decides to make his future with the Heat.