The Miami Heat have made some solid additions to their roster this offseason. These moves have made the Heat appear to be a more competitive team heading into the regular season.
After moving on some of the veterans on the roster, the Heat are a revitalized team filled with youthful energy. However, certain roster weaknesses remain.
Miami’s frontcourt is anchored by an elite two-way big man in Bam Adebayo and promising second-year center Kel’el Ware. Despite heavy investment in both players, frontcourt depth remains a concern.
To address this, the Heat have explored the free agent market, where several names have surfaced as potential additions. Among these, former Knicks big man Precious Achiuwa could be viewed as a viable option.
Achiuwa is a former first-round pick from the class of 2020. Having been drafted by the Heat, the big man is familiar with the franchise and its culture. In many ways, he represents a logical fit for the frontcourt rotation.
The 25-year-old brings a lot of upside with him on both ends of the floor. His athletic tools have helped him contribute across multiple lineups.
On the offensive end, Achiuwa has displayed a lot of versatility. At his size, he has demonstrated speed and athleticism, allowing him to beat defenders off the ball and be an effective rim-runner. He’s also effective in the dunker’s spot, though not all offenses prioritize this role.
In Toronto, he was given more freedom to handle the ball and push the pace. This produced favorable results as he could be seen leading transition offense and occasionally attempting pull-up threes, though with limited success.
Defensively, the big man has shown himself to be flexible and capable of guarding multiple positions. His agility helps him stay with guards, while his strength enables him to battle inside against bigger players.
Achiuwa’s defensive contributions don’t show up on the stat sheet, but his energy and effort are tangible. He’s a serviceable disruptor and defender, though he hasn’t yet developed into a true two-way force.
Last season with the Knicks, the 25-year-old recorded an average of 6.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while shooting 50.2% from the field and 27.8% from three-point range.
These numbers don’t fully reflect his capabilities. Given New York’s system last season, under coach Tom Thibodeau, Achiuwa barely received any playing time.
In a more prominent role, like his time with the Raptors, he was significantly more productive, recording an average of 8.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.
With his rebounding and offensive versatility, Achiuwa could prove valuable for Miami. He effectively acts as a replacement for Adebayo and bolsters the Heat frontcourt, allowing the star big man to rest without losing too much momentum during games.
Heat Would Remain Undersized After Signing Achiuwa
Achiuwa’s addition won’t dramatically improve Miami’s roster strength, but it will help in fortifying it. However, the signing won’t address the Heat’s lack of size.
At 6’8″, Achiuwa is an undersized, small-ball big man, much like Adebayo. While this makes him an ideal replacement in many ways, the lack of size may have an impact on their performance over the regular season.
Kel’el Ware, Nikola Jovic, and Vladislav Goldin are currently the tallest players on the roster. Distributing and managing the rotations will be crucial if Miami hopes to avoid being overwhelmed by size disparities.
