As NBA free agency and summer league nears, Heat’s busiest stretch of offseason is here

With last week’s NBA Draft making the start of the busiest stretch of the offseason, the Miami Heat’s calendar is full for the next three weeks.

This week for the Heat began with Monday’s introductory press conference for first-round pick Nikola Jovic held at FTX Arena, and free agency and summer league begin in the coming days.

Here’s a look at what the next three weeks will look like for the Heat as next season’s roster begins to take shape ...

Tuesday

▪ The Heat is scheduled to depart for San Francisco to begin its preparation for summer league.

The Heat’s summer league team will get in a few practices on the West Coast before opening the California Classic this weekend. Assistant coach Malik Allen will serve as the Heat’s summer league head coach for the second straight year.

Among those expected to be on the Heat’s summer league roster are Haywood Highsmith, Jovic, Mychal Mulder, Javonte Smart and Omer Yurtseven.

Wednesday

▪ This is the final day for a team or player option to be exercised ahead of free agency.

There isn’t a lot of mystery regarding what this day will hold for the Heat.

If Max Strus, Gabe Vincent and Yurtseven are not waived by this date, their full $1.8 million salaries for next season will become guaranteed. Considering the big roles Strus and Vincent played this past season and Yurtseven’s intriguing upside, the decision to guarantee their team-friendly salaries is seen as merely a formality.

This is also Tucker’s deadline to decide on his $7.4 million player option with the Heat for next season. Tucker is expected to opt out to become an unrestricted free agent.

▪ This would have also been the final day for the Heat to extend a qualifying offer to Caleb Martin to make him a restricted free agent. Miami already extended the qualifying offer to Martin last week, retaining the right to match outside offers up to the $10.3 million midlevel exception to re-sign him this offseason.

Thursday

▪ Free-agent negotiations around the NBA are allowed to begin at 6 p.m.

With Tucker expected to opt out to enter free agency, there are six players from the Heat’s season-ending roster who will become free agents this summer: Dewayne Dedmon, Udonis Haslem, Markieff Morris, Victor Oladipo and Tucker will be unrestricted free agents, and Martin will be a restricted free agent.

Friday

▪ The first $50,000 of Highsmith’s $1.8 million salary with the Heat for next season becomes guaranteed if he’s not waived by this date.

▪ This is also the first day that this year’s first-round picks, like Jovic, can sign rookie-scale contracts with their respective teams. Jovic is slotted to make about $2.2 million next season as the 27th overall pick and will be under team control for five seasons.

▪ In addition, restricted free agents, like Martin, can begin to sign offer sheets from outside teams on this date.

Saturday

▪ The Heat opens summer league against the Los Angeles Lakers at 5 p.m. (ESPN) in San Francisco at Chase Center as part of the California Classic.

Sunday

▪ The Heat continues summer league against the Sacramento Kings at 5 p.m. (NBA TV) at Chase Center.

July 5

▪ The Heat ends its run at the California Classic against the Golden State Warriors at 3 p.m. (NBA TV) at Chase Center before heading to Las Vegas to continue to summer league.

July 6

▪ The free-agency moratorium ends at noon, which allows teams to begin signing free agents to contracts. And trades previously agreed upon based on the 2022-23 salary cap can become official.

▪ Also on this date, the two-day clock begins for matching any offer sheets extended to restricted free agents, like Martin, during the moratorium that began July 1.

July 9

▪ The Heat opens Las Vegas Summer League against the Boston Celtics at 5:30 p.m. (NBA TV).

July 12

▪ The Heat is back in action at Las Vegas Summer League against the Atlanta Hawks at 7 p.m. (NBA TV).

July 13

▪ The Heat continues Las Vegas Summer League against the Philadelphia 76ers at 9 p.m. (ESPNU).

▪ This is also the final day for teams to withdraw qualifying offers to restricted free agents.

July 15

▪ The Heat’s summer league team then takes on the Toronto Raptors at 10 p.m. (NBA TV) in Las Vegas.

July 16 or 17

▪ The Heat will play its fifth and final game of Las Vegas Summer League, with the opponent and game time determined later.

Later dates to know

Oct. 4

▪ Training camps around the NBA ahead of the 2022-23 season are scheduled to begin.

Final day of the offseason/day before the start of the 2022-23 regular season

▪ This the deadline for the Heat to reach an agreement on an extension for Tyler Herro, who is entering the final season of his rookie deal. Otherwise, Herro will become a restricted free agent in the 2023 offseason.