Cole Swider enters summer league with something to shoot for as Heat restricted free agent

Cole Swider spent the entirety of last season on a two-way contract with the Miami Heat. But the 25-year-old forward is preparing for his first summer league with the Heat.

There’s a lot at stake for Swider this summer, too. Swider is working to earn the first standard contract of his NBA career after spending his first two seasons on two-way contracts.

“I think it’s the same mindset,” Swider said Thursday after the Heat summer league team’s first practice ahead of its summer league opener on Saturday against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco as part of the California Classic. “I’m just worried about developing. I can’t control what contract I’m going to sign or not going to sign.”

Updates on where things stand for Heat in free agency. And Adebayo news, ESPN’s Heat take

The Heat extended two-way contract qualifying offers to Swider and Alondes Williams (who also finished last season on a two-way deal with Miami) on June 28 and they remain restricted free agents, allowing Miami to match outside offers. Like Swider, Williams is also part of the Heat’s 14-man summer league roster this year.

The issue is the Heat’s roster already includes the league-maximum of three two-way contract players, bringing back Dru Smith on a two-way deal earlier this week and adding Keshad Johnson and Zyon Pullin on two-way deals after both went undrafted last week.

So, what does that mean for Swider and Williams if they decide to sign their qualifying offer to return to the Heat?

If Swider and/or Williams sign their qualifying offer, they’ll be locked into a contract with the Heat. But because it’s a two-way qualifying offer and there are currently no open two-way contract spots on Miami’s roster, the Heat would then be forced to make a decision.

To keep Swider and/or Williams on two-way deals for next season should they sign their two-way qualifying offer, the Heat would need to open a two-way contract spot for them by either waiving a current two-way contract player or promoting a current two-way contract player to the standard roster. Two-way contracts can be swapped out whenever.

The Heat could also choose to waive Swider and/or Williams after they sign their two-way qualifying offer if Miami wants to keep its current two-way contract trio of Smith, Johnson and Pullin intact. This would not impact the Heat’s salary cap because two-way contracts do not count toward the salary cap, luxury tax or apron.

But there is a way for the Heat to keep all three of its current two-way contract players on two-way deals (Smith, Johnson and Pullin) while retaining Swider and/or Williams.

That would be by instead moving Swider and/or Williams to standard contracts for next season. The Heat currently has two open spots on its 15-man roster with 13 players committed to standard contracts for this upcoming season— not including Orlando Robinson, who will become an unrestricted free agent if the Heat decides not to guarantee his full $2.1 million salary for this upcoming season by the July 15 deadline.

While two-way contracts only allow for players to be on their NBA team’s active list for as many as 50 regular-season games, standard deals do not come with any restrictions on NBA playing time. A minimum standard contract would also put Swider and Williams, who both already have two years of NBA experience under their belts, on a salary of about $2.1 million for next season.

One thing the Heat can’t do is convert Swider and Williams’ two-way contract qualifying offers to an Exhibit 10 deal, which is essentially an invite to training camp to compete for a roster spot. To bring Swider and Williams into training camp on an Exhibit 10 contract, the qualifying offer would need to be pulled by Miami and those players would then need to agree to sign an Exhibit 10 deal with the Heat.

July 13 marks the final day for NBA teams to unilaterally withdraw a qualifying offer from a player. After July 13, the player has to agree to have their qualifying offer rescinded. A qualifying offer expires on Oct. 1 unless a team extends the offer.

Another option for Swider and Williams is to not sign the qualifying offer, remain restricted free agents and work to impress the Heat and other teams during summer league. Outside teams can sign Swider and/or Williams to an offer sheet of a standard NBA contract, but NBA rules don’t allow outside teams to sign them an offer sheet of a two-way deal.

The Heat would then have up to 60 hours to match a potential offer sheet extended to Swider and/or Williams.

“Obviously, the Heat have my rights as a restricted free agent,” Swider said. “I want to be here. But at the same time, it’s all up to the things that I can control and I’m going to bring the energy, the effort and try to lead this summer league team to have a great summer league.”

Swider’s combination of size at 6-foot-8 and standout three-point shooting makes him an intriguing developmental prospect.

Since going undrafted out of Syracuse in 2022, most of Swider’s playing time in his first two NBA seasons has come in the G League.

In Swider’s first season with the Heat last season, he logged a total of just 87 minutes in the NBA. But he averaged 24.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game in 21 appearances for the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

Swider established himself as one of the G League’s top three-point shooters, shooting 47.1 percent on 10 three-point attempts per game last season with the Skyforce. Among the 10 players in the G League who finished last season averaging 10 or more three-point attempts per game, Swider finished with the top three-point percentage.

“When they come into this next period with us, we’re able to really challenge them,” Heat player development coach and summer league head coach Dan Bisaccio said Thursday. “Like, ‘Hey, here’s what we saw during the season from you, here’s what we saw in the G League, here’s what you were doing in practice for us. We’re going to give you a set list of things, goals, things that we want you working on that might not just entail scoring, it might not just entail rebounds, whatever it is. And we’re going to continue to hold you accountable with that stuff.’”

While known for his outside shooting, Swider wants to use summer league to prove to the Heat and others that he has grown as an all-around player.

“The questions always are going to be about my defense and what can I do to improve those things,” said Swider, who spent his first NBA season in 2022-23 on a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers before spending last season on a two-way contract with the Heat. “So just trying to expand my offensive game as much as possible. If that’s getting to the basket, that’s creating a second opportunity, just continuing my development as a passer, as well. And just the continued development of being a movement shooter.”

While with the Lakers’ summer squad last year, Swider averaged 15.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while shooting 45.6 percent from the field and an impressive 42.5 percent on eight three-point attempts per game in Las Vegas Summer League action. The Lakers then waived Swider days after the completion of summer league, which led to him joining the Heat.

Swider is working to put together another quality summer display this year with the Heat. A spot on the standard roster may be on the line.

“I think the next step for me is just to continue that development,” Swider said. “If that leads to a contract, then that leads to a contract. If that leads to a two-way opportunity here or somewhere else, then that’s the path that it’s going to be. But as of right now, I’m just focused on helping this team and continuing my development during this summer league.”

PRODUCTIVE FIRST DAY

Bisaccio said all 14 players on the Heat’s summer league roster were able to take part in the team’s first practice on Thursday.

“They brought the energy, they brought the competitiveness,” Bisaccio said. “And again, they were cheering on their teammates, so it was a lot of fun. Things were happening out there. But as a group, we’re really just looking for them to come together, play connected, collaborate and just compete.”