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Injury Notes: Garland, Suggs, Adebayo, Bucks, Pacers, Thiero

October 15th, 2025 at 9:03am CST by Luke Adams

Cavaliers point guard Darius Garland took an important step forward in his recovery from toe surgery by participating in a 5-on-5 contact scrimmage on Tuesday, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required). While head coach Kenny Atkinson referred to as a positive development, he cautioned that it doesn’t mean Garland’s return is imminent.

“It was live. It was very short,” Atkinson said. “Now let’s see what tomorrow looks like. What does the recovery look like? We know this is not an easy injury to come back from. It’s just not. You see what happens in the NFL with this injury. It’s not linear, usually, the return to performance, and we’re hoping it will be and he’ll progress. But I side on the side of being conservative and making sure. This is a good step today. A small step but a good step.”

Sources who have spoken to Fedor have maintained that Garland still could miss the first 10-15 games of the regular season. With their starting point guard expected to be unavailable when the season tips off, the Cavs intend to start Sam Merrill in the backcourt alongside Donovan Mitchell, who will take on more ball-handling responsibilities, says Fedor.

We have several more injury-related updates from around the NBA:

  • Magic guard Jalen Suggs did “a little bit” of contact work on Tuesday in a 3-on-3 setting, head coach Jamahl Mosley told reporters, including Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). It’s unclear whether Suggs will be able to play in Orlando’s remaining preseason game on Thursday or if he’ll be ready for the season opener next Wednesday.
  • Heat big man Bam Adebayo exited Monday’s preseason game early due to a knee injury, but it’s just a contusion and wasn’t serious enough to require an MRI, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). While it remains to be seen if Adebayo will suit up in the team’s preseason finale on Friday, it sounds like he should fine for the start of the season.
  • After Myles Turner (right calf soreness) and Gary Harris (right hamstring strain) sat out the Bucks‘ last preseason game on Tuesday, head coach Doc Rivers downplayed Turner’s issue and suggested he’ll be ready for the start of the season, but said Harris’ hamstring injury will likely sideline him for a week or two, per Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter links).
  • The injuries that Pacers reserves Johnny Furphy (left ankle sprain) and Quenton Jackson (right hamstring soreness) are dealing with aren’t “serious,” according to head coach Rick Carlisle, but there’s no guarantee either player will be ready for opening night. “There’s a chance they could be back for the opening of the season, but I don’t know how big of a chance,” Carlisle said, according to Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. The Pacers’ coach added Ben Sheppard, who has been out with an undisclosed injury, is “trending in a good direction” and could be available on Friday for the club’s preseason finale.
  • Lakers rookie Adou Thiero remains sidelined due to swelling in his knee but has progressed to on-court activities, the team announced on Tuesday (Twitter link via Dan Woike of The Athletic). The Lakers added that Thiero will be reevaluated in approximately two or three weeks.
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Heat Sign Steve Settle, Waive Gabe Madsen

October 14th, 2025 at 7:02pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Heat have signed forward Steve Settle III and waived wing Gabe Madsen, according to the team.

Miami originally agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with Settle right after he went undrafted in June. It’s now come to fruition.

Settle started in all 31 games in which he appeared last season at Temple and averaged 12.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.0 steals, 1.0 blocks and 33.2 minutes per contest while shooting 47.8% from the field, 41.6% from three-point range and 73.6% from the foul line. He led the team in rebounds, blocks, minutes and three-point field goals made.

Additionally, he appeared in five Summer League games with the Heat.

Madsen re-signed with Miami last week after being waived in September. He returned on an Exhibit 9 contract and appeared in two preseason games, averaging 4.5 points and 2.0 assists in 14.5 minutes per night.

Madsen played a five-year collegiate career, beginning at Cincinnati and spending the next four years at Utah. He averaged 15.2 points per game in 2024/25 and made 36.0% of his three-point attempts over the course of his five college seasons.

Settle will likely be waived and join the Sioux Falls Skyforce in the G League. If he stays at least 60 days with Miami’s affiliate, he’ll be eligible for a bonus worth up to $85,300.

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Heat’s Erik Spoelstra Named Team USA’s New Head Coach

October 14th, 2025 at 3:07pm CST by Rory Maher

October 14: USA Basketball has officially announced Spoelstra as the new men’s basketball head coach. Spoelstra spoke to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press and ESPN’s Brian Windhorst about his new role and what it means to him.

“Absolutely, absolutely humbled. I mean, it is the honor of a lifetime,” Spoelstra told Reynolds. “And I’m just really appreciative of it and being a part of the USA Basketball program. The Olympics are incredible, no matter where it is, but to have the opportunity to compete on your own soil, that’s simply remarkable.”

October 9: Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is expected to be named the new head coach of the United States’ men’s basketball team, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN.

According to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press, a deal between Spoelstra and USA Basketball has not yet been finalized, but Miami’s longtime coach is the frontrunner for the job to succeed Steve Kerr.

As Reynolds writes, Spoelstra was an assistant on Kerr’s staff at both the 2023 World Cup and the 2024 Olympics in Paris. The Americans finished in fourth place at the World Cup, but won their fifth consecutive gold medal at the Olympics.

Assuming Spoelstra finalizes a contract with USA Basketball, he would lead the U.S. at the 2027 World Cup in Qatar and the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, Reynolds notes.

After Gregg Popovich stepped down as coach of the Spurs in the spring, Spoelstra became the longest-tenured head coach in the NBA by a significant margin. The 54-year-old is entering his 18th season as head coach of the Heat, compiling a 787-572 regular season record (.579 win percentage) and 110-83 mark in the playoffs (.570).

Spoelstra has led Miami to six NBA Finals appearances during his time at the helm, winning back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013.

Spoelstra has been widely viewed as one of the top coaches in the league for years, so the news isn’t surprising. Still, it’s a significant accomplishment — Spoelstra told The Associated Press after last year’s Olympics that he “would be honored” to be the top coach of the men’s national team.

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Heat Notes: Ware, Jakucionis, Adebayo, Mitchell

October 13th, 2025 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Kel’el Ware continues to post impressive numbers in the preseason, and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra continues to push him to expand his game to do more things that impact winning, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Ware’s latest big performance came on Sunday night as he posted 24 points, 10 rebounds, an assist and two steals in 25 minutes in a loss to Orlando.

“I would much rather coach somebody who’s willing to be coached, who can put up 24 (points) and 10 (rebounds), and figure out how to get those winning moments during the course of a game,” Spoelstra said. “That’s where we are.”

Spoelstra called out Ware during Summer League, citing a need to improve his “professionalism,” and has continued to set a high standard for the second-year center since training camp began. Ware told reporters that he tries to take inspiration from Spoelstra’s critiques.

“I always take anything that the coach says to me as motivation,” Ware said. “I take it and I try to impact it into my game, and I try to play as hard as I can. Like I said in the last interview, I was still getting my legs back under me from training camp.”

Ware exceeded expectations as a rookie and became a starter alongside Bam Adebayo as the season wore on. Spoelstra said “all things are on the table” regarding his starting lineup, but Chiang notes that Ware was used off the bench in the first three preseason games and only started on Sunday because Adebayo was being rested on the first night of a back-to-back.

There’s more from Miami:

  • Kasparas Jakucionis left Sunday’s game in the first quarter with soreness in his right hip, Chiang adds in the same piece. The rookie guard missed the first two preseason contests because of a sprained left wrist before playing on Wednesday. “It is a little frustration,” he said. “But these things I can’t control. So I’m just trying to control what I can control and do my thing.”
  • In a separate story, Adebayo talks to Chiang about the experience of supporting girlfriend A’ja Wilson as she led Las Vegas to the WNBA title. Adebayo practiced with the Heat on Friday, flew to Phoenix to watch the Aces clinch the championship that night, then returned to Miami in time for Saturday afternoon’s practice.
  • Davion Mitchell made his preseason debut on Sunday after sitting out three games with calf soreness, per Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel. Mitchell, who re-signed with Miami on a two-year, $24MM deal this summer, only played in the first half and finished with two points and two assists in 10 minutes. “Preseason is kind of when you get your rhythm,” he said. “Especially with our new offense, kind of learn how to play the new offense. But for me, it’s just kind of just trying to find my rhythm. But I’ll figure that out in the next couple days.”
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Achiuwa Has 'Unfinished Business' With Heat

October 11th, 2025 at 11:03am CST by Rory Maher
  • Forward/center Precious Achiuwa went unsigned for most of the offseason before agreeing to a non-guaranteed training camp deal with the Heat in late September. Achiuwa, who was drafted by Miami and spent his rookie year with the team before being traded to Toronto in the 2021 offseason, said he’s happy to be back with his first NBA team, as Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald relays. “I think there’s some unfinished business,” Achiuwa said of returning to the Heat. “Just the culture of the Miami Heat kind of fits the way I play. A lot of tenacity, a lot of intensity. So I feel right at home here.”
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Heat Notes: Mitchell, Ware, Jakucionis, Keels

October 10th, 2025 at 5:00pm CST by Eli Cohen

Kasparas Jakucionis and Pelle Larsson returned from injuries to make their preseason debuts on Wednesday, and there appears to be more good news on the horizon for the Heat, writes Anthony Chiang for the Miami Herald. According to Chiang, guard Davion Mitchell, who missed part of training camp with calf soreness and has yet to suit up during the preseason, is expected to be available for Sunday’s game against the Magic.

The 27-year-old point guard was not overly concerned about the injury.

“It was just a calf strain,” he said. “I kind of felt something in my calf. They kind of have been cautious of it because obviously the calf is a big part, especially with the injuries [around the NBA] that we had last year and things like that. So they kind of just wanted to be cautious and make sure I’m ready 100 percent.”

With Tyler Herro likely to miss the first month of the season as he recovers from left ankle surgery, Mitchell is expected to be vying for the role of day-one starter for the Heat. After playing some of the best basketball of his career down the stretch last season, he expressed frustration with being slowed down by the injury.

“Especially with the new offense we got, you kind of want to get that chemistry together to play faster,” he said. “So I kind of got a little step behind not going through the actual games with them. But I’ve been doing it in practice, so I feel good about it.”

Chiang also notes that Simone Fontecchio is participating in practice but remains limited due to left lower leg tightness. Herro and Terry Rozier are both still out without firm return dates.

We have more news from the Heat:

  • After Kel’el Ware put up a double-double in the Heat’s second preseason game, head coach Erik Spoelstra expressed that he was not moved by the big numbers and wanted the big man to focus on making a positive impact on the game. Ware wasn’t discouraged by those remarks, viewing them instead as an opportunity, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (subscriber link). “I always take anything Spo says to me as motivation,” Ware said. “I take it and I try to impact it in my game and I try to play as hard as I can.” Ware responded on Wednesday with 29 points and 12 rebounds — and most importantly, he helped the Heat outscore the Spurs by 10 when he was on the court. It was a big performance, and his coach noticed. “He put a lot of it together,” Spoelstra said. “His pick-and-roll coverages were really good, protecting the basket. He was closing out when he needed to. He rebounded the ball very well. And he was playing with force.” While Ware has a lot of skill, playing with force is a clear point of emphasis for Spoelstra. “My favorite play was when he had an opportunity to shoot a three at the top of the key and he just drove it so hard,” Spoelstra said.
  • Also turning in an impressive performance on Wednesday night was Jakucionis, who scored eight points and handed out 10 assists in his preseason debut after missing the first two games with a sprained wrist. It was a strong start for the 2025 first-round pick, writes Chiang. Spoelstra noted that there was already a budding chemistry between the rookie point guard and second-year big man, saying, “You can see a natural connection between him and Kel’el.” Jakucionis, for his part, knows there’s still a lot of work to do, especially in terms of scoring efficiency. “I’m just trying to be consistent, stay the same,” he said. “Discipline, and stay the same mind. Don’t go too high when I’m doing good and don’t go too low when I’m doing not that good. So I’m just trying to stay consistent, stay the same way, and just improving every day to try to get 1 percent better.“
  • Ware and Jakucionas were not the only recent Heat first-round picks to show out on Wednesday, Chiang writes in a separate article. Jaime Jaquez Jr., coming off a slightly disappointing sophomore season, scored 19 points on eight shots in 28 minutes. He impressed Spoelstra, who, characteristically, still wants to see more from the young forward. “He’s such a downhill force that he’s going to attract help-side defenders,” Spoelstra said. “So naturally, he has to evolve and make enough plays to keep the defense honest because we need him to be aggressive.”
  • Trevor Keels was recently waived in order for Miami to sign Gabe Madsen. Both players are expected to end up with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Winderman writes (subscriber link). Spoelstra spoke on the two players, both of whom showed enough for the Heat coach to take notice. “We want to continue to develop him, for sure,” Spoelstra said of Keels. “He showed a lot of improvement over the last few weeks. He’s gotten in better shape. He’s committed to our defensive system. And I told him this is just the beginning.” As for Madsen, Spoelstra saw some of the famous “Heat Culture” in the young guard. “He showed a level of grit, a competitive toughness that we like,” Spoelstra said. “And he’s also skilled. He knows how to play without the ball and shoot the ball, or drive off those catches. So we’re encouraged by that.”
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2025/26 NBA Over/Unders: Southeast Division

October 10th, 2025 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

With the 2025/26 NBA regular season tipping off later this month, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including BetMGM and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2024/25, our voters went 13-17 on their over/under picks. Can we top that in ’25/26?

We’ll continue our series today with the Southeast Division…

Orlando Magic

Atlanta Hawks

Miami Heat

Charlotte Hornets

Washington Wizards

Previous voting results:

Atlantic

  • New York Knicks (53.5 wins): Over (63.2%)
  • Boston Celtics (42.5 wins): Over (52.7%)
  • Philadelphia 76ers (42.5 wins): Under (58.7%)
  • Toronto Raptors (37.5 wins): Over (50.2%)
  • Brooklyn Nets (20.5 wins): Over (54.4%)

Central

  • Cleveland Cavaliers (56.5 wins): Over (58.0%)
  • Detroit Pistons (46.5 wins): Over (60.5%)
  • Milwaukee Bucks (42.5 wins): Over (74.4%)
  • Indiana Pacers (37.5 wins): Over (50.1%)
  • Chicago Bulls (32.5 wins): Over (60.8%)

Northwest

  • Oklahoma City Thunder (62.5 wins): Over (62.9%)
  • Denver Nuggets (53.5 wins): Over (72.1%)
  • Minnesota Timberwolves (49.5 wins): Over (58.7%)
  • Portland Trail Blazers (34.5 wins): Over (57.1%)
  • Utah Jazz (18.5 wins): Over (55.3%)

Pacific

  • Los Angeles Clippers (48.5 wins): Under (58.7%)
  • Los Angeles Lakers (48.5 wins): Under (52.1%)
  • Golden State Warriors (46.5 wins): Over (68.3%)
  • Sacramento Kings (34.5 wins): Over (55.1%)
  • Phoenix Suns (31.5 wins): Under (56.8%)
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Heat Sign Gabe Madsen, Waive Trevor Keels

October 9th, 2025 at 10:05pm CST by Earnest Marshall

The Heat have signed Gabe Madsen, the team announced in a release. In a corresponding move, they waived Trevor Keels.

Miami signed Madsen to an Exhibit 10 deal in September, but waived him to make room to sign Precious Achiuwa. Now, he’s back on an Exhibit 9 contract, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link).

Madsen played a five-year collegiate career, beginning at Cincinnati and spending the next four years at Utah. He averaged 15.2 points per game in 2024/25 and made 36.0% of his three-point attempts over the course of his five college seasons.

Keels, who played collegiately at Duke, scored 12 points in Miami’s preseason opener. He’s likely headed for the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate. His Exhibit 10 contract makes him eligible for a bonus worth $85,300 if he spends at least 60 days with the Skyforce.

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Heat Notes: Powell, Jovic, Ware, Johnson

October 7th, 2025 at 12:43pm CST by Luke Adams

Before he was traded from the Clippers to the Heat this summer, Norman Powell had begun having conversations with L.A. about a possible contract extension, he tells Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscription required).

“To be transparent, we were talking extension and what it would look like, and they were telling me they didn’t want to trade me, they wanted me there — all that good stuff,” Powell said. “But they inevitably ended up trading me.”

A report last month indicated that the Heat are open to discussing an extension with Powell, who is entering the final year of his current contract. However, that report suggested any deal would likely happen during the season, once the club had more time to assess his fit on the roster. For his part, the 32-year-old guard says he’s thinking about “basketball” rather than his contract situation, as Winderman relays.

“I’m just focused on what I have to do for this team, and I know if I go out there and perform, you’re going to be rewarded,” Powell said. “I feel like I’ve been performing every single year and my trajectory is just focused on getting better and how I can improve, and the payday will come.”

If Powell can carry over performances like Monday’s into the regular season, it would bode well for his future earnings. In just 16 minutes of action in Miami’s preseason matchup with Milwaukee, he racked up 18 points, making 6-of-12 shots from the floor, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.

“You can see his ignitability.” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said after the game, according to Winderman. “I like what he can do on the drive. He can really get hot from three. Guys were finding him. I think we can definitely build on that.”

Here’s more on the Heat:

  • Nikola Jovic‘s four-year rookie scale extension with the Heat starts at $16,200,000 in 2026/27 before dipping to $14,904,000 in ’27/28, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. The third year of the deal is worth $15,096,000 and then it rises back up to $16,200,000 in year four (’29/30). The structure will give the team some added cap flexibility during the 2027 and 2028 offseasons and suggests that creating cap room in 2026 probably isn’t a goal.
  • Jovic got a second consecutive start in Monday’s preseason game against the Bucks, while center Kel’el Ware, who finished last season as a starter, has yet to play alongside Bam Adebayo this month, notes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
  • Ware put up big numbers off the bench against Milwaukee, scoring 18 points and grabbing 13 rebounds, but he turned the ball over four times and was a -21 on the night. After the game, Spoelstra was more focused on the latter numbers. “I think everybody is looking at the wrong thing,” he said of Ware’s double-double, per Chiang. “It’s got to impact the game. I want him the next game to be a plus-20. That’s what it’s about. … It does not matter if you have 18 and 13 if it’s not impacting the game. … That’s part of being a young player, and that’s why I enjoy coaching him because my responsibility is to help teach him how to connect the dots and become more consistent where it now leads to winning.”
  • The Heat raised eyebrows early in the offseason when they picked up Keshad Johnson‘s guaranteed team option for 2025/26 after he logged just 98 total minutes as a rookie. Now, Johnson says he’s determined to reward the club for its faith in him, as Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald writes. “That shows they were [willing to] bet on me,” Johnson said. “If they bet on me, I’ve got to prove them right.” Johnson added that he’s willing to play either on the wing or in the frontcourt, depending on what the coaching staff asks of him. “Whether I’m undersized or not, I can compete with anybody,” the 6’6″ forward said of potentially playing in the frontcourt.
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Players Seeking Paydays This Season

October 5th, 2025 at 5:03pm CST by Eli Cohen

While some players are still hoping to finalize rookie scale extensions before the season begins, the majority of contract situations around the league have been settled at this point. But business never sleeps in the world of the NBA, and many players will enter this season hoping to impress executives and land their next big payday.

Zach Harper of The Athletic details the top names playing for new deals this season, excluding the aforementioned rookie scale extension seekers.

One player not on a rookie-scale deal but still extension-eligible is Michael Porter Jr., whom the Nets recently acquired to add some scoring pop to the starting lineup. Porter’s deal runs for two more seasons and will pay him $38.3MM this year and $40.8MM in 2026/27.

The Nets’ roster remains a major work in progress, making future projections tricky, but at just 27 years old, Porter is in position to have a big year in Brooklyn and boost his stock entering a contract year next summer. The biggest question, according to Harper, is whether Porter’s next deal would remain in the range of the $40MM+ he’ll earn in 2026/27 or if he would take a modest pay cut to secure a longer-term contract.

Harper takes a look at three big men who could hit the open market next summer: Kristaps Porzingis, the Hawks‘ new starting center, longtime Bulls veteran Nikola Vucevic, and the Knicks‘ on-and-off starter Mitchell Robinson. All three have question marks surrounding them — for Porzingis and Robinson, those questions center around health, though Robinson could also be a cap casualty on New York’s increasingly pricey roster.

Vucevic has been in trade rumors for years, and with the Bulls taking more steps to embrace a youth movement than they have in the past, his time in Chicago could be coming to an end. Harper predicts an annual value of around $21MM for Vucevic on his next deal, which is about what he’ll earn in 2025/26.

Another group of players Harper looks at is a trio of high-scoring guards who will be free agents in 2026: Anfernee Simons and Norman Powell, who were acquired this summer by the Celtics and Heat, respectively, and Coby White, who has grown into a talented combo guard over his six seasons with the Bulls. Harper predicts a deal around $20MM annually for Simons, $75MM over three years for White, and a two-year, $50MM contract for Powell.

The 2026 free agency class will also be impacted by the decisions made by veterans with player options, such as Zach LaVine (Kings), Bradley Beal (Clippers), and Austin Reaves (Lakers). Cam Thomas (Nets) and Quentin Grimes (Sixers) will also reach unrestricted free agency after accepting their respective qualifying offers and will be looking to recoup the money they passed on this offseason.

Finally, Harper singles out four role players who could be coveted next season, depending on their performance this season: Rui Hachimura (Lakers), Tyus Jones (Magic), Keon Ellis (Kings), and Georges Niang (Jazz). The 25-year-old Ellis has broken out over the last two seasons and could command his first real payday of his career if he has a strong season off the bench in Sacramento. Harper speculates he could be in line for a deal similar to the three-year, $27.6MM contract Ty Jerome signed with the Grizzlies this summer.

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