Hardaway Impatient With Miami

Upset at being the only unsigned Olympian and growing more impatient, Tim Hardaway says there’s a 50-50 chance he’ll leave the Miami Heat and play elsewhere next season.

The Indiana Pacers wasted no time Monday seeing if Hardaway was bluffing, placing a call to his agent.

“I’m dead serious. I’ll go play for a contending team like the Pacers,” Hardaway said. “I’ll go somewhere where they appreciate me. I think [Indiana Coach] Isiah [Thomas] appreciates me, and right now I’m getting no love from the Miami Heat.”

Hardaway, an unrestricted free agent, is seeking a three-year contract from the Heat. But he says he will consider signing a one-year deal with Indiana for the mid-level salary-cap exception of $2.5 million.

The Heat can pay him more, but Miami President Pat Riley and Hardaway’s agent, Henry Thomas, have made little progress toward an agreement. With three months having passed since the Heat was eliminated from the playoffs, Hardaway has lost his patience.

“I deserve a lot more respect than I’m getting,” Hardaway said. “I took less money to stay there. [Riley] said he’d take care of me, and it hasn’t happened yet.”