The Miami Heat need to officially lean into Kel'el Ware, the starter

Ware has too high an upside to sit

Dec 21, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Miami Heat center Kel'El Ware (7) takes a three-point shot in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Kel'el Ware has put up 20 or more points in three straight games: Kel'el Ware entered the starting lineup for those three games.

Kel'el Ware has taken 14 threes over the last two games: Kel'el Ware made 11 of those.

Five players have grabbed 300 rebounds so far this season: Kel'el Ware is one of them.

The list simply goes on and on regarding the wild numbers Ware continues to put up this season whenever he gets extended playing time. The more minutes he plays means the more shots he gets. And the more shots he gets, the more his confidence grows into real two-way impact.

"Impacting winning" is the number one thing Erik Spoelstra has been calling for since Summer League regarding this second year big man. Even going back to a preseason game against the Bucks on October 6th, where he put up a loud 18 points and 13 rebounds in a loss.

"It doesn’t matter if you have 18 and 13 if you’re not impacting the game," Spoelstra said post-game that night, with the goal to possibly continue to push him in a positive direction.

Spo asked about Kel’el again tonight, and goes right back to wanting him to “impact winning” and not to look at stats:

“It doesn’t matter if you have 18 and 13 if you’re not impacting the game.”

Says there was a 3 minute pocket late where he felt he did

Says Niko and Jaime did

— Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) October 7, 2025

These last two losses against Boston and New York have included loud point and rebounding totals for Ware yet again, and while it didn't lead to wins, he indeed is "impacting the game."

Second efforts on defense, getting off his feet to go grab boards, making smart decisions on the offensive end. There is undoubtedly a positive impact being made on the game in his minutes at the moment.

That leads to a very interesting debate: when (or if) the Heat ever get fully healthy, who gets demoted from the starting lineup?

I'll just start here. There's no way it should be their second year 7 footer with clear high level upside.

Why is nobody talking about Kel'el Ware?? pic.twitter.com/jxBpHxp6Yp

— Real Sports (@realapp) December 22, 2025

As much as the organization will never admit it, this isn't a true contending year when evaluating the roster's current situation. What that means is that there should be even more urgency to prioritize your upside young pieces, including Kasparas Jakicionis who should continue to see a minutes bump.

So if Ware becomes a constant in the first unit when Tyler Herro returns, who goes to the bench?

I'd keep an eye on Andrew Wiggins, who has struggled on the offensive end as of late. For one, he's a player who would have no problem with a role change like this due to his willing personality.

But maybe this is a chance to get Wiggins back into an offensive flow in the correct role. When Wiggins is at his best, it's when he's playing a condensed offensive game off the catch.

The high usage Jaime Jaquez Jr slotted next to him off the bench could be a chance to do that.

Since Dec 18, this is where Kel’el Ware ranks in the entire league:

- 45 REB (1st in NBA)
- 31 DREB (1st in NBA)
- 173.2 ORTG (2nd in NBA)
- 14 OREB (2nd in NBA)
- 12 3PM (4th in NBA)
- 27 FGM (4th in NBA)
- 74 PTS (5th in NBA)

He needs to be a permanent starter from now on. pic.twitter.com/DXI9CBHrOF

— 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙩𝘾𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 (@WadexFlash) December 22, 2025

If the starting thing for Ware does come into fruition, continuing to prioritize his shot attempts and touches will be important. When he is utilized as a vertical threat around the basket, it moves the defense around in ways that few players can force.

The three-ball is peaking as well, and if teams start to respect his jumper a little more, it'll open up the real scary part of his scoring possibilities: driving hard off close-outs with his long wing-span and finishing ability.

One week ago when the Heat faced the Toronto Raptors, Herro was ruled out and Simone Fontecchio got the spot start over Ware. Fast forward to this upcoming match-up with this same Raptors team, Ware isn't just a spot starter.

He should be a constant starter.