The Miami Heat will be heading into the 2025-26 season with an improved roster. After parting ways with several veterans, the team has emphasized the development of its young players while making solid signings such as Norman Powell to upgrade the team’s offense.
With the moves the Heat have made, they are viewed as a top-6 team in the Eastern Conference, a marked improvement from their 10th-place finish last season. While this presents a positive outlook for the upcoming campaign, with training camp right around the corner, Miami could still look to make some key additions.
Currently, the Heat have very few roster spots remaining. Given the team’s current requirements, it is evident that they may need to move some players to bring in reinforcements. When also considering that they would benefit from the flexibility of having one free spot heading into the season, this decision could pose a challenge for the team.
To address this, we present two realistic moves that Miami can make to finalize its roster ahead of training camp.
Waive Terry Rozier
One of the moves Miami needs to make ahead of training camp is offloading Terry Rozier‘s contract. While the organization has been engaged in trade conversations involving the veteran guard, the interest from teams around the league has been largely limited.
Rozier is currently on an expiring contract worth $26.6 million. Given that he is taking up a key roster spot and is worth over 17% of the team’s total cap space, the Heat would benefit from buying out his contract and waiving him at this stage.
The 31-year-old hasn’t been the productive offensive player he was expected to be. During the 2023-24 season, with the Charlotte Hornets, Rozier showed the potential to be an elite offensive force, potentially acting as the primary scoring option in the backcourt. However, a drastic dip in his performance raised concerns about his ability to be productive next season.
Last season, he averaged 10.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists, while shooting 39.1% from the field and 29.5% from three-point range.
When considering Tyler Herro‘s development into a franchise player and Powell’s arrival, Rozier is likely to be relegated to the bench. Additionally, with the re-signing of Davion Mitchell, along with Pelle Larsson’s growth and Kasparas Jakucionis’ potential, the 31-year-old could effectively find himself out of the rotation altogether.
It would be better for the Heat to buy out his contract, purely to free up a roster spot. Given Miami’s need to fortify its frontcourt rotation, doing so would give the front office a chance to improve the team’s overall strength.
Sign Precious Achiuwa
The Miami Heat have an incredible depth of talent in the backcourt and the wings. However, by prioritizing positional flexibility, the Heat neglected their big man rotation, resulting in a noticeable shortfall in the backup big man role.
Currently, Miami’s center rotation consists of Bam Adebayo, Kel’el Ware, and Vladislav Goldin. The flexibility of Adebayo and Ware allows the two to switch between center and power forward duties. However, this limits the contributions from the bench, as Goldin will be heading into his rookie season.
To address this, the Heat have been linked with several free agent targets. Among these targets, Miami’s former first-round pick Precious Achiuwa could be the ideal choice.
Achiuwa is an undersized but skilled big man. Even at 6’8″, he is capable of standing his ground with larger forwards and centers in the second unit. His strength and elite athleticism made him a valuable roster piece for the Toronto Raptors and the New York Knicks, and while factoring in his defensive potential, the 25-year-old could be a versatile pickup with a lot of upside.
Last season, Achiuwa played with the Knicks, where he averaged 6.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 0.8 steals per game, while shooting 50.7% from the field in 20.5 minutes played.
Given his familiarity with Miami’s game plan and approach, he seems to be a sensible, low-cost addition to the team. Although his limitations as a big man could be exploited against teams with more frontcourt depth, his flexibility could still be valuable in creating scoring opportunities.
Can The Heat Contend For The Title?
The Heat are widely perceived as a dark horse in the East next season. Given the debilitated state of the conference, with several top teams dropping off due to run-ins with injury, Miami has an opportunity to emerge as one of the top teams.
Served by a young roster, the Heat certainly have the potential to shock some of the best teams in the conference. However, considering how the contenders have become stronger, too, the likelihood of Miami contending for a title in the upcoming season is slim.
But this isn’t necessarily a negative. Given the average age of their squad, the Heat could be in a crucial developmental stage that could see them become a competitive team for years to come. Led by a talented star duo, the organization has all the necessary tools to become a future contender if it plays its cards right.
