PORTLAND, Ore. — The drudgery is real, even at this income tier, as the Miami Heat wind their way though this western swing of five games in seven nights, including Thursday night’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center.

But that doesn’t mean it is a humorless exercise.

Not with guard Myron Gardner in tow, a two-way player who seemingly only knows one way when it comes to injecting humor and life on the bench and in the locker room.

For as uneven as it has been for Erik Spoelstra’s team during this 2025-26 ride, you wouldn’t know it looking at Gardner, the former G League star still looking for an NBA foothold.

Whether playing — as he has been lately — or supporting, the smile is ever-present, the jawing of even the most elite of NBA stars ongoing (just ask Klay Thompson), and the joy of being part of it all completely genuine.

“I don’t know how to like really describe Myron,” Heat center and team captain Bam Adebayo said. “Uh, you just have to hang around him.

“He’s the person that, he just has this kid energy. You know, the kid that runs around all day and you always look at them like, ‘I wish I had that much energy.’ He is that.”

Over the years, the Heat have had their share of towel-wavers, Meyers Leonard among the most notable. But when such players enter the actual action, that energy often falls in line with the pace of the game.

Not Gardner.

“Like, I can’t describe Myron,” Adebayo continued. “But, you need teammates like him. Like, throw him in a game and he’s going to play as hard as possible.

“When Myron checks in the game, you instantly feel a difference. He’s going to compete. He’s going to play hard. He’s going to defend. He’s going to foul.”

Undrafted out of Arkansas-Little Rock in 2023, Gardner, 24, previously played collegiately at South Plains College Community College in Texas and at Georgetown. His first two professional seasons were spent with the Orlando Magic’s G League affiliate, helping the Osceola Magic to last season’s G League championship series.

Then came an opportunity with the Heat’s summer-league roster this past July, showing enough to immediately earn his current two-way contract, a streak scorer and capable rebounder.

The Detroit native won over the coaching staff there, now is winning over a locker room — one laugh, one smile at a time.

“You need somebody like that on your roster,” Adebayo said, “because he can spark, like, the energy of the arena, of the players on the court, of the coaching staff. He has that type of energy where he can spark us.”

Veteran Heat forward Simone Fontecchio agreed.

“It’s just a boost of energy every time he steps on the court,” Fontecchio said.

With coach Erik Spoelstra in agreement.

“I like Myron’s energy. He’s grown on me, he’s grown on the staff, the players in the locker room. I love his personality,” Spoelstra said. “It’s always alive in the locker room when he’s around, and it’s from a pure place. He’s a high-energy guy. He’s a likeable guy. He works his tail off.

“But you get to this point in the season, in January, too, you can need guys like that, they’re just so electric with their energy.”

Providing a spark comes naturally to the sparkplug.

“Oh yeah, that’s how I was taught to play,” Gardner said. “Just give it your all, leave it on the floor.”

Last week, it meant waking up at 3 a.m. Saturday in Sioux Falls, S.D., amid a stint there with the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Skyforce, connecting in Atlanta, and still providing quality support in the victory hours later over the league-leading Oklahoma City Thunder at Kaseya Center.

“It’s been kind of wild,” he said of the whirlwind that now has him jetting in charter comfort amid the Heat’s western swing that next moves on to Saturday night’s game against the Utah Jazz at the Delta Center.

So whether the Osceola version of the Magic, the Skyforce variety of the Heat developmental program, or these latest cameos, just being true to himself.

“When I’m out there,” he said, “I just got to keep proving myself.”

While keeping it lively.

“It’s always a positive energy, positive light coming from him, encouraging everybody,” Heat guard Norman Powell said. “He has everybody laughing and joking around. But, I mean, when he steps out there, he goes 125 percent, 150 percent, every single time.”