4 Heat players crack ESPN's top-100 entering 2025-26 season - Hot Hot Hoops

Miami Heat ESPN (Mandatory Credit: Chris Coduto/Getty Images)

The Miami Heat are looking to get last year’s sour taste out of their mouths. They tied their 2014-15 win total with 37, got humiliated in the first round of the postseason and are looking to find a new identity post-Jimmy Butler. We are less than a week away from training camp, and ESPN released two stages (100-11) of their annual top-100 heading into the 2025-26 season. Four total players made their list — here are their rankings below!

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89. Andrew Wiggins:

Wiggins, 30, improved one spot in last year’s rankings, despite experiencing one of the worst seasons of his career health-wise. He averaged 18.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in 60 combined games with the Golden State Warriors and Heat. Here is what ESPN’s Baxter Holmes wrote about Wiggins:

“After being traded to Miami in a high-profile swap for Jimmy Butler, Wiggins averaged 19 points in 17 games — all starts — for the Heat, who were swept in the first round by Cleveland. The 2014 No. 1 overall pick is 30, with 11 years in the league, and expectations for him to develop into a superstar have faded. Wiggins appears to be more of a key piece than a centerpiece, but trade rumors continue to swirl about whether Wiggins could be moved during the season.”

— Baxter Holmes

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82. Norman Powell

Not far ahead of Wiggins is new Heat guard Norman Powell, who they acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers in early July in a three-team deal. Powell wasn’t ranked last year, but his role enlarged after Paul George departed cross-country to the Philadelphia 76ers. Here is what ESPN’s Brian Windhorst wrote about Powell, who’s entering a contract season:

“Powell had his best season in his 10th year, when he turned 32. You don’t see that often. He thrived in the hole created by Paul George’s departure from the Clippers; he is known for being one of the league’s hardest workers; and he has turned himself into a multi-faceted offensive weapon. The Heat picked him up on the relative cheap in trade because the Clippers didn’t want to pay him, but that might create huge motivation for a big season.”

— Brian Windhorst

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68. Tyler Herro

Herro, 25, won’t begin the season healthy, recently undergoing left foot surgery that will sideline him until at least mid-November. He had the best — and healthiest — season of his six-year career in 2024-25, making his first career All-Star team while shouldering the burden as a lead creator. Here is what Windhorst wrote about Herro:

“Last season, Herro bounced back from injury to have his most efficient and best playmaking season, and he was a bright light on a Heat team that endured Jimmy Butler’s daily turbulence and Bam Adebayo’s overall down season. He’ll have to overcome similar hurdles in 2025-26 after undergoing surgery this offseason that will keep him sidelined at the start. There are times when his offense-first and shot-heavy play can feel like empty calories, especially when the Heat had their worst season in a decade.”

— Brian Windhorst

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21. Bam Adebayo:

Adebayo, 28, was the only notable player who dropped down ESPN’s list. Last year, he was the No. 18-ranked player. Now, he dipped outside the top-20 in his worst full season as a full-time starter.

“Bounced out of the first round for two straight seasons (including an embarrassing sweep by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the spring), Miami is ready for a reset,” ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk wrote. “Having turned the page from Jimmy Butler III, Miami looks to Adebayo to lead a retooled team and get the Heat’s culture back on track. With Norman Powell, Kasparas Jakucionis and Simone Fontecchio on board to help Tyler Herro on offense, Adebayo will seek to return to being the player he was the previous two seasons when he helped Miami reach the NBA Finals in 2023 and was a Defensive Player of the Year candidate, All-Star and defensive first-teamer in 2024.”

4 Heat players crack ESPN’s top-100 entering 2025-26 season – Hot Hot Hoops

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