Miami Heat: KZ Okpala does not deserve to have a roster spot
By Jack Simone
Summer League is fully underway and the Miami Heat are playing well. There are a ton of standout players who could realistically make the case to earn a two-way spot.
Players such as Marcus Garrett, DeJon Jarreau, and RJ Nembhard are all playing great. Each and every one of them would make a great two-way player in Miami, and could even earn the final roster spot.
However, there has been one player in particular who hasn’t looked as good as the rest. Unfortunately, he’s one of the only players who already has a guaranteed roster spot.
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The Miami Heat should seriously consider ditching KZ Okpala
KZ Okpala has been playing very poorly through the first few Summer League games. However, his roster spot is already guaranteed for this upcoming season.
He has appeared in two games so far and is playing some of the most minutes on the team (27.5 per game). Despite this, he just can’t seem to put it all together.
Okpala is only averaging 7.5 points a night, and it’s coming on absolutely horrendous efficiency. The 22-year-old wing is shooting 23.8% from the field and 20.0% from deep.
This is exactly the sort of efficiency he has produced in the NBA thus far. If he can’t shoot well in Summer League, the likelihood of him doing so in the regular season is extremely low.
The third-year player just looks lost on the offensive end, almost as if he’s uncomfortable. People on Twitter began to point this out, and it’s completely true.
If he puts up these sorts of numbers in the regular season, Miami has no business giving him minutes. A good number of their Summer League players look better than Okpala right now.
If it were possible, the Miami Heat should sign any one of Garrett, Jarreau, or Nembhard over Okpala. Unfortunately, he’s already under contract for this year.
The only way to get rid of him would be to waive him, which is highly unlikely, or trade him. Maybe there’s a way to get a deal done, but at this point, he’ll probably just remain with the team.
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Hopefully, Okpala can turn things around. However, as of right now, he’s looking like dead weight that the Miami Heat are being forced to carry around.