No more waiting around, no more hypotheticals, no more speculation… Klay Thompson will officially be a member of the Miami Heat.
ESPN’s Shams Charania was the first to break the news via X on Friday afternoon that Thompson is “expected to sign with the Miami Heat after he clears waivers upon a contract buyout with the Dallas Mavericks, sources tell ESPN.”
“Thompson and the Mavericks navigated a buyout from his $17.5 million expiring salary after the four-time NBA champion made it clear to Dallas that he wanted to play for a contender. The Heat made one of the NBA’s all-time greatest shooters their top free agent priority this summer to surround Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo and waited nearly two months on his release.”
— Shams via X
The veteran guard now joins this new Giannis Antetokounmpo-Bam Adebayo revamped Heat roster as a crucial floor spreading piece to add to the lineup. At 36 years old, Thompson remains an elite 3-point shooter— averaging nearly 12 points per game on 39% from deep last season for the Mavericks on high shooting volume. He is currently ranked fourth for most made 3-pointers in NBA history and brings even more championship experience to this Heat team as a four-time league champion.
Miami has targeted Thompson as a priority addition for well over a month now. They recognized that the situation in Dallas was nearing its end and knew that the Heat were lacking shooting. Thus, showing aggression in pursuing one of the greatest shooters in history in Thompson.
Coach Erik Spoelstra will now have the privilege of working with some much more balanced lineups going into training camp and the new 2026-27 season. The addition of Thompson leaves just one more open roster spot that the Heat will be required to fill before the start of this upcoming campaign.
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steph next year im seeing posts about that
Well, nothing happens for weeks and then poof, everything gets decided. It’s great to get Klay. I know I wanted the other guy more, but the Heat know a lot more than I and this is who they targeted, so there are good reasons to think he will really help us. He will likely help us with better spacing as he will have to be closely watched on the perimeter, which won’t allow defenses to sag in as much, opening room for our bigs.
This is a very good day, one that further improves us.
Yowza!
shooters can always shoot .drivers lose a step with age like d wade did there game is over.shooters age doesnt effect shooting to much.i havent looked at his #s but off hand id say hes borderline hof?nice job again pat.why would klay come here .id say 50 % greek 50% the respect for riley.riley is iconic auerbach phil popditto .we are so lucky to have riley 30
The Heat did not have to give up any asset to get Klay. The wait was worth it.
Boom! His dad is Jamaican…great vibes!
yes yes yes great signing sorry vagi one of the top ten shooters all time,
He’s like the equivalent to the Ray Allen signing, but not. I concur with you, good signing.
yes good comparison maybe he can make another ray allen iconic shot in the finals for us.
Klay signs two years for $13 million. Have enough to sign a 14th.
Maybe it will be Richard’s, maybe someone we haven’t thought of.
Thompson will sign a two-year contract with the Heat worth nearly $13MM, according to Charania, who reports (via Twitter) that the five-time All-Star will hold a player option for 2027/28. Based on those terms, Miami should have plenty of flexibility to add a 14th man while staying below their first-apron hard cap.
The Heat still have nearly $9MM of their full mid-level exception available after using about $6MM of the MLE to sign Tim Hardaway Jr. It sounds like most of that remaining total will go to Thompson.
Now Klay, Wiggins , Portis, Hardaway, Simone, maybe even some Conwell and Gardner. BOMBS AWAY!!
Don’t forget Niko 😛
Fingers crossed. Was just trying to avoid those overly optimistic is a bad trait comments. 😆
Today is a good day for optimism.
Yes, it is. Solid pickup.
Now with Klay, and DeRozan going to the Nuggets, what is the teams appetite to fill all 15 spots? Is it only Richards and leave 15th open? If they wanted to try for Klay AND DeMar, why not a Bruce Brown? Considering what’s out there, and the little $ left, Brown and Richards would be a solid finish.
Klay Thompson plans to sign a two-year, nearly $13 million deal with the Miami HEAT, with a player option in the second season, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. I don’t know how much money will be left. Maybe room for one more player or 2 real cheap ones (such as Donaldson and Young or Keshad).
I did not see this when I posted. My gut says they leave the 15th spot open in case of some crazy buyout like ZL. I would like Brown and Richards.
I’m wondering if Spo can turn Ben Simmons into a back-up big/point forward to capitalize on his rebounding, playmaking and defense. With no pressure on him to score, maybe he can get comfortable in the roll of a big rather than a PG. I think its worth the gamble.
I’ve said that many times, that despite hi pg skills, his overall skills would be better applied to center. Good defender, good rebounder, bad shooter from any distance.
r u a canes fan 2q?
No, sir. I know Bruce played there, he’s been on a title team playing a contributing role, so think he might be interested in coming back to where he went to school to play for a contender.
we got enough between 6 4 6 7 need a rather large human around 7 ft
This is great news! Finally. He may not be a really great player anymore, but he’s a great fit!
Excellent fit. Hopefully he can hit his open shots as he will get many of them.
hes been doing it his whole career playing with a great player and passer like greek i expect at least 40% on 3s mr sports
Per Yahoo Sports, according to DraftKings Sportsbook, Thompson signing with the Heat isn’t moving the needle very far. The Heat don’t even rank among the top 10 teams in the NBA with the shortest odds to win the title. The NBA title odds are as follows.
San Antonio Spurs (+270)
Oklahoma City Thunder (+270)
Philadelphia 76ers (+900)
New York Knicks (+900)
Boston Celtics (+1300)
Cleveland Cavaliers (+2200)
Toronto Raptors (+2500)
Minnesota Timberwolves (+2500)
Detroit Pistons (+2500)
Denver Nuggets (+2500)
Miami Heat (+3000)
The Heat are appropriately placed within the NBA title odds. Even with Thompson added, the roster is thin, and there isn’t a ton of high-octane offense around Antetokounmpo. This isn’t the Thompson of 2019, who was All-NBA and the best 3-and-D player on the planet.
The best scenario for Thompson’s role on the Heat is that he stays healthy and keeps his three-point percentage at or above the 38.3% he shot last season. If Miami can get 10-14 points out of Thompson with consistent shooting, then that’s a win.
That being said, Miami still isn’t a title contender, and honestly not a top-5 team in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks, 76ers, Celtics, Pistons, and Cavaliers all have more complete rosters than the Heat. Antetokounmpo can be the best player in the conference, but that’s not enough.
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Hopefully, there will be enough money left to sign Nick Richards or another big.
*DeMar DeRozan, Nuggets Agree To One-Year, $3.9M Deal. Too bad, it would have been nice to be able to sign Thompson, DeRozan and Richards.
It looks like the Heat now has a solid 8 man rotation. The question is, can it be expanded to 10-11 during the regular season to give the starters adequate rest for the playoffs? This is where players such as Jovic, Fontecchio, Richards, Gardner and Conwell come in.
I look forward to the pundits and Yahoo eating those words.
Same. If no serious injuries, like any contending team, this team will be a handful. They have a shot.
I agree. Hopefully…
“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”
~ Aristotle ~
This! They’re always wrong, anyhow. The Miami hate is real.
Miami is never gonna get love from the media, so I would put zero stock into what media thinks about our preseason Vegas odds. Can’t wait to prove pundits and casual NBA fans wrong, AGAIN.
Good move, not to shabby of a team so far for giannis first year in miami. Klay isn’t much of a needle mover, but I think this move moves us up at least 1 spot. Klay is still an elite 3 pt shooter and kill his matchup if they decide to double giannis or bam. He isn’t the defender he use to be, but Davion,wiggy,giannis, bam will make him better. He might be as impactful or close to it as Ray Allen. I hope we can get nick Richards too, or even Bruce brown Jr . Pat Riley still got some juice left.
Hey, been wondering where you’ve been. You seemed to go on vacation when the Heat did.
I just been busy with life, but don’t worry I still been around lurking, and reading. I’m ramping back up.
theres nothing like turning on a computer going to hhh and mucking it up with great heat fans. 40 years ago id be rolling one up rc gotta realize im a heat fan he thinks im a bandwagon jumper.hates when i criticize his players and coaches i can see the anger thru my monitor.hes cracked my screen a few times
I carry insurance for that. Submit your repair claim to RCtreatsMeMean.com.
Even with the addition of Giannis, Portis and Thompson, Draft Kings still projects Miami as the #7 team in the East. In effect,the Heat has climbed from the 10th spot in the play-in group to the 7th and is now favored over Atlanta, Charlotte and Orlando.
Interestingly, the West is only predicted to have 4 of the top 11 teams in the NBA.
Can’t really listen to those projections. They’re usually wrong. So many factors go into it. Championship experience is not to be discounted.
u can say theres 10-12 teams could win it all .no super teams anymore since the fins are gonna suck cant wait for bball season
Philly is a super team when healthy, Knicks a super team too, on paper the cavs have a super team, spurs otw to becoming a super team with wemby, harper,and castle. Also okc still got the refs on they side, so they a super team too. Fins will suck to a top 5 pick, I can’t wait for bball season too, since I’ll be working the games.
Hey big guy. I didn’t know you work the games. I think I saw you allude to that once before. What’s that about?
Wassup bro, and yes, it’s gonna be my 3rd season working security at the arena. I work inside Roaming different levels, while watching the game live on the court, and protecting the players when crazy fans try to get autographs. So for you and anyone else on hhh that comes to kaseya center, let me know in advance. I can’t get anyone to floor, but I can get u close as possible depending on if I’m working the home or away side. Also if u want to buy heat gear in the arena I can get jerseys,hats,etc for 30 percent off, first time free, next time I’ll charge a lil fee.
That’s nice of you to offer. I’m sure there are a few folks who may take you up on your offer at some point.
Of course bro, it’s the least I can do, for the hhh family.
Wow, that must be so cool.. What an exciting and important job you have. Thanks for the offer.
I don’t think that poll is being unfair to the Heat. We may be one rung better if we stay healthy. But, if we add the right final guy, I do think we are playoff bound. And, with one more move, maybe at the deadline, could be a serious contender.
I have always preferred to be underestimated. Its great to outperform what the so-called experts predict (remember 2020 & 2023). I’m sure Giannis and Portis remember. The Heat beat the top ranked Bucks both years 4-1 when Miami was 5th and 8th seeds.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, even if they’re wrong 🙂. I have the Heat at 5-6 in my personal power rankings
What the articles about Miami’s lack of perimeter creation and depth are missing IMO, on this team the bigs are the guards on offense. Even Portis will be on the court for offense. The guards are supporting players providing defense (Mitchell and Larsson) and shooting (Klay and THJ). And all have more well rounded games on offense than given credit for.
Starting Klay and Pelle as the 6th man is a huge move to improve the depth, now they have THJ as 7th man vs starting. Assuming that’s what happens, unless Spo throws a curveball and starts Pelle? There are now bench shooters at every position guard, wing and big on team in THJ, Simone, Portis, plus Conwell and Jovic.
Better for the team to workunder the radar,
I like them not giving the Heat any chance.
Less stress on the team.