Tre Donaldson has put himself in position to make a real run at the Miami Heat’s final standard roster spot.
That opportunity opened up after Miami missed on a few veteran free agents, including Bruce Brown Jr. and John Konchar, who both signed with the New York Knicks. With those options off the board, the former Miami Hurricanes standout suddenly looks like the best path forward for the Heat’s backcourt depth.
Donaldson is coming off the best season of his career in Coral Gables. The 22-year-old averaged 16.4 points on 45.4 percent shooting, along with 3.6 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.4 steals across 35 games, including 33 starts. He was a major piece of Miami’s historic 26-9 turnaround, serving as the team’s top playmaker while also giving the Hurricanes a steady scoring burst, especially late in games.
The All-Atlantic Coast Conference Second Team selection is currently on a two-way contract, which limits him to 50 regular-season games and leaves him unavailable for the playoffs. But Miami has the option to move him onto the standard roster, and in the current market, he stands out as the strongest answer for point guard depth.
At the moment, Davion Mitchell is projected to start, with Dru Smith backing him up. Donaldson, though, brings a different kind of upside as a combo guard.
He can score at all three levels, set up teammates and hold his own defensively. Smith also comes with an injury history that includes Achilles and ACL tears.
The Heat don’t have to rush the decision. After meeting the minimum 14-player requirement for the standard roster, they can keep Donaldson on the two-way deal through the regular season, use all 50 of his available games, and then sign him to a new contract. That deal would likely include a team option for the 2027-28 season.
Donaldson has also checked another box Miami values: he works, he competes and he defends with energy. The Heat have long made a habit of turning undrafted players into real NBA pieces, and Duncan Robinson, Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Caleb Martin and Haywood Highsmith are among the clearest examples. Donaldson has stepped into that same pipeline, and now he has a chance to turn it into a longer stay.
In Other News...
Dwyane Wade May Have Exposed Why Heat Lost Out On LeBron
Dwyane Wades comments offered a familiar window into one of the biggest what-ifs in recent Heat history, and they also hinted at something Miami fans have long wondered about: why LeBron James ended up choosing another path. Wade framed the move as a late-career championship play, the kind of decision a star makes when every detail matters and the margin for error gets smaller.
From Miamis perspective, the explanation cuts close to the bone because Wade pointed to the sort of roster questions that can shape a superstars thinking. He suggested the Heat had too much uncertainty in the backcourt and too many concerns about shooting, even if there could still be other reasons for James choice that never became public. [Read more 🡒]
Heat Still Have One Backcourt Decision To Make Before Camp
The Knicks moved first on John Konchar, signing the veteran guard just before training camp and cutting off a possibility the Heat had been exploring. Miami had been in discussions with Konchar about a potential camp invite, and the timing matters because the team is still sorting out how much backcourt depth it wants behind starting point guard Davion Mitchell.
Gabe Vincent has also been mentioned as a possible candidate, which keeps the conversation open even after New Yorks move. For Miami, the question now is less about whether it could use another veteran guard and more about which direction it wants to take before camp settles in, with the final decision still unresolved. [Read more 🡒]
Heat Expansion Draft Debate Just Exposed One Big Roster Question
Adam Silvers reported discussion with the NBA Board of Governors about expansion as soon as 2028 has given front offices a familiar kind of homework, and for Miami it starts with an uncomfortable but useful question: if the league adds teams, who gets protected? The exercise forces a look at the Heats roster through a different lens, weighing contracts, age, role, and upside against the possibility that an expansion draft could force some hard choices.
The names that surface in that conversation tell the story of where the roster stands right now. Bam Adebayo would obviously be at the center of any protection list, while Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson, Davion Mitchell, Bobby Portis, Pelle Larsson, and rookie Ryan Conwell all fit into the broader decision tree in different ways. It is the kind of thought experiment teams hope stays hypothetical, but for Miami it also exposes a larger roster question about how much certainty it really has beyond its core. [Read more 🡒]