Kel’el Ware could have a breakout season with the Miami Heat.
The Miami Heat’s shallow frontcourt and Tyler Herro’s early-season absence mean Kel’el Ware will see increased playing time this season.
Erik Spoelstra will be leaning on his young stars out of the gate. However, Eric Spoelstra called out Ware’s performance in Monday night’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks despite him having a double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds.
The Heat were outscored by 21 points during Ware’s floor time and Spoelstra said he wasn’t looking at Ware’s stat line, rather his impact. He then challenged Ware to impact the game.
Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty ImagesKel’el Ware responds with impact game
Following that message from Spoelstra, all eyes were on Ware in the Heat’s matchup against the San Antonio Spurs.
Ware finished with 29 points and 12 rebounds in 26 minutes of action from off the bench.
Beyond the impressive stat line, Ware made winning plays. This was highlighted in a one-minute sequence which included Ware hitting a pair of threes, one of which was contested by Victor Wembanyama. He also blocked Wembanyama on the other end as well.
These were the type of impactful plays Spoelstra was talking about. After the game, Ware was asked about answering his head coach’s challenge.
“I mean, I always take anything the coach says to me, the motivation is.
“I take it and I try to impact it into my game and I try to play as hard as I can.
“Last year, I was still getting my legs back in front of me from training camp. But, no, that’s it, that’s it.”
Full comments from Kel’el Ware after an impressive game against the Spurs tonight.
He speaks about answering Spo’s challenges, how it made him feel, and questions from me about that “natural connection” with Kasparas Jakucionis, and more. #HeatNation pic.twitter.com/fGQDkxqz92
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) October 9, 2025
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Kel’el Ware looks poised for a big sophomore season with the Miami Heat
With Ware being consistently challenged by Spoelstra, he will enter his second season and is expected to take on a bigger role alongside Bam Adebayo.
Ware has come off the bench in each of the Heat’s three preseason games thus far, but he has been dominant.
He’s averaging 19.0 points and 11.3 rebounds through three games. As a rookie, Ware averaged 9.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game on 55.4 percent shooting from the field. He also showed flashes with his three-point shot.
With more minutes coming his way, Ware could end up having a big year in Miami.