Inside The Heat

Dru Smith Re-signs With The Miami Heat On New Deal

Ethan J. Skolnick|
Dec 23, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat guard Dru Smith (12) dribbles the basketball against the Brooklyn Nets during the second quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
Dec 23, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat guard Dru Smith (12) dribbles the basketball against the Brooklyn Nets during the second quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

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Miami Heat

Erik Spoelstra has always really liked Dru Smith.

The defensive-minded undrafted free agent with the quirky shot, who didn't show much early, was prioritized by the Miami Heat coach above more celebrated prospects, such as former first round pick RJ Hampton. Smith blew out his ACL one season. The Heat brought him back. Then, after he played surprisingly well early in the 2024-25 season, he tore his Achilles tendon.

Two traumatic lower body injuries in two years.

And still, the Heat are signing him to a three-year contract.

It should have been obvious this was happening, since the Heat's social media team has been regularly posting videos of Smith working out at the team facility. Then the Heat cleared a roster spot -- and money -- by shipping another defense-first player, Haywood Highsmith, off to Brooklyn on Friday.

Smith was not eligible for a two-way deal, so the Highsmith trade cleared the way for the Heat to give him their 14th standard contract. They may wait to fill that, or could give it to recent workout invite Kai Jones, who is now training with the Bahamas in Nicaragua for the AmeriCup.

What does Smith bring?

Well, he's tenacious on defense, similar to Davion Mitchell, who signed a two-year, $24 million contract to remain with the Heat this offseason. And he's a bit bigger. He's not much of a playmaker, but he didn't turn it over much last season, and he made more open shots than expected.

Mostly, he seems to be Spoelstra's security blanket.

Don't be stunned if Smith works his way back into the rotation, ahead of Terry Rozier for sure, once he's fully healthy.

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Ethan J. Skolnick
ETHAN J. SKOLNICK

Ethan has covered all major sports -- in South Florida and beyond -- since 1996 and is one of the longest-tenured fully credentialed members of the Miami Heat. He has covered, in total, more than 30 NBA Finals, Super Bowls, World Series and Stanley Cup Finals. After working full-time for the Miami Herald, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, Bleacher Report and several other outlets, he founded the Five Reasons Sports Network in 2019 and began hosting the Five on the Floor podcast as part of that network. The podcast is regularly among the most downloaded one-team focused NBA podcasts in the nation, and the network is the largest independent sports outlet in South Florida, by views, listens and social media reach. He has a B.A. from The Johns Hopkins University and an M.S. from Columbia University. TWITTER: @EthanJSkolnick and @5ReasonsSports EMAIL: fllscribe@gmail.com

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