Summer league title continues to bear fruit for Heat: ‘They’ve given us an exuberance’

The Miami Heat’s Las Vegas Summer League championship run this past offseason was fun while it lasted, but it seems like a distant memory with a new NBA season already underway.

But that summer league title won’t be forgotten any time soon, especially with four core members of that Heat summer league team on the Heat’s current NBA roster: first-round pick Kel’el Ware, second-round pick Pelle Larsson, and two-way contract players Josh Christopher and Keshad Johnson.

“What they have shown as a collective group as young guys, they’ve brought us some talent level that we’ve been able to restock our roster,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said ahead of Saturday night’s matchup against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center. “They’ve given us an exuberance. But they’ve also found a way as a group to win, to impact winning, to find a way to gut out wins. I don’t know what it is, I just know it’s something.

“I think probably what’s different about this group is it’s been a pack, a pack of wolves. That’s what’s different.”

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▪ The Heat drafted Ware with the 15th overall pick in June and he dominated summer league to earn a spot on the All-Summer League First Team.

But the 20-year-old 7-footer currently appears to be the fourth center on the Heat’s depth chart based on the five-game preseason and the regular-season opener, playing behind starting center Bam Adebayo, backup center Kevin Love and third-string center Thomas Bryant.

Ware, who did not enter Wednesday’s regular-season opener for the first time until the Heat was trailing the Orlando Magic by 32 points with 6:15 left in the fourth quarter, did not travel with the team to Charlotte for Saturday’s game because of a stomach illness.

“Just trying to do everything I can to get him to put me on the floor,” Ware said during the preseason of trying to earn more playing time. “I’m trying to rebound the ball, block some shots ... and show that I’m able to score the ball, too.”

Even though Ware isn’t in the Heat’s rotation to begin his rookie season, Spoelstra has been impressed by the first-round pick and his work behind the scenes. Ware said he has put on about eight pounds since being drafted by the Heat — now around 238 pounds — and continues to work to add more muscle to his frame.

“I know he’s gotten bigger,” Spoelstra said of Ware. “He’s put almost 10 pounds on since he’s been with us and he’s embraced how we do things. That was one of the encouraging things once we dove into his background — that he’s not afraid to work, particularly at [Indiana University].”

▪ The Heat selected Larsson with the 44th overall pick in the second round of this year’s draft. Spoelstra has already called Larsson an “elite role player” and he flashed his intriguing skill set this preseason to shoot 5 of 13 (38.5 percent) on threes and total four steals in five appearances.

“He’s as advertised,” Spoelstra said of the 23-year-old Larsson. “I think that’s what is so interesting about the draft process for all the different teams. Each team has their own philosophy, each team values different things. He’s an elite role player. If you mention that to some organizations, they probably think that that’s horrible. I think it fits absolutely with our style of play, our culture, how we view players and how they impact winning.”

Like Ware, Larsson didn’t enter Wednesday’s regular-season opener until late in the lopsided loss. But with his off-ball cutting and ability to defend, the 6-foot-5 guard has a game that can complement nearly any Heat lineup if he’s needed to play extended minutes this season.

“You can see how he can be a plug and play with his maturity, his physicality, the fact that he does it on both ends and he knows how to fit in,” Spoelstra added.

▪ While Ware and Larsson are on standard NBA contracts, Christopher and Johnson are on two-way deals that limit their NBA availability.

Two-way contracts, which pay half the NBA rookie minimum and do not count toward the salary cap or luxury tax, allow for players to be on their NBA team’s active list for as many as 50 regular-season games, with the rest of their game action this season needing to come in the G League. Both Christopher and Johnson were made inactive for the Heat’s regular-season opener.

But the Heat continues to be encouraged by their potential to contribute if needed.

Christopher is a 6-foot-4 guard who was selected in the first round of the NBA Draft just three years ago. Christopher, 22, was taken by the Houston Rockets with the 24th overall pick in 2021 before eventually falling out of the NBA and then impressing with the Heat’s summer league team this year to earn this two-way contract opportunity.

“These are relationships where we want it to be symbiotic,” Spoelstra said when asked about Christopher. “We want players that have big dreams to commit to us and our process, where it’s not necessarily for everybody. And we want to commit to them and make their dreams happen. We want to be dream makers, and he’s done everything he’s needed to do. And I think the big takeaway is he’s gotten a lot better.

“Does that guarantee anything moving forward? No. But you want to commit to your craft, commit to your journey as a professional player. He’s done that this summer. Now you stack more days, weeks, months and that growth can still happen from here. He’s young. But that has been fun to see him make those strides.”

Johnson is a 6-foot-7 forward who went undrafted this year. The Heat immediately signed Johnson, 23, to a two-way deal after the draft and he fits the mold of a three-and-D forward at the NBA level with his combination of defensive versatility (has a 6-foot-10 wingspan) and three-point shooting potential (shot 2 of 9 on threes this preseason).

“I think the more comfortable he gets and a feel for what’s expected of him defensively and then what role he’s playing offensively, then I think that’s when you start to see more athleticism, more of the quick, more of the power,” Spoelstra said of Johnson. “He’s unique from that regard because he’s got a really strong explosive frame and then he can move his feet, as well. He knows how to fit in as a role player. I think the summer helped him and he’s working on all the aspects of his game while all this is going on. I’m encouraged by what I’m seeing so far.”

▪ Other members of this year’s Heat summer league team are also expected to stay within the organization’s development program. After representing the Heat in summer league and then being waived by the Heat ahead of the regular season, Isaiah Stevens, Warren Washington, Zyon Pullin and Caleb Daniels are all expected to transition to the Heat’s G League affiliate (the Sioux Falls Skyforce) this season.

The Skyforce opens training camp on Tuesday.

INJURY REPORT

Along with missing Ware, the Heat will be without Love for the second straight game on Saturday against the Hornets because of personal reasons.

After initially being upgraded to questionable for Saturday’s game, Heat guard Josh Richardson was again held out against the Hornets because of left heel enthesopathy. Richardson missed the entire preseason as he worked his way back from shoulder surgery and he has now missed the first two games of the regular season with his heel injury.

“He’s making progress,” Spoelstra said when asked about Richardson following Saturday’s morning shootaround in Charlotte. “So I’m encouraged by it. I know he is, as well. Don’t have a specific date, but he’s practicing and he’s doing everything right now.”

The Hornets are playing on the second night of a back-to-back set on Saturday after falling to the Hawks 125-120 in Atlanta on Friday night.

For Saturday’s matchup against the Heat, the Hornets ruled out Josh Green (return from injury management), DaQuan Jeffries (right hand), Brandon Miller (left glute) and Mark Williams (left foot).