Which Miami Heat players would we protect in expansion draft? - Hot Hot Hoops

Miami Heat Expansion Draft Who should the Miami Heat keep if the expansion draft happened this summer? (Mandatory Credit: Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

It’s become a matter of when, not if, the NBA will expand. Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News reported earlier this week that the NBA’s Board of Governors will “likely” vote on expanding by two teams this summer, with Las Vegas and Seattle becoming the frontrunners.

NBA Board of Governors likely to vote on expanding by two teams in the summer, per @townbrad.

Las Vegas and Seattle are favored.

— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) February 9, 2026

One could assume that those two teams won’t be a part of the NBA for another 3-4 years. But it had me thinking: who would the Heat keep? This is supposed to be a fun thought exercise. And by the time the expansion draft actually takes place, this team will look incredibly different.

That said, which players would I keep if I were the Miami Heat? Let’s dive into it!

A few ground rules:

Each team can protect up to eight players. In my opinion, it’s recommended that you keep at least 5-6. You may not want to keep that much. You may retain the eight max. For the sake of this exercise, we’ll keep at least five.

We are assuming this starts at the conclusion of 2025-26

Thus, pending UFA’s don’t count

However, teams can protect players with a team/player option, plus pending RFA’s.

Each team must expose one player who’s not a UFA.

Each team can only lose one player and no more than one.

Who would we protect?

(Editor’s note: This isn’t done in any particular order.)

Bam Adebayo:

Skinny: Adebayo’s a lock. He may not be a No. 1 option (few are). But he’s the culture bearer, and the lynchpin for a perennial top-10 — sometimes top-5 — defense.

Davion Mitchell:

Skinny: Mitchell’s a bulldog and has been one of the Heat’s most important players on both ends since he was acquired in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster. He’s one of the Heat’s best passers, and is shooting 42.2 percent from deep in 75 games with Miami. He’ll likely function best as a bench guard, but his friendly contract ($12.4 million expiring) makes him a desirable protection here.

Skinny: Larsson has become one of the Heat’s most malleable players. The sophomore guard is averaging 10.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 60.0 percent true shooting, including a near-12-4-4 stat line as a starter. Larsson, one of the Heat’s best defenders, cutters and passers, can adapt to any role.

Kel’el Ware:

Skinny: While it’s pretty easy to see why Erik Spoelstra has seemingly lost trust in Ware (poor motor, detrimental defense), he still has an incredibly high ceiling if he can put it together. It’s all about consistency for the 21-year-old. He’s worth investing in.

Jaime Jaquez Jr.

Skinny: In my fake scenario, I’m paying Jaquez, who becomes extension-eligible this summer. That extension won’t kick in until 2027-28, but I think he’s become crucial to the Heat’s up-tempo offense.

Andrew Wiggins:

Skinny: Outside of Adebayo, I felt like it was necessary to protect one big contract; Wiggins has a $30.2 player option that’s an expiring if he exercises it. Wiggins, who turns 31 later this month, is arguably the Heat’s best wing defender (not named Adebayo) and is shooting 39.5 percent from deep on five attempts per game. There’s value in that, especially since he can still be flipped as an expiring during the offseason or next February’s deadline.

Kasparas Jakucionis:

Skinny: He’s still raw. But Jakucionis has flashed tantalizing potential on both ends, especially since he’s one of the Heat’s best spot-up shooters and playmakers.

Who did we not keep?:

Ah, yes, to the names we did not keep. In total, we protected seven players. But here’s the list of who we’re throwing to the wolves for the two expansion teams to potentially acquire:

Tyler Herro

Dru Smith

Nikola Jovic

Keshad Johnson

The player I thought long and hardest about is Jovic. It’s still too early to question whether or not his contract was good or bad, although I still maintain the belief that it can be a bargain. However, his offense — particularly his shooting — has taken a stepback this year after owning 45.0/37.0/80.4 shooting splits on relative volume over his first three seasons.

He’s still only 22-years-old, and has taken a monstrous leap as an on-ball defender, where he’s shown he can reliably guard 3s and 4s (and some 2s). He also won’t exceed 10 percent of the cap over the duration of his contract; this isn’t 2015 — it’s still movable (once the poison pill ends), if need be.

While Herro was the Heat’s best offensive player last year, much of his exclusion can be attributed to his availability — or lack thereof. I love Keshad Johnson’s dynamic athleticism, but I don’t know if he’ll ever have room to be a rotation player on this team. As for Dru Smith, who has, once again, become an underrated commodity, I think it’s time to give the keys to Jakucionis.

Which Miami Heat players would we protect in expansion draft? – Hot Hot Hoops

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