One of the biggest storylines this offseason has been the play of Miami Heat second-year big man Kel’el Ware.
Ware, 21, was one of the league’s best rookies last season, averaging 9.3 points and 7.4 rebounds across 64 starts, earning a full-time starting role alongside Bam Adebayo in January. While his impact wasn’t always great, he eased the burden off Adebayo, a three-time All-Star, down the stretch of the season.
Ware finished sixth in Rookie of the Year voting and made second-team All-NBA, hoping to dominate at the start of the summer.
Well, he didn’t. After three disastrous performances (two California Classic, one Las Vegas), he was called out by not only Summer League head coach Eric Glass, but also Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra for his professionalism and consistency. He responded well in each of the Heat’s last two games, including a 21-point, 15-rebound effort in the Heat’s 100-96 win over the Boston Celtics on Monday.
Kel’el Ware assures Heat that he ‘will’ bring more consistent energy, impact every night:
Ware acknowledged that he wasn’t bringing the energy that he should of, and has been adamant that will no longer happen.
“I told you yesterday, ‘you will’, it’s just something I gotta bring every day,” Ware said after Monday’s win. “Like I said, I will. … It’s more of a presence that’s being felt out there. I just got to bring it, that’s it. Plain and simple.”
In his first three Summer League games, the 7-foot big averaged just 13.0 points and five rebounds; in those two games since, he’s averaged 21.0 points and 12.0 rebounds. We’re dealing with incredibly small samples, but against lower-level competition, that’s a huge difference.
His motor and consistency were one of his biggest knocks in college at Oregon and Indiana. It’s great to see that he embraced Spoelstra’s challenge and took accountability; it’s exactly what was needed.
Now, the next step is not only continuing to finish Summer League, but parlay this into a consistently good regular season. He didn’t end last season on a high note, so it’s important to use this as fuel heading into the 2025-26 season. Not all growth is linear, but Ware has all the talent in the world to be one of the league’s best centers over time.
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Kel’el can one day become a very good-great player. However, nothing will be given to him. Like all great players before him, he is going to need to work his butt off to get there. If he slacks off, he will never attain greatness and will not be around Miami for long. If he works hard and continues improving his game, he could one day be a multiple time all-star and a multiple season NBA Champion. In addition, he could retire in Miami and have his name in the rafters. The choice is his.