Heat Sign Nikola Jovic To Four-Year Extension
Oct. 3: Jovic’s four-year extension with the Heat is now official, per the team’s Twitter account.
Oct 1: Nikola Jovic has agreed to a four-year, $62.4MM rookie scale extension with the Heat, agents Jeff Schwartz, Sean Kennedy and Jared Mucha of Excel Sports Management tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link). It’s a straight four-year deal with no option for either the team or the player, a source informs Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel (Twitter link).
The 22-year-old power forward is coming off his best statistical season — averaging 10.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game while shooting 45.6% from the field and 37.1% from three-point range — but he was limited to 46 appearances after breaking a bone in his right hand in February. He was able to return for the playoff series against Cleveland and scored 24 points in Game 4, Charania states in a full story.
Jovic was primarily used off the bench last season, starting just 10 games after making 38 starts the year before. He said at Monday’s media day that he hopes to have a chance to compete for a starting role in training camp.
Jovic will make $4.4MM this season in the final year of his rookie contract. The extension will run through the 2029/30 season, and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald notes that he’s currently the team’s only player who’s under contract past ’28/29.
The Heat selected Jovic with the 27th pick in the 2022 draft, but he battled injuries as a rookie and only appeared in 15 games. His role has expanded over the past two seasons, and the extension appears to cement his status as part of the team’s foundation moving forward.
Jovic is the fifth member of the 2022 draft class to receive an extension, joining Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith Jr. and Jalen Williams, as our tracker shows. Teams have until October 20, the day before the start of the regular season, to finalize rookie scale extensions. Players who don’t receive them will become restricted free agents next summer if their teams extend qualifying offers.
As Winderman recently noted, Miami also has important extension decisions upcoming with Tyler Herro and Norman Powell that will determine the team’s financial flexibility for at least the rest of the decade.
Heat Notes: Jovic, Jakucionis, Rozier, Ware, Dragic, More
The contract is not yet official, but Heat forward Nikola Jovic couldn’t contain his excitement regarding his new four-year, $62.4MM rookie scale extension after Thursday’s practice, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
“I feel good,” Jovic said. “I feel good. I’m blessed and everything. Still talking to my agent, you know, progress is being made. Haven’t signed anything officially, but hopefully we’ll get there soon. I’m happy that this ownership and organization sees the talent and sees the work I put in. And I’ll make sure to give my everything to make this contract worth a lot more.”
“It just shows they respect me and they want me here,” Jovic added, per Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “So I got a little extra boost knowing that I can show what I can do. As simple as that. I’m still going to do my thing and try to be the best player as possible.”
Jovic, a 22-year-old from Serbia, was selected 27th overall in the 2022 draft. He says he appreciated key members of the team coming to visit him this summer as he prepared for EuroBasket 2025, Chiang notes.
“I felt like last year before I got injured, I really felt like I can help this team win,” Jovic said. “From there, even after the injury, I felt like they knew what I bring. They know what I can bring to the table and how I can help this team win. And [Heat coach Erik Spoelstra and assistant general manager Adam Simon] coming to Serbia [this past summer] and seeing me and meeting my family and everything, I felt really like a part of the family.”
Here’s more on the Heat:
- 2025 first-round pick Kasparas Jakucionis was sidelined during Thursday’s practice due to a left wrist sprain, Chiang adds. An MRI on the wrist was negative. The Heat believe the Lithuanian guard won’t be sidelined for very long, according to Chiang.
- Veteran guard Terry Rozier was another player who was held out Thursday. He suffered a left hamstring strain on Tuesday but expects to be back next week, tweets Winderman. Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press has also heard the injury isn’t expected to be serious (Twitter link).
- Miami has high expectations for Kel’el Ware and the team has been pushing him hard in his second training camp, according to Chiang. Spoelstra, who was critical of Ware at the start of Summer League, has said the the 21-year-old won’t be handed a starting job but he enjoys working with the second-year center. “Despite what people think my tenor is with him or whatever, I really enjoy coaching Kel’el,” Spoelstra said. “He’s a young player, and he’s learning our standards and learning the head coach’s standards of approaching every single day to strive for excellence and not accept anything less than that. And then you stack a bunch of days up like that, then eventually as a young player you start to learn how, oh, that impacts winning. Is he there yet? No. Does he show signs of that? Yes. Because he does really care. He cares about it. He’s learning it, and that’s OK for a young player.”
- Former Heat guard Goran Dragic is expected to rejoin the organization in a formal capacity at some point in the future, Chiang writes in a third story. Dragic’s specific role has yet to be determined — he was working with Jakucionis during Tuesday’s practice before flying home to Europe on Wednesday. “I just like having him around,” Spoelstra said. “He’s not just exclusively working with Kas. He has great experience. Everybody respects him. He has a great way of communicating to guys. I think he just naturally fits a mentorship role. But he can also add value to scouting and other areas. I think we’ll be able to make, hopefully, something work for both sides.”
- The Heat will have virtually no cap space next summer if Andrew Wiggins exercises his $30.2MM player option for 2026/27, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Jovic’s impending extension didn’t impact that projection much since his cap hold would have been similar to the first year of his new deal, which starts in 2026.
Heat Notes: Herro, Jovic, Smith, Powell, Ware, Rozier
Heat guard Tyler Herro suggested on Monday that his return from ankle surgery could take longer than initial projections, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. Herro underwent surgery this month to alleviate posterior impingement syndrome in his left ankle with the expectation he’d miss about eight weeks.
Herro, who said he couldn’t even jump due to the ankle pain prior to surgery, said the rehab process could go a little longer.
“I’ll be back in the next eight to 12 weeks,” Herro said. “Should be a full recovery. Right now, I’m ahead of schedule as far as the swelling. I should get the stitches out in the next week.”
However, Herro told coach Erik Spoelstra that he’ll try to return on a more accelerated timetable.
“I told Spo that I’ll be back in six weeks,” Herro said. “I’m ahead of schedule.”
Here’s more from the Heat during their annual media day:
- Nikola Jovic is one of the Heat players who is extension-eligible this preseason with an Oct. 20 deadline. He downplayed extension talks on Monday, Winderman tweets. Winderman speculated last week that a contract in the range of $50-60MM over four years could appeal to both sides. Jovic added that he hopes to get a chance to earn a starting job during training camp, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets.
- Dru Smith, who was signed to a three-year deal in August, said he’s been cleared to play in preseason games, according to Jackson. Smith suffered an Achilles tear in December.
- The addition of veteran forward and proven scorer Norman Powell via trade in July came as a pleasant surprise to Spoelstra, according to Jackson and Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “We’re excited to have Norm with us, his ability to put the ball in the basket. He can do it on the ball, can do it off the ball,” the coach said. “He’s been able to be efficient in a lot of different roles. He’s been part of a lot of winning teams. He’s a competitive dude, has got an edge to him. His work ethic is tremendous. We will thrilled [to get him]. There were a lot of things we planned to do this summer; that one was a little bit of a surprise.”
- Second-year big man Kel’el Ware won’t be handed the starting center job. “He and Bam (Adebayo) had some good moments together. In the playoffs, it wasn’t good,” Spoelstra said. “He’s positioning himself for an important role. He’ll have to prove it; he will have to earn it.”
- Terry Rozier, whose status with the team this season remains up in the air, has been preparing for the season in Miami, according to Spoelstra. “Terry has been in the gym since the middle of July,” he said. “He is in great shape, lost 10, 12 pounds. He was playing pickup anywhere he could in Miami [this summer].”
- Rozier said the FBI investigation regarding suspicious bets when he played for Charlotte weighed on him initially, but is no longer a concern, according to Jackson (Twitter link). He declined to say what his attorney has told him about where that investigation stands. The NBA found no wrongdoing in its own investigation.
Heat Extension Notes: Herro, Jovic, Powell
The Heat are operating in something of a middle ground from a competitive standpoint in their first full season of the post-Jimmy Butler era. They were able to land Norman Powell via trade while sending out Kevin Love and Kyle Anderson, who were unlikely to play major roles for the team, but have otherwise had a relatively quiet offseason.
However, there are still some big decisions to be made, as Ira Winderman explores for the South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscriber link). Tyler Herro, who recently underwent ankle surgery, is extension-eligible, as are Powell and Nikola Jovic.
As Winderman writes, the window for the Heat and Herro to come to an agreement will be open for less than three weeks, from October 1-20. The 25-year-old, who is under contract through 2026/27, is coming off his first All-Star selection after averaging a career-highs of 23.9 points and 5.5 assists while playing a career-best 77 games.
A maximum extension for Herro would come out to three years and $149.8MM. While Herro has been a productive, hard-working player throughout his time in Miami, Winderman notes that the team has always appeared more committed to Bam Adebayo as a cornerstone than Herro.
Ultimately, Winderman predicts that unless Herro budges off his max number, the two sides will not reach an agreement before the extension deadline. However, he believes that there will be plenty of willingness to find a deal that works for both sides in future offseasons.
When it comes to Jovic, Winderman observes that there’s no argument for him commanding a deal in the same range of Herro or Adebayo, but that locking in guaranteed long-term money somewhere in the neighborhood of the mid-level – such as a deal worth between $50-60MM over four years – could appeal to both sides.
Jovic would get security with the team and not have to risk restricted free agency, which has a tendency to squeeze less-established young players, and if he can prove himself to be a fifth starter or even one of the first players off the bench, the extension could become a team-friendly contract for Miami.
Finally, there’s Powell. He’s by no means a seamless fit next to Herro in the backcourt, assuming both start, which is not guaranteed. There’s also the locker-room issue of potentially signing Powell to an extension while not signing Herro, which could rankle the Heat lifer.
The Heat also may want to maintain as much cap flexibility as possible for 2026, when Terry Rozier‘s big expiring contract will also come off the books.
These factors have Winderman leaning no on a Powell extension, unless the Heat extend or trade Herro. However, Winderman notes that should Powell break out for the team with Herro recovering from surgery, that would improve his chances of landing a long-term deal.
This lines up with previous reporting from Miami Herald writer Barry Jackson, who indicated that the Heat would be open to the possibility of an extension if Powell starts the season well. Unlike Herro and Jovic, he’ll remain extension-eligible beyond opening night, all the way until June 30, 2026.
EuroBasket Notes: Wagner, Doncic, Larkin, Serbia
Germany advanced to the EuroBasket quarterfinals earlier today by beating Portugal, but the experience is somewhat bittersweet for Franz Wagner because his brother isn’t involved, writes Edvinas Jablonskis of BasketNews. Moritz Wagner, normally a regular part of the German national team, is still recovering from an ACL tear in his left knee that he suffered in December.
“He’s now doing some media stuff, I think, for German television as well,” Franz said. “So he’s watching all the games for sure. And obviously, we talk to him a bunch, so I know that he would love to be here.”
Moritz has been representing Germany for more than a decade, dating back to under-18 tournaments. He was part of the 2023 squad that went undefeated while capturing the gold medal at the World Cup, and he earned MVP honors in the qualifying tournament for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Franz, who led the team with 16 points in the win over Portugal, said his brother has been offering encouraging words from the sidelines.
“Just have fun, go out there and enjoy the game,” he said. “Obviously, there’s pressure and all this stuff involved, but at the end of the day, we’re playing the game.”
There’s more from EuroBasket:
- After posting a triple-double last Sunday against Belgium, Luka Doncic narrowly missed another one in Thursday’s win over Israel, according to Eurohoops. The Slovenian star, who finished with 37 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, said he and his teammates are confident about their medal chances. “We’re hoping for the medal. We think we can win a medal,” he said. “I know a lot of others don’t, but we believe in us. Everybody that’s here, we all believe, everyone in everyone.”
- Shane Larkin, who became a star in Turkey after a brief NBA career, wants to pay back the country by winning a medal, per Samih Tuna of Eurohoops. “If I’m part of the team that went out there and did something special, bring a medal back home to Turkiye, it would mean everything to me,” Larkin said.
- Serbian head coach Svetislav Pesic blamed a lack of physicality for today’s upset loss to Finland, BasketNews relays. Finland collected 20 offensive rebounds, resulting in numerous second-chance points. “We can look for excuses, but the reality is that you need to be in better physical shape at a tournament like this,” Pesic said. “We weren’t. Several players played through injuries. We also had a virus in the team — an illness. Nikola Jovic didn’t practice. Those things are not excuses, but when you play against a team like this, at a tournament like this, you need to be physically stronger. You can’t say the players didn’t give what they could — you can always give more, but it just didn’t happen.”
Heat Notes: Arison, Training Camp, Jakucionis, Highsmith
In advance of tonight’s induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Micky Arison participated in Friday’s media session and spoke about his memories from three decades as majority owner of the Heat, per Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Under Arison, who was elected in his first year as a finalist, Miami has made seven trips to the NBA Finals and captured three titles.
“I would just say I’m appreciative. It is an honor… It was never a goal,” he said of the Hall of Fame selection. “Our goal was to win championships. Was fortunate enough to win three. Our goal was to create a fantastic atmosphere in Miami. Most great NBA players, coaches it’s a goal for them. It’s never been a goal for me. Despite that, I’m extremely appreciative.”
Hall of Fame weekend marks a rare moment in the spotlight for Arison, as Jackson and Chiang note that he hasn’t spoken with beat reporters since 2013 and declined interview requests regarding his election. As his presenters, he chose Heat president Pat Riley and franchise legends Alonzo Mourning and Dwyane Wade.
“They were three key elements to our history for 30 years,” Arison said. “Pat was with me almost from the very beginning. Zo (was acquired) the first year. From there the culture was created. Dwyane Wade helped take it to the top. Obviously the greatest player in Heat history; (he has) a statue on the top steps (of Kaseya Center). I’m glad those three will be with me.”
There’s more on the Heat:
- Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel (subscription required) previews several battles to watch when training camp opens later this month, including Kel’el Ware vs. Nikola Jovic for a potential starting spot and Tyler Herro vs. Davion Mitchell to be the crunch-time point guard. Winderman expects Andrew Wiggins and newly acquired Norman Powell to both be in the starting lineup, but coach Erik Spoelstra‘s decision on how to use them could factor into their long-term future with the team. Powell has an expiring contract, and Wiggins holds a player option for next season.
- The fate of Kasparas Jakucionis is also worth keeping an eye on, Winderman adds. The first-round pick struggled during Summer League games and seemed like he might need some time in the G League, but Winderman suggests he may be able to avoid that fate with a strong showing in camp and the preseason.
- Haywood Highsmith, who was traded to the Nets last month, recently offered a heartfelt farewell to the Heat organization and fans on his Instagram account. “You gave an undrafted kid from Baltimore a chance and I’m forever grateful for the journey, challenges, and growth I’ve experienced here,” he wrote. “Miami will always have a special place in my heart.”
Finland Shocks Serbia; Lithuania Also Reaches EuroBasket Quarterfinals
Finland pulled off one of the biggest international upsets in recent years, surprising Serbia on Saturday in a EuroBasket elimination game, writes Edvinas Jablonskis of BasketNews. Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen led the way for the Finnish team with 29 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals in the 92-86 victory.
“Unreal,” Markkanen said. “Great performance by the team. We needed every single one of them tonight — everybody in the stands, the staff, the players. Big credit to them. We’re not done yet, but we’re gonna enjoy this. Obviously, that’s a heck of a team we just beat, and now we move forward.”
Led by perennial MVP candidate Nikola Jokic and with six other current and former NBA players on its roster, Serbia was considered among the favorites for the EuroBasket title when the tournament began. But its prospects took a major hit when Bogdan Bogdanovic suffered a ruptured hamstring muscle last week that forced him out of the competition.
Serbia cruised to victories in its first four games behind dominant performances from Jokic. However, they dropped to second in Group A after Wednesday’s loss to Turkey and didn’t respond well in the knockout round.
Jokic delivered 33 points and eight rebounds on Saturday, but Serbia didn’t offer much other scoring punch outside of Nikola Jovic‘s 20 points. Despite his many career accomplishments, Jokic has never medaled at EuroBasket.
Up next for Finland will be the winner of Sunday’s game between France and Georgia.
Lithuania also advanced to the quarterfinals on Saturday with an 88-79 victory over Latvia, joining Turkey and Germany, who won earlier in the day.
With Rokas Jokubaitis sidelined by a serious knee injury, Arnas Velicka starred for the Lithuanians with 21 points, 12 assists and five rebounds, while Azuolas Tubelis contributed 18 points and 12 rebounds and Deividas Sirvydis added 18 points.
Latvia was eliminated despite a stellar performance from Hawks big man Kristaps Porzingis, who finished with 34 points and 19 rebounds before fouling out late in the game. Porzingis told reporters that he has mostly recovered from the illness that sapped his strength last season with Boston, according to BasketNews.
“It’s true that there were still some days when I wasn’t feeling perfect, and I’m still working my way back to having my gas tank full,” he said. “But as the tournament went on, I started to feel really good physically, and I knew I could push my body, I could push myself to go. Today was an example of that. It’s just up from now. Overall, a great summer with my Latvian teammates, being back home, enjoying time with family. And yeah, I would have liked to finish on a more beautiful note.”
Lithuania’s quarterfinals opponent will be the winner of Sunday’s Greece-Israel matchup.
Heat Notes: Riley, EuroBasket, Fontecchio, Jovic, Ware
With Heat owner Micky Arison set to be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend and team president Pat Riley among the prior honorees slated to present him, Riley reflected on his 30 years with the organization, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
“Micky and I had that kind of relationship back and forth, but always positive about what we’re trying to do,” Riley said. “If he didn’t like something, he would tell me, ‘I don’t think we should go that way,’ and I wouldn’t go that way. If he said, ‘Go for it. Damn right, let’s go for it,’ we had the same mentality.
“But if you don’t take a risk — a big-three type risk [signing free agent All-Stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in 2010], Lamar Odom type risk or Shaquille O’Neal type risk or Jimmy Butler type risk or whatever it is — then you’re too afraid and there’s a fear of failure there,” Riley continued. “So when you make a calculated risk, he has made a lot of them with me — some of them haven’t worked, some of them have worked big time.”
With Riley running its front office, Miami has made a total of seven NBA Finals, winning three championships.
There’s more out of Miami:
- While playing for their respective national teams at EuroBasket this year, Heat role players Nikola Jovic, Pelle Larsson and Simone Fontecchio are all showing out in larger roles than they’ve had in Miami so far. Still, Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel cautions that their production shouldn’t necessarily indicate that they’re capable of taking a leap with the Heat in 2025/26.
- There had been “strong rumbles” last month that the Heat were looking into trading Fontecchio, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link). Stein notes that this buzz happened before Miami traded Haywood Highsmith to Brooklyn. Now that the Heat find themselves below the league’s luxury tax following the Highsmith deal, there is likely little urgency to offload Fontecchio.
- With Jovic playing an outsized role for his native Serbia in EuroBasket, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald considers whether Miami would be served better by starting the young forward in the frontcourt next to Bam Adebayo over center Kel’el Ware. Jackson notes that shifting Adebayo to the four spot while starting Ware at the five last year proved statistically more effective than keeping Adebayo at center and starting Jovic.
Eastern Notes: Nets, Celtics, Bulls, Jovic
The Nets still have roughly $16MM in cap space left, according to New York Post’s Brian Lewis, and could still explore ways to add more draft assets from a team looking to dump salary. The Nets have already absorbed the contracts of Michael Porter Jr., Terance Mann and Haywood Highsmith while picking up a 2025 first-round pick (Drake Powell was taken in that spot), the Nuggets’ unprotected 2032 first-round pick and the Heat’s 2032 second-rounder. They are actively looking for more of those opportunities, Lewis reports.
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Now that the Celtics ownership has changed hands, will there be a change of venue? The Boston Globe’s Shirley Leung explores that possibility, noting that the new owners are keeping their options open. Currently, the Celtics share TD Garden with the NHL Bruins and rent from Garden owner Delaware North, Leung points out. It might more sense for the franchise to play in a new basketball arena flanked by real estate development in the surrounding area.
- The Chicago Sun-Times’ Joe Cowley has offered plenty of criticism regarding the Bulls’ front office in recent years. However, Cowley believes that there are other front offices more dysfunctional that the one led by executive VP Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley, placing the Pelicans, Knicks and Suns in that category.
- Nikola Jovic suffered what appeared to be a minor hand injury in Serbia’s 82-60 EuroBasket victory over the Czech Republic, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel tweets. The Heat forward had 10 points and six rebounds for Serbia, which has already had clinched a spot in the round of 16.
Heat Notes: Stretch Provision, Rozier, Jovic, Fontecchio, Larsson
The Heat could have created more flexibility below the luxury tax line for the upcoming season by using the waive-and-stretch provision, but they passed on that option prior to Friday’s deadline, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald notes.
The most obvious candidate would have been Terry Rozier, as his contract carries a $26.7MM cap hit. The Heat could have stretched that to $8.9MM over each the next three seasons. However, there was no real urgency to take that route once they traded Haywood Highsmith to the Nets.
Miami is approximately $1.7MM under the luxury tax threshold and around $7.2MM below the first apron. The Heat have 15 players signed to standard deals, including one training camp contract, but only 12 have fully guaranteed salaries, as our roster counts display.
Here’s more on the Heat:
- Speaking of Rozier, it’s unlikely he’ll be part of the rotation if he remains on the roster, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. The Heat will likely go with younger players like Pelle Larsson, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and/or rookie Kasparas Jakucionis off the bench, rather than Rozier. The veteran could find his way into the mix if one of their wing scorers gets injured, suggests Winderman.
- Nikola Jovic had another solid outing in the EuroBasket tournament on Friday. He made all six of his field goal attempts while scoring 18 points during Serbia’s win over Portugal, Chiang tweets. Jovic added six rebounds in 31 minutes.
- Simone Fontecchio, acquired from Detroit in the Duncan Robinson sign-and-trade, continued to struggle for Italy in its win over Georgia on Saturday. Fontecchio scored four points on 1-for-11 shooting in Italy’s opening game in EuroBasket. In Italy’s second tournament game, Fontecchio scored 14 points but missed all five of his three-point attempts and committed six turnovers, Chiang relays (Twitter link).
- Larsson missed Sweden’s second EuroBasket game on Friday due to an illness but quickly bounced back. Larsson had 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting, four rebounds, two assists and two steals with five turnovers in a 78-59 victory over Great Britain on Saturday, Winderman tweets.