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Andrew Wiggins Reportedly Expected To Open Season With Heat Amid NBA Trade Rumors

Miami Heat forward Andrew Wiggins is expected to remain with the team for the start of the 2025-26 season, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald.

Per Chiang, Miami "wants to see what this mix will look like" before potentially trading Wiggins.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald also reported that "nothing" presented to the Heat for Wiggins has been "enticing," and their "plan is to keep him."

Miami acquired Wiggins ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline as part of a massive five-team swap that was headlined by Jimmy Butler becoming a member of the Golden State Warriors.

The Los Angeles Lakers were reportedly discussing a trade with the Heat involving Wiggins earlier in the offseason, but it now appears that Miami is content to hold onto the forward and isn't committed to parting ways with him.

The 30-year-old only appeared in 17 games following his change of scenery at the trade deadline, but showed his two-way impact. Wiggins averaged 19.0 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from three-point territory as a member of the Heat.

While Miami seems to be content with retaining the former Rookie of the Year, the team also risks Wiggins' trade value taking a hit if she starts the season off in sluggish fashion.

ASK IRA: Does Heat's Kel'el Ware Deserve A Degree Of Grace At NBA Summer League?

Q: Maybe I'm oversimplifying things, but it's as if Kel'el Ware is playing like the summer league is beneath him, a demotion after becoming a starter during his rookie season. – Rodney, Miami.

A: Let's not do this. First, summer league is a choice, not a requirement. And Kel'el Ware already has put in more time than typical first-round picks who participate in summer league after this first season. Plus, there is the ongoing benefit of working in practices over these past two weeks with Heat coaches, work that is going unseen by the public. So there does need to be a degree of grace. But this also is who Kel'el has long been, a player who does not necessarily emote and who has needed to be prodded, as was the case at both Oregon and Indiana, with Mike Woodson throwing down the hammer during their time together with the Hoosiers. That is something that Erik Spoelstra did during the start of last season, when he challenged Kel'el to earn a starting role, and something Spoelstra did again Saturday, with his pointed comments in Kel'el's direction. It is also something that is difficult for an assistant coach to do during summer league, when such an assistant, in this case Heat's summer coach Eric Glass, will be moving back to his assistant role during the season. Now, if you see more of this during the preseason, that's a different story. For now, there still is opportunity for Kel'el at summer league. Now, if he doesn't respond with greater effort after Spoelstra's Saturday comments, then that is and will be another story.

Q: The league isn't getting smaller and the only reason our offense always struggles is because of pace and rebounding. Enter point Nikola Jovic, who would solve both those issues. My goodness, just unleash him already. He's the connector and our most gifted passer and tempo guy. And he can shoot. – Swann.

A: You know what? Don't disagree. In fact, in light of the above, if Kel'el Ware does struggle during the season, then there might be something about starting Nikola Jovic at power forward. In a starting lineup with Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, Norman Powell and Tyler Herro, Nikola would add both shooting and playmaking to that mix. As it is, Erik Spoelstra clearly is pushing for more from Nikola.

Q: Ira, good to see the coaches watching at summer league on Friday. It shows everyone is in this together. – Volpe.

A: And it also shows those who have given their time to summer league, especially those hoping for camp invitations, that they are being watched by those who make decisions. Erik Spoelstra, Chris Quinn, Malik Allen and Octavio De La Grana, among others, all were at Saturday's practice in Las Vegas.

Originally Published: July 13, 2025 at 4:45 AM EDT

Amid Summer Search For Next Diamond In Rough, A Look At Heat Top 10 Undrafted Success Stories

LAS VEGAS — It was a bit of worlds colliding for the Heat as June turned into July, with Duncan Robinson dealt to the Detroit Pistons and Miami's summer roster moving into action.

In each case, it was a reminder of the possibilities of the Heat's developmental wing, how undrafted does not necessarily mean untalented, unwanted or unwelcomed.

Few saw what the Heat saw in Robinson, who would go on to become the franchise's all-time leader in 3-pointers after going undrafted out of Michigan.

Now the hope is of unearthing another undrafted gem during these ongoing games at the Las Vegas NBA Summer League. Perhaps it will be Keshad Johnson. Perhaps Vlad Goldin. Perhaps Bryson Warren.

The undrafted success stories have been ample, with none of the undrafted success stories as significant as Udonis Haslem going undrafted out of Florida to the Heat's all-time leader in rebounds and all-time OG.

So how does one rank those undrafted Heat success stories amid the process that is ongoing on the UNLV campus?

By first appreciating the truest of Heat undrafted success stories, those who not only went undrafted but got their first NBA shots with the Heat.

That thins — with all due respect to those whose names immediately follow — the list considerably. For example, Bruce Bowen's Heat story of undrafted success came only after he put in considerable time with the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers. Max Strus saw action with the Chicago Bulls before his Heat breakout. Ditto for NBA time elsewhere before Heat breakouts for undrafted Caleb Martin (Charlotte Hornets), Derrick Jones Jr. (Phoenix Suns) and Haywood Highsmith (Philadelphia 76ers).

And while they might have seemed like undrafted Heat success stories, Isaac Austin (1991 second round) and Voshon Lenard (1994 second round) actually were drafted elsewhere.

So using the Duncan Robinson, Udonis Haslem and even Keshad Johnson criteria, who stand as the Heat's top-10 undrafted players who went directly from college to their NBA debuts with the Heat?

(With all due respect to those who didn't make the cut, such as Mark Strickland, Mike James and Malik Allen.)

1. Udonis Haslem: He frankly set the Heat standard for such a journey, taking the long path through a season in France after going undrafted out of Florida in 2002, completely re-sculpting his body along the way.

Yes, there were previous camp invites from the Atlanta Hawks and San Antonio Spurs, but it was the Heat who molded a career that spanned two decades and still has influence at 601 Biscayne.

2. Duncan Robinson: It was during a pre-draft workout in 2018 that the Heat sensed Robinson would go undrafted and yet also could be a diamond in the rough with his silky shooting stroke.

So straight from Michigan into the Heat developmental program, now more than $100 million richer for the experience, as he moves on to his next chapter, with the Pistons.

3. Keith Askins: The original Heat OG, Askins admits he was surprised when his agent called him about a Heat tryout after going undrafted out of Alabama in 1990.

A nine-season Heat career followed, including six playoff trips, starting with the franchise's first postseason visit.

Like Haslem, he came to stay, moving on to become a Heat assistant coach and now the Heat's scouting director.

DUANE BURLESON / AP

Keith Askins has often been credited as the first embodiment of Heat culture. (Sun Sentinel file)

4. Joel Anthony: Undrafted out of UNLV in 2007, Anthony arrived with the defensive chops needed for a team transitioning to Erik Spoelstra's leadership.

No, nothing fancy on the offensive side of the ball, but enough perseverance to carve out a seven-season career with the Heat that included playoff appearances of note in the team's run to 2012 and '13 championships.

Four additional NBA seasons would follow elsewhere.

5. Anthony Carter: Undrafted out of Hawaii in 1998, Carter went on to play four seasons with the Heat, including moments of note in the contentious playoff rivalry against the New York Knicks.

Carter's arrival helped the Heat ease the wear on Tim Hardaway, with Carter even stepping in for Hardaway during the playoffs.

Like Haslem and Askins, he circled back to the Heat after his NBA career, serving as an assistant coach under Spoelstra.

6. Rodney McGruder: Undrafted out of Kansas State in 2013, McGruder cycled to the Heat after time in Hungary.

He then went on to a three-season Heat career that included 65 starts as a rookie and then 45 starts in his third and final season with the team.

Using the time with the Heat to gain a foothold, he would go to play four more NBA seasons after his 2019 Heat departure.

7. Gabe Vincent: After going undrafted out of Cal-Santa Barbara in 2018, Vincent began his pro career with the Sacramento Kings' G League team before being poached by the Heat for his NBA debut.

Four seasons with the Heat followed, on the roster for the team's 2020 and '23 trips to the NBA Finals.

He now plays on with the Los Angeles Lakers.

8. Kendrick Nunn: There were only two Heat seasons after he went undrafted out of Oakland University in 2018 and initially bided his time with the Golden State Warriors' G League affiliate, but it was an impressive run.

That's when Nunn emerged as a rookie starter ahead of first-round pick Tyler Herro in 2019-20, going on to be named first-team All-Rookie.

It was an uneven ride from there, before emerging now as Euro League MVP for this past season while flourishing in Greece.

Wilfredo Lee/AP

Kendrick Nunn was a breakout contributor as an undrafted Heat rookie in 2019-20. (Wilfredo Lee/AP)

9. Tyler Johnson: Undrafted out of Fresno State in 2014, Johnson spent five seasons with the Heat, including 39 games as a starter in 2017-18.

From there his NBA career continued with stops with the Suns, Nets, 76ers and Spurs through 2022, before time playing in Australia.

10. Chris Quinn: Undrafted out of Notre Dame in 2006, Quinn spent three seasons with the Heat in helping keep the backcourt afloat in the period between the Shaquille O'Neal championship year and the Big Three championship seasons.

Quinn now serves as Spoelstra's lead assistant, after brief post-Heat playing tenures with the Nets, Spurs and Cavaliers.

Originally Published: July 13, 2025 at 10:05 AM EDT

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