Nikola Jovic(Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford/Getty Images)

We have finally made it after a long offseason! Training camp opens up for the Miami Heat this week and opening night is just over three weeks away!

While there’s still some uncertainty with this new group — especially in lieu of Tyler Herro’s immediate absence — there is plenty to prove ahead of the 2025-26 season.

One player with something to prove is Heat wing Nikola Jovic, who has not played more than 46 games in each of his first three NBA seasons.

Entering the final year of his rookie contract, Jovic, 22, isn’t worried about a possible extension heading into the new season, he told reporters during the team’s media day session Monday.

Nikola Jovic has until Oct. 20 to sign extension:

The Heat currently have five players who are extension eligible. Since Jovic’s current contract is a rookie scale deal, he will have until the night before the start of the season to sign his extension — even though he’s in the final year. It’s different for, say, Norman Powell, since he can sign his at any point before the next league year as an expiring.

There’s still uncertainty on whether both sides agree to a new deal within that three-week timetable, which is vastly approaching.

Jovic, 22, averaged 10.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game last year, shooting 45.6 percent from the floor, 37.1 percent from 3-point range and 82.8 percent from the free-throw line. He was playing the best basketball of his career before suffering a hand fracture, sidelining him until the postseason.

The 6-foot-10 wing had a very productive summer overseas with Serbia in EuroBasket. He averaged 12.8 points on 60.0/52.4/92.3 shooting splits in six games alongside three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, including a pair of 18-point performances against Portugal and Estonia capped by a 20-point outing in Serbia’s EuroBasket finale against Finland.

The former No. 27 overall pick possesses a combination of 3-point shooting, ball handling and playmaking — a unique blend that perfectly fits the modern NBA at his size. Hopefully, he’ll be able to parlay all of those skills into his best (and healthiest) season yet. The Heat need his skillset, and if he’s able to take that next step, the outlook for this organization’s future is much brighter than the inverse.

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