BOCA RATON, Fla. — On Thursday, the Miami Heat were nearly 48 hours from their first test of the 2026 preseason, and after three days of training camp at Florida Atlantic University, one thing is clear: this roster's depth goes far beyond its biggest stars.
While adding Giannis Antetokounmpo alongside Bam Adebayo will be something to watch in the paint this season, Miami's returning guards and new arrivals are making a strong case that this team could be dangerous from top to bottom.
WATCH BELOW: Miami Heat's new threats: Giannis, Thompson, Hardaway Jr.
Andrew Wiggins: Seamless in every role
Andrew Wiggins — the former No. 1 overall pick entering his 13th NBA season — is one of those essential pieces. Coach Erik Spoelstra spoke about what Wiggins brings to this team.
"He's been able to fit around with great teams, great players and do it seamlessly. Makes it look easier than it actually is," Spoelstra said.
On defense, Spoelstra said Wiggins could guard other teams' best player.
"He can guard the other team's top guys, that's one through 4," Spoelstra said. "Offensively, he's still a guy that you can put the ball in his hands and he knows what to do with it," Spoelstra said.
Spoelstra said he has seen significant growth from Wiggins over the past couple of seasons.
"Playing off the ball and playing off other great players and he can toggle back and forth. Those kind of guys are so invaluable. It's hard to find the guys with that kind of role acceptance and still be really good at at those things," Spoelstra said.
Davion Mitchell: 'Off Night' is learning from the best
Davion Mitchell or "Off Night," as some call him, is another guard who could play a pivotal role in Miami's success.
"I think that naturally the guards that we have, we're just a disruptive group, especially Drew. He's like one of the most disruptive players I ever played against," Mitchell said.
Mitchell said he's using training camp to sharpen his game, with a particular focus on generating turnovers and making more plays on the defensive end.
"I'm just kind of learning things from Drew, trying to figure out how I can cause more turnovers instead of me just standing in front of my man, just figure out how to get the ball on the other end. So little things like that," Mitchell said.
Beyond Wiggins and Mitchell, Miami also returns guards Pelle Larsson and Drew Smith. The Heat further deepened their roster by adding Tim Hardaway Jr. and Klay Thompson.
Mitchell said having championship-tested players like Thompson in the locker room is already elevating the entire camp.
"I mean the former champions, I think that's like the biggest thing, guys have been there before. So they kind of know how to approach the young guys or guys like me that's trying to learn from these guys. They didn't know how to approach training camp just to be physically and mentally ready. Guys coming in like that, it just make the whole training camp just a lot better," Mitchell said.
Miami's first preseason game is Saturday against the Toronto Raptors. The regular season begins Oct. 21.
