The Miami Heat have defined their core moving forward with the addition of Kyle Lowry. Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Duncan Robinson, Tyler Herro, and Lowry are going to be Miami’s top dogs for at least the next three years.
Players such as PJ Tucker, Markieff Morris, and Dewayne Dedmon will help out in the short term as well. Pat Riley is clearly focused on winning a championship right now.
With all that being said, the Heat have to get through the regular season first. Before looking ahead to the playoffs, they have to play well for the first 82 games.
In order to do that, they need to get contributions from everyone on the roster, including the role players. Which role players have the best chance to sneak into the regular rotation?
Miami Heat players who could sneak into the rotation: Gabe Vincent
Gabe Vincent is the only other point guard on the roster outside of Kyle Lowry. That being said, he is relatively unproven in the NBA so far.
He played well during his time with Team Nigeria, though. Vincent even helped lead them past Team USA in their first exhibition game.
The third-year point guard has come out and stated that he is ready to take on some backup point guard duties. However, the Miami Heat could just choose to run Tyler Herro at that position.
If Vincent can come out of the gates hot, though, he could easily sneak into Erik Spoelstra’s regular rotation. He just has to hit his shots and make the right passes.
Miami Heat players who could sneak into the rotation: Marcus Garrett
Marcus Garrett isn’t even officially on the roster yet and he still has a good chance of cracking the regular rotation. His playstyle just fits the Miami Heat that well.
Through his first few Summer League games, Garrett has impressed everyone from fans to analysts. His defensive style is exactly what Miami loves to have on their roster.
The 6-5 combo guard is picking up his opponent in a full-court press on every possession and making their life as difficult as he can. There are no easy possessions when Garrett is on the court.
While he hasn’t shot many threes in Summer League, Garrett proved that he can shoot it at a decent clip during his final year at Kansas. He shot just under 35% from range in his senior season.
Another great part about Garrett’s game is his rebounding ability. He’s one of the best rebounding guards in Summer League, and with the way he’s crashing the boards, he could be one of the better rebounding guards in the NBA.
With a serious lack of guard depth, there’s an easy pathway for Garrett to earn rotational minutes. If he can earn a roster spot and impress Erik Spoelstra, he could end up being a part of the everyday rotation.
Miami Heat players who could sneak into the rotation: Max Strus
Max Strus probably has the easiest path to regular rotational minutes out of all of these players. The Miami Heat already seem to really like the way he plays.
Miami has spent the past two seasons telling Duncan Robinson to stop thinking and just shoot the ball. Well, that’s exactly what Strus should be doing whenever he touches the ball behind the three-point line.
He has the potential to be an elite three-point shooter in the NBA and shoot above 40% from deep. He’s shown that potential so far in Summer League.
Strus has been Miami’s best player in Las Vegas so far, scoring nearly 30 points in multiple games. He even managed to hit a game-winner the other day.
Having another shooter close to Robinson’s caliber on the roster would be huge for the Heat. Strus would be able to help shore up a lackluster bench guard rotation.
He’s not the best defender in the world, but just having his shooting on the floor will be worth it. All he has to do is stay consistent from range this season.
As mentioned, the Miami Heat already seem enamored with Strus, and even gave him a two-year deal. If he can shoot efficiently, he could end up getting regular reps.