Parker returning to Miami

Smush Parker has returned to Miami where his agent said the Heat front office has invited the banished guard to rejoin the team.

“(Heat general manager) Randy Pfund called me (Wednesday) and told me that they need Smush back down there,” the agent, Billy Ceisler, said Thursday afternoon.

Parker flew from New York to Miami Thursday afternoon.

President and coach Pat Riley made Parker leave the Heat after an altercation with a valet parking attendant on Nov. 27. Upon signing a two-year, $4.6 million free agent contract over the summer, Parker played just nine games before the exile. He had been working out in New York recently, waiting to learn of Riley’s next move.

Parker, who had been the Lakers starting point guard for two seasons, became eligible for a trade on Dec. 15, but league executives have been wary based on Riley removing him from the team. The Heat aren’t required to announce his activation until an hour before game time on Friday night against Orlando at American Airlines Arena.

Riley could be bringing back Parker as a prelude to a trade, or simply feels the dire circumstances of an abysmal 8-21 season and a thin backcourt have left him no choice.

Jason Williams, the Heat’s starting point guard, responded to constant trade speculation involving him by saying this week, “We’re like some high-paid prostitutes anyway in this league. They just use and get rid of us whenever they want.”