Biggest question for each Miami Heat starter entering 2026-27 season

The Miami Heat had one of the best offseasons in the NBA. But now that we’re roughly a month from opening night and less than two weeks from the start of training camp, their starting lineup — led by Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo — is practically set, barring injury. What is a big question that each of them must answer? Let’s examine!

Davion Mitchell:

Can Mitchell continue to improve as a ballhandler, playmaker?

Skinny: Mitchell has been one of the Heat’s brighest spots over the last one-and-a-half seasons.

Acquired in February of 2025 from the Toronto Raptors, Mitchell, who just turned 28-years-old, has played his best basketball with Miami. It took a few seasons for the former top-10 pick to find his footing in the NBA, but he’s fit right at home with the Heat, averaging 9.6 points on 49.4/41.0/67.0 shooting splits.

Arguably Mitchell’s most important part of his development has been his growth as a passer. He still chucks passes faster than a Sandy Alcantara fastball, but Mitchell’s passing accuracy and live-ball decision-making have improved dramatically. Outside of him, the Heat do lack another legitimate ballhandler/playmaker in the backcourt, however.

We know the type of defender and occassional shotmaker he is. But if Mitchell can continue to make strides as a playmaker and ballhandler, that can offset some of what Miami lacks behind him — which isn’t much, admittedly.

Klay Thompson:

How much gas does Thompson still have in the tank?

Skinny: Miami acquired Thompson after he was bought out by the Dallas Mavericks earlier this offseason. There’s no denying that Thompson, 36, is one of the greatest shooters ever, and that’s typically the last skill that evades players.

But the biggest question that still remains is whether the 36-year-old still has enough gas in the tank to be an important piece for a team in contention. He has amassed nearly 30,000 career minutes, and last time he appeared in the postseason was in 2022-23, his age-32 season, averahing 18.5 points on 36.8 percent shooting from 3-point range.

Now, I don’t think the Heat will need to heavily rely on Thompson, entering his 16th season (14th healthy one), especially at this stage of his career. But he will still be a critical piece, especially as a movement shooter with a plethora of shooting gravity.

Andrew Wiggins:

How malleable can Wiggins be offensively?

Skinny: After all, we know Wiggins can be the second-best player on a championship team. He proved as much in Golden State, helping guide the Warriors to their fourth title in eight years alongside Stephen Curry and Thompson. During that run, he averaged 16.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, one steal and one block.

Wiggins, 31, is at his best when he’s not asked to do too much. He showed flashes of that with the Heat last season — cutting, attacking the offensive glass and knocking down threes from deep. We know he’s an above-average-to-very good defender, but if he’s asked to do too much — such as create for himself when he’s not in the mid post — he becomes a much more vulnerable player. And you don’t want that affecting his confidence.

Giannis Antetokounmpo:

Can Antetokounmpo remain healthy?

Skinny: To nobody’s surprise, health is the biggest question with Antetokounmpo. We know he’s an MVP caliber player when he’s healthy, but Antetokounmpo missed a career-high 46 games last year with a nagging calf injury. With the inflection of achilles — directly linked to the calf — injuries, that’s a orange-ish flag. Thankfully, the Bucks were bad enough to where they could keep him sidelined. He doesn’t rely on athleticism, but any sort of soft tissue injury is one to monitor for Antetokounmpo, especially since he’s one of the most dominant — and physical — downhill forces in the NBA.

Bam Adebayo:

Will Adebayo improve his efficiency from 3-point range?

Skinny: After hoisting just 104 combined 3-point attempts over his first seven seasons, Adebayo has attempted 221 and 400 threes from deep the last two seasons, respectively. The 10th-year big shot 35.7 percent from deep in 2024-25, but regressed to 30.7 percent on 5.5 attempts per game last year. It was his first real season of being a volume 3-point shooter, as his 5.5 attempts were practically double what it was the season prior.

The next improvement is being an efficient volume 3-point shooter. There’s nothing wrong with Adebayo expanding his range, especially now that Antetokounmpo is in the mix. Though Adebayo still doesn’t garner the respect of defenses because of his efficiency — or lack thereof. Defenses will still sag off until he can consistently punish them. And once he has more shooting gravity, he can leverage that into paint touches and bending a defense off the bounce.