Miami Heat's Roster Moves: The Simmons Gamble

The Miami Heat have spent the past week methodically filling holes. Shooting? Klay Thompson. Size? Nick Richards.

One question still hangs over everything: Who actually runs this offense when Davion Mitchell sits down?

A roster with one missing piece

Mitchell is penciled in as the starting point guard, but the depth chart behind him bends out of shape in a hurry. Dru Smith can soak up minutes, yet he’s more stopgap than solution. Tim Hardaway Jr., Thompson and Pelle Larsson all do their best work off the ball. They finish possessions, they don’t steer them.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo can initiate from the frontcourt, and Miami will lean heavily on that. But there’s still a gap: a steady hand in the backcourt who can organize possessions, calm the game, get the right people the ball in the right spots.

That’s where Ben Simmons suddenly becomes more than just a name from the past.

The Simmons question

At 30, Simmons is trying to drag his career out of the injury wilderness. He didn’t play last season. Sacramento Kings general manager Scott Perry flew to Florida this week to watch the former No. 1 pick work out, according to Sactown Sports 1140’s Carmichael Dave, who later relayed that someone in the gym thought Simmons “looked fantastic.”

For Miami, that kind of report doesn’t just spark curiosity. It invites a calculation.

On a veteran minimum, this is exactly the sort of gamble the Heat have lived on for years.

No one in Miami is dreaming of the three-time All-Star version from his Philadelphia days. That player is gone, and expecting him back would be a mistake. The version the Heat would be buying into is simpler and more specific.

• Defend.
• Rebound.
• Create.

Even after the injuries, Simmons remains one of the league’s strangest matchups at 6-foot-10. In his last NBA season, 2024-25, he averaged 5.0 points, 5.6 assists and 4.7 rebounds over 51 games split between the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Clippers. The box score no longer screamed “franchise cornerstone,” but it still whispered “playmaker.”

His shooting issues haven’t disappeared, and they still shape every conversation about him. Put Simmons on the floor next to Antetokounmpo and Adebayo for long stretches and the paint could feel like rush-hour traffic. Spacing would tighten. Driving lanes would vanish.

But Miami has changed the math around that problem.

Thompson gives Erik Spoelstra one of the greatest shooters of all time to stretch the floor. Hardaway, Andrew Wiggins and Simone Fontecchio provide more perimeter threats. Richards, now in place as a true backup center, means Simmons wouldn’t have to masquerade as a small-ball 5 just to get minutes.

Spoelstra could instead drop him into a role that fits his current game: second-unit initiator, point forward, switchable defender who ties together bench lineups and keeps the offense moving when Mitchell rests.

That’s exactly the role this roster still lacks.

A different kind of swing

Richards’ arrival quietly shifted Miami’s priorities for its final roster spot. Before he signed, the Heat were hunting another big. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported that the plan was to use the 14th spot on a power forward or center, with Richards high on the list.

That box is now ticked.

Spot No. 15 can be about upside.

Around Antetokounmpo and Adebayo, the Heat have already reshaped their identity. Thompson brings championship pedigree and elite shooting. Richards brings size and rebounding. The glaring weakness that remains is a reliable ball-handler who can create for others when Mitchell isn’t on the floor.

Simmons comes with risk. Significant risk. Back problems derailed his career, and he hasn’t played an NBA game since 2025. He told Men’s Health that nerve pain pushed him to step away before he began this latest comeback attempt in the summer.

If his recent workout truly impressed, Miami won’t be alone in the chase. Sacramento needs veteran help behind rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr., and the Kings can dangle a clearer path to minutes and on-ball responsibility.

The Heat, though, can offer something different.

A clearly defined supporting role on a contender. A coaching staff that has made a habit of squeezing value out of unconventional, discarded or doubted players. And, with Richards in place, enough roster balance to justify a roll of the dice on a flawed but intriguing playmaker.

For the veteran minimum, Simmons’ mix of size, defense and passing is exactly the sort of bet Miami has so often turned into a story.

The only real question now: are the Heat willing to let this one walk to someone else?