The Miami Heat have spent the preseason with most of the spotlight fixed on Giannis Antetokounmpo, and for good reason. After a blockbuster offseason, Miami suddenly looks built to sit near the top of the Eastern Conference. But while Antetokounmpo is expected to be the headline addition, Tim Hardaway Jr. might end up mattering more than people realize.
Miami brought Hardaway Jr. in at the start of the offseason as part of its push to replace the perimeter shooting that walked out the door. The Heat finished No. 11 in team three-point percentage last season, but they lost Norman Powell, who shot 38 percent from deep before signing with the Chicago Bulls in free agency. They also sent Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware and Kasparas Jakucionis to the Milwaukee Bucks in the blockbuster deal, and all three had shot north of 37 percent from three.
That leaves Miami leaning on more than one outside threat to keep defenses honest. The Heat also added four-time NBA champion Klay Thompson in August, though his numbers have been trending down in recent seasons as he’s gotten older. On top of that, Miami kept forward Simone Fontecchio, who gave the bench a useful jolt last season and proved to be a solid perimeter option.
Even with those names in the mix, Hardaway Jr. has a strong case to be one of the rotation’s most important pieces. He’s quietly been one of the NBA’s steadier three-point shooters over the past few seasons, and he arrives after spending last year with the Nuggets on a one-year, minimum salary deal. At 34, he still has at least another season or two left, and he just posted a career-high 40.7 percent from beyond the arc in Denver.
That kind of shooting fits exactly what this Heat team needs. Hardaway Jr. has bounced around plenty of rosters, but he also brings playoff experience from his time with the Dallas Mavericks. For a Miami team viewed as an early Eastern Conference contender, a veteran wing who can knock down threes could wind up being a real difference-maker.
In Other News...
Klay Thompson Looks Like Miamis Best Bet In A Crucial Battle
The Heats preseason search for a starting shooting guard has become one of the more interesting early lineup decisions, and Klay Thompson is making a strong case simply by being the kind of reliable perimeter threat Miami has long valued at the position. Even with a scoreless preseason outing, Thompson still looks like the cleanest fit for a role that has often been defined by spacing, experience and the ability to punish defenses from the arc, which keeps him in the center of the conversation alongside Tim Hardaway Jr. and Pelle Larsson.
Hardaway brings his own proven shooting profile, but Thompsons track record and feel for the role give him an edge in a competition that feels less about upside than immediate trust. Larssons recent contract extension points to a longer-term future in the mix, but the Heat are still sorting out the present, and the starting job appears to be a battle between established options before the younger piece is ready to take the next step. [Read more 🡒]
Heat Suddenly Have A New Guard Worth Watching In Camp
Tre Donaldson put himself on the radar in a hurry during the Heats annual Red, White and Pink scrimmage, pacing the team with 25 points while also showing the kind of scoring and playmaking that can separate a camp invite from the pack. With Miami sorting through its backcourt options, every clean possession and every steady decision matters more than usual, and Donaldson clearly gave the coaching staff something to file away.
The timing only adds to the intrigue. Dru Smith is expected to miss a couple of weeks with a calf injury, leaving Erik Spoelstra to keep evaluating the guard room and other possible ball-handling answers. Spoelstra also singled out Ryan Conwell as another camp player making an impression, which suggests this part of camp is less about filling out reps and more about finding who can be trusted when the Heat need help in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Giannis Just Gave Heat Fans A Reason To Believe In This Core
The early stretch has not told the full story for Miami, at least not in Giannis Antetokounmpos view. The Bucks star recently pointed to the Heats potential to settle in as the season wears on, stressing that a teams fate is shaped less by how it starts and more by how it keeps improving once the schedule gets rolling. For a group trying to establish itself through the grind, that kind of outside belief carries some weight.
Antetokounmpo also framed Miamis outlook in broader organizational terms, noting the shared winning mindset that runs from the locker room to the coaching staff to the front office. That matters for a Heat team looking to prove its core can turn promise into something sturdier by the end of the year. The challenge now is obvious enough: carry that confidence past the rough patches and make sure the finish matches the intent. [Read more 🡒]