The Heat’s preseason opener in Quebec comes with the usual October caveat: the stars may sit, but there’s still plenty worth tracking.
Miami opened training camp last week, and now the first of five exhibition games arrives against the Toronto Raptors. Giannis Antetokounmpo making his Heat debut remains unlikely, and Bam Adebayo also is not expected to go, but this game still offers a useful first look at how Erik Spoelstra wants to piece things together.
One of the biggest questions is whether Pelle Larsson gets a real run at point guard. That possibility has already been floated, and with Dru Smith out, Spoelstra could waste no time testing it in live action. If the Heat believe Larsson may need to handle some lead-guard duties this season, Saturday is the right place to start finding out what that looks like.
Smith’s injury also opens the door for Ryan Conwell. The second-round pick may not be the cleanest one-for-one answer at backup point guard behind Davion Mitchell, but the opportunity is there now. If Conwell wants to make an early case for rotation minutes, he has to do it over the next couple of weeks, and this game gives him a first chance to stand out.
There’s also the matter of whether Giannis and Bam actually end up on the floor at all. The expectation is that they won’t, especially with Miami’s home opener coming soon, but until the team makes it official, that remains part of the watch list. If either plays, the bigger question becomes how much run they get and in what role.
Beyond the individual names, the offense itself will be under the microscope. What does Miami’s attack look like now?
How comfortable do the newcomers seem inside it? How much of last season’s structure carries over?
The pace-and-space approach has been hinted at, but the preseason opener is the first real chance to see whether it’s sticking.
In Other News...
Heat Just Gave Fans An Early Answer On Their Biggest Concern
The early returns in Miamis preseason opener were a welcome sight for a team that has spent the offseason trying to answer a familiar question: where does the shooting come from? In the first half against the Raptors, the Heat were 11-for-23 from three-point range, and Andrew Wiggins helped set the tone by going 4-for-6 from deep. Tim Hardaway Jr. also chipped in 11 points on a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc, giving Miami a glimpse of the spacing it has been seeking around its new-look core.
There were still some obvious growing pains as the roster starts to mesh, but the shot profile was encouraging enough to stand out on a night when the Heat wanted clean looks and early rhythm. Even with Klay Thompson going scoreless on 0-for-2 shooting, Miami showed promising shooting around Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo, the kind of combination that could make this group a lot harder to defend if the perimeter touch holds up. [Read more 🡒]
Heat Fans Just Got An Early Look At A Huge NBA Change
The NBA is already showing what its next rules emphasis could look like, and Heat fans got a front-row preview in preseason play against Toronto. Early in the game, Scottie Barnes was whistled for an offensive push-off, a small moment that carried bigger meaning for a league planning stricter enforcement of off-arm contact in the 2026-27 season.
For Miami, it was the kind of preseason call that can shape how games are officiated long before the standings matter. The league wants to cut down on players using an off-arm to create space, which should put a premium on cleaner defense and more precise footwork, and the Heat are now getting an early look at how quickly that standard may become part of the night-to-night reality. [Read more 🡒]
Heat's East Rise Puts One Rival Question Front And Center
Miamis offseason overhaul has changed the conversation around the East, and it starts with Giannis Antetokounmpo joining a roster that already picked up several veterans. The Heat suddenly look like a team built not just to compete, but to pressure the top of the conference from the opening months of the season. For a franchise that has long measured itself by October expectations, the new look gives this team a different kind of weight going into the year.
The problem for Miami is that the rest of the East did not stand still. The Knicks, 76ers and Celtics all made notable moves of their own, and each brings its own blend of established talent and uncertainty to the race ahead. For the Heat, the bigger question is not whether the roster looks formidable on paper, but how it stacks up when the leagues other heavy hitters start testing those additions in real games. [Read more 🡒]