2025-26 Miami Heat Player Review: Dru Smith

The Miami Heat have a big offseason ahead, but let’s still review what happened this season! To continue with our Miami Heat player review series, we examine Dru Smith’s up-and-down season!

Past Player Reviews:

• Bam Adebayo
• Simone Fontecchio
• Myron Gardner
• Tyler Herro
• Kasparas Jakucionis
• Jaime Jaquez Jr.
• Keshad Johnson
• Nikola Jovic
• Pelle Larsson
• Davion Mitchell
• Norman Powell

Brief Overview:

2025-26 stats (70 games):

• 5.6 PPG
• 2.5 RPG
• 2.6 RPG
• 1.4 STLS
• 41.5 FG%
• 53.2 TS%

Coming off his third season-ending knee surgery of his pro career, Smith re-signed with the Heat in mid-August on a three-year deal with his early bird rights. He entered the season with few expectations, given his health. But there was still meat left on the bone, both offensively and defensively — though it’s worth mentioning that Smith nearly doubled the amount of combined games he played over his first three years (38) this year alone.

Let’s dive into why!

Numbers to note:

29.5 – 3-point percentage

Smith’s impact offensively begins — and somewhat ends — with his 3-point percentage, given his role.

While he had the highest usage rate (15.2 percent) of his career, he wasn’t a high usage player, per se. His role was constrained to an off-ball, spot-up role, playing off other teams’ closeouts. Though Smith wasn’t always played off the 3-point line because, well, he wasn’t a good shooter.

Smith was a 42.4 percent 3-point shooter over his first three seasons, although that was over 66 combined attempts across 38 games. In his first elongated sample, he wasn’t efficient. Perhaps that was due to tired legs over the course of an 82-game season, but he doesn’t do anything well enough offensively to justify his role if he’s not knocking down (open) looks.

6.2 – Deflections per 36 minutes

Even though Smith’s impact defensively wasn’t quite as loud, his disruptiveness was. He averaged a league-most 6.2 deflections per 36 minutes (min. 500 MIN) while topping the NBA in steals per 75 possessions (3.1).

Offenses exposed his size (or lack thereof) more in 2025-26 than they ever did previously, but he still did an excellent job using his hands to generate turnovers — whether it was on the ball or playing the passing lanes.

Best Game?

Smith had 11 games with double-figure scoring, but the best came on Nov. 8 against the Portland Trail Blazers. He scored 13 points, evidently tying a season high, with five rebounds, six assists and four steals. It was one of four games where he had four or more steals and one of six with six or more assists.

What’s next?

After several dismissals, the Heat have never been able to quit Smith. He’ll enter the summer with a non-guaranteed $2.6 million cap hit in 2026-27, though that number will become fully guaranteed on June 28, if waivers aren’t requested by then. If his contract isn’t ripped up, he’ll have a non-guaranteed club option in 2027-28 for $2.9 million.

Nobody has overcome more adversity than Smith. He’s not a poor third or fourth guard off the bench, but I don’t think he deserves a regular rotation role next season — barring stagnated growth from Kasparas Jakucionis. The Heat’s now-second-year guard should — and probably — have more leash. Again, this is all assuming Smith is still on the roster. But if I were to put money on it, I believe he will be for depth purposes.

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