MIAMI — There will be no waiting game for the Miami Heat when it comes to the free agency of guard Davion Mitchell. That is because Mitchell will not be entering NBA free agency.
Having received an $8.7 million qualifying offer from the Heat that would have had him as a restricted free agent at Monday’s 6 p.m. start of NBA free agency, Mitchell instead agreed to a two-year, $24 million contract to continue with the team with which he had a breakthrough after being acquired at midseason from the Toronto Raptors.
The type of defensive point-of-attack presence the Heat had lacked, Mitchell, 26, revitalized his career through unexpectedly solid shooting and the type of defensive deterrence that long has stood as a Heat trademark.
With the agreement on the two-year deal, the Heat now have 15 players under standard contract for next season, which is the NBA limit.
That total could be adjusted Sunday or thereafter, depending on the approach with guard Duncan Robinson.
Robinson has a Sunday 5 p.m. deadline to invoke an early-termination clause on what otherwise would be a $20 million salary for next season on the final year of his five-year, $90 million contract. However, only $10 million of that 2025-26 salary is guaranteed, with the Heat with a July 8 deadline to guarantee the other $10 million.
Among the options with Robinson would be for the 3-point specialist to bypass the $20 million salary on the books and instead restructure a contract that would start closer to his $10 million guarantee.
With the agreement with Mitchell, the Heat currently stand above the punitive NBA luxury tax, but would be able to skirt that penalty by reducing the money owed to Robinson or by waiving him.
Had Mitchell reached the open market, the Heat would have had the right to match outside offers, offers that would have been more for the two-year term that the Heat agreed upon.
Until arriving to the Heat, it had been an uneven NBA ride for Mitchell, who was drafted No. 9 by the Sacramento Kings in 2021 out of Baylor. Mitchell spent three inconsistent seasons with the Kings before being dealt last summer to the Raptors.
Mitchell, who earned $6.5 million this past season on the final year of his rookie-scale contract, elevated his play in his 30 regular-season appearances with the Heat, averaging 10.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game while shooting .504 from the field and .447 on 3-pointers. He almost singlehandedly put the Heat in the playoffs by converting three overtime 3-pointers in the play-in victory that pushed the Heat in the postseason, when a loss that night to the Atlanta Hawks otherwise would have dropped the Heat into the lottery.
At the moment, this largely leaves the Heat with a similar roster to the one that closed last season at 37-45, advancing to the playoffs after finishing in 10th place in the Eastern Conference. The Heat then were blown out by the Cleveland Cavaliers in a 4-0 first round playoff sweep that was the most lopsided playoff-series margin in NBA history.
Up next for the Heat will be a study into the possibilities of the trade market. Such speculation includes the future of forward Andrew Wiggins.
Mitchell and Wiggins were acquired at the Feb. 6 NBA trading deadline, in the move that sent Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors.
At the moment, the only significant change from the Heat’s season-ending roster is first-round addition of No. 20 pick draft pick Kasparas Jakucionis, the playmaking guard from Illinois.
With the Heat standard roster now at 15, the question of a potential return of 3-point specialist Alec Burks likely will come down to the Heat approach with Robinson.
Burks said earlier this summer at an appearance at the Heat youth camp at Cooper City High School that his goal was to return, with a desire to get such an agreement completed as soon as possible.
The Heat were able to negotiate with Mitchell ahead of Monday’s 6 p.m. start of free agency because he was their own free agent. Any contact with outside free agents has to wait until 6 p.m. Monday.
While the Heat have resources to pursue free agents, including salary-cap exceptions, their current position against the luxury tax makes free-agency moves on Monday unlikely, with a greater focus now on the trade market.
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