Within the first 26 hours of free agency, the Miami Heat did something atypical.
After selecting Indiana center Kel’el Ware and Arizona guard Pelle Larsson with the No. 15 and 44 picks of the 2024 NBA Draft, Miami immediately inked Arizona forward Keshad Johnson and Florida guard Zyon Pullin to two-way contracts within minutes of the draft’s conclusion. It subsequently brought back guard Dru Smith–who it parted ways with (for the fourth time in two years!) last season months after he suffered a season-ending knee injury against the Cleveland Cavaliers in November.
All three two-way spots were filled before anyone had time to blink. Eight other teams–the Rockets, Lakers, Grizzlies, Bucks, Timberwolves, Thunder, Kings and Raptors–have filled all their two-way spots at the of this publishing.
The beauty of two-way contracts–for teams, not players–is that they don’t count against the cap. Thus, the Heat could shift the chairs around whenever they want to without any cap penalty.
Last year, it officially signed Jamaree Bouyea and Dru Smith to two-way contracts on the second day of free agency but left one spot available for the taking. Jamal Cain signed his two-way qualifying offer early in the fall while Smith was elevated to a standard contract in October; Bouyea was cut for former first-round pick R.J. Hampton; and Cole Swider signed a two-way after signing an Exhibit 10 (training camp invite) in August.
It won’t be the last time it dramatically shifts its two ways. But fast forward nearly a year later, Miami’s run into an even steeper conundrum regarding their two-way spots.
The only lock is Keshad Johnson, who’s more than proved during the Summer that he should stick with the organization. Heck, he may be in line to earn a pro-rated minimum during the 2024-25 season–should the roster remain the same–since they can’t convert him without exceeding the vaunted second apron.
That leaves two occupied spots–owned by Pullin, on Miami’s Summer League roster, and Smith, who’s rehabilitating from injury–potentially up for grabs.
And the one non-two-way player who deserves one is former Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens, who could arguably be the best pure point guard in the organization today if that two-way was fulfilled.
Isaiah Stevens hasn’t lit up the box score. Though what he has done better than anyone is captaining the ship whenever he’s on the floor.
Through four Summer League games, the 6-foot guard has averaged 8.8 points and 6.5 assists–to just 1.3 turnovers, an absurd 5.2 AST:TO ratio–converting on 12 of his 18 shot attempts, including seven of his eight 3-pointers.
On Saturday, Stevens tallied 11 assists to just one turnover–which was a moving screen, not an errant pass or fumbling the dribble off his leg/foot–in their Las Vegas Summer League opener against the Boston Celtics. He’s done a phenomenal job getting teammates–Ware, Johnson, Cole Swider, Alondes Williams and Josh Christopher, among others–involved while adding a nice flair as a shot-maker.
Stevens was a career 40.8 percent 3-point shooter on 4.1 triple tries per game at Colorado State. He took nearly 35 percent of his shot attempts from distance while converting on 59.5 percent of rim attempts, despite being undersized as a lead guard. He also led the Mountain West in career assists (863) and has produced the 11th-most points in NCAA History (2,520), sporting a career 32.7 assist percentage with just a 14.7 turnover percentage.
He’s incredibly shifty and a smart decision-maker with the ball in his hands. No Heat player–including Pullin, Larsson and Williams–has come close to conducting the offense better than Stevens through an abbreviated Summer sample. His shooting will likely regress, but his impact offensively won’t. He will always be calm and collected, orchestrating the chess pieces and putting his teammates in position to succeed. Stevens will also compete at the point-of-attack and has shown the ability to pick up 94 feet and snake around screens competently.
You could make the case that Miami doesn’t need a true point guard in their system. Why not kick the tires on one? Getting a player in your system you know can make life easier for your best players–or, at the G-League level, (other) players you want to develop–should be a priority, despite his size, or lack thereof.
Pullin’s shown flashes, averaging 7.4 points and 2.0 assists (to 1.2 turnovers) on 48.4 percent shooting and 55.0 percent true shooting. He’s a bigger guard who’s better defensively. Though his flashes haven’t been as consistent.
Whether it’s been as a shotmaker or distributor, Stevens has been more consistent. Whether it’s in Summer League, preseason, regular season or postseason, that matters, to some degree.
Isaiah Stevens, who signed an Exhibit 10 before Summer League even began, will have a greater opportunity as fall approaches–but I think he’s shown he’s already earned the two-way spot, whether it’s granted to him at the end of Summer League or not.
***
To check out our other content, click here.
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Twitter/X here!
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Instagram here!
Subscribe to our YouTube channel here!
Off Topic:
Wizards C Alex Sarr. 0pts. 0 – 15 FG in a summer league game!!! I know it’s just 1 game & it’s summer league but that is just awful. I mean really just brutal.
#2pk in the entire draft & you do that?!
Terrible.
That organization can’t get anything right.
Wow.
Half of those were threes. He is not exactly Wemby.
RANKED: All 30 Current NBA Head Coaches From Worst to Best ©Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports
#1 Erik Spoelstra — Miami Heat
There are a couple of coaches with more hardware, but Miami’s Erik Spoelstra is currently the best in the game. By now, most NBA fans are familiar with his backstory. Spoelstra began as a video coordinator and eventually worked his way up. He was hired in 2008 and quickly entered the spotlight after the Heat added LeBron James and Chris Bosh two seasons later. Despite some early struggles, Spoelstra and the Heat went to the NBA Finals four straight times and won two titles. But, his greatness has truly shined in recent years, taking an undermanned Heat squad to the NBA Finals twice in the last five seasons. In ’23, Spoelstra’s Heat made it out of the Eastern Conference as the 8-seed — toppling the No. 1 seed Bucks and No. 2 seed Celtics along the way. Nobody gets more out of his team than Spo.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/ranked-all-30-current-nba-head-coaches-from-worst-to-best/ss-BB1q1QrO?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=8cd6793e80e04b1d8b1382db757e63b1&ei=67#image=31
I saw your commentary yesterday about JB. I thought it was strong and appropriate criticism. I am one who thinks the things you noticed will become more apparent this year. That is why I advocate trading Jimmy now.
The hope that somehow everything is going to fall into place with this roster seems to only make sense because of what happened two years ago. But that almost never happens. The opposite is much more likely, that Jimmy becomes disenchanted with mediocrity and spends a good deal of time unavailable.
I just want to give you a verbal Pat on the back for going against the grain of upbeat optimism that many profess going into the new year. No one should be satisfied with the team we have so far put onto the court for next season.
I would just as soon start over, trade the untradeable for what we can get, trade Jimmy for picks, let some of the exciting young players have a shot, and get positioned for another run.
This semi running it back routine is looking very 36-46ish to me. It’s not worth it. Now, if somehow we trade Ty or at least Dunc and get something good back, (you will need to add picks to get a player back who makes it worth doing), then I still say go for it. But, anything less will almost definitely lead to a wasted year and will just set us back even more.
Thanks 30Man. I just try to call em like I see em. Jimmy turned into the player he used to criticize others of being. Slacking, too focused on outside distractions, all full of himself. Instead of looking for ways to sacrifice to help make the team better (I noticed Brunson gave the Knicks a very team-friendly deal and Bridges is planning to do the same) Jimmy is looking for ways to have his cake and eat it too (stay in state income tax-free Florida at maximum salary). FTS! Time for Miami to wake up and smell the BS!
GO HEAT!!!
Jimmy has been the miami heat last 3 -4 years.If only pat could have gotten a big to guard ad or joker hed have some jewlery.Hes made enough money to live on.Think the goal now is to win a ring.No way he stays here another year unless they get to finals again.Bam does not have the mentality to be a go to player and not the offensive game to do it anyway.Hopefully jjj can be 80-90% of playoff jimmy..
Spo has been under-estimated for so long. He will get his due someday.When he finally gets his due recognition the funny thing is that all those ( media, coaches, fans etc) in the sideline who should be making his case today and are not, will when the day comes become the loudest praise singers of Spo. That is the way of the world.
What about his defense? Can he guard 1 to 2 and will he also be hunted down by the opposing team’s best offensive players?
Stevens is a good pesky defender.
Great to have talented depth in the pipeline.
“He’s incredibly shifty and a smart decision-maker with the ball in his hands. No Heat player–including Pullin, Larsson and Williams–has come close to conducting the offense better than Stevens through an abbreviated Summer sample. His shooting will likely regress, but his impact offensively won’t. He will always be calm and collected, orchestrating the chess pieces and putting his teammates in position to succeed. Stevens will also compete at the point-of-attack and has shown the ability to pick up 94 feet and snake around screens competently.”
These attributes sound like the old Kyle Lowry who was traded 2 seasons ago. May the FO decide on Isiah Stevens as they deem fit. I still have a question mark on Dru Smith, perhaps the Heat are being emotional with him coming from a season injury and want to help him recover his career, otherwise who else will take him. You never know.
One thing I agree with you is that with Miami’s style of play, you can make the argument that Miami does not need a true point guard.
So far I am pleased that the Heat have beefed up on size. Sad that it took 5 seasons with 4 ECF appearances and 2 painful NBA final losses to come to that realization. Those hearty achievements were deceitful in making the Heat think that they were successful without going big. Beefing up on size this off season will not negate small ball but gives the team an option to go big to address size mismatch.
Like they say it is never too late to make corrections. Glad they seem to be doing that this off season.
Can not say enough of my enthusiasm, looking forward to training camp with a new beginning for the Heat. As for me, this is a new beginning for the Heat and old things are passed away.
Let’s Go HEAT!
Interestingly, the SS pointed out that he resembles Lowry in appearance and playing style, which seems to be true. Anyway, he’s been doing a nice job running the offense.
Who is SS?
Great for the young man!
Sun-Sentinel, the local newspaper/news media here in South Florida.
Thanks.
SPOT ON! Pullin has been fine, Stevens has been better. He should get the 2-way. And Christopher definitely should get the 2-way that is currently held by Smith.