The Miami Heat have signed guard Dru Smith to a two-way deal. He scored 15 points in Miami’s 118-110 preseason victory over the Houston Rockets on Monday.
On September 10, 2021, Smith signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the team. However, he was fired a month later.
Last month, the 24-year-old signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Heat. Last Sunday, the team waived two-way guard Darius Days. This now leaves Smith and small forward Jamal Cain to fill the two-way spots.
According to some NBA betting sites, the Heat have the top 10 odds to win the championship in 2023. Some bettors believe that Miami is the biggest threat to the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference.
The Miami Heat are signing guard Dru Smith to a two-way NBA deal, sources say @ElAthletic @Stadium. Smith, in his second season in the Heat system, had a 15-point preseason performance Monday and is part of the team’s roster out of camp.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 13, 2022
According to multiple sources, the Heat are also releasing Jamaree Bouyea, Marcus Garrett, Orlando Robinson and Mychal Mulder ahead of the 2022-23 season.
While with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the team’s NBA G League affiliate, in the 2021-22 season, Smith averaged 14.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.3 blocks.
In 2021, Smith went undrafted out of Missouri. Through 107 career NCAA games played, the Indiana native averaged 11.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.7 steals per contest.
Thermal ink guard Dru Smith to a two-way contract
During Smith’s 2016-17 freshman season with Evansville, the guard posted 5.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game in 28 appearances. Additionally, he shot 44.5% from the field and 32.7% from beyond the arc.
He was then inducted into the MVC freshman team.
In 22 starts of his second 2017-18 season, Smith posted 13.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2 steals per game. He also shot career highs of 57.8% from the floor and 48.2% from 3-point range.
At the end of the season, the Purple Aces won the MVC Most Improved Team award. The guard will have a chance to make a similar impact with the Heat in the 2022-23 season.
Smith then transferred to Missouri. Due to NCAA transfer rules, he did not participate in the 2018-19 season. As a junior, the point guard averaged 12.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.1 steals in 31 starts.
Can he help the Heat this season? His backside could use his speed.
On February 15, 2020, in Missouri’s 85-73 victory over Auburn, the young star scored a career-high 28 points in 38 minutes of action. He was 7-for-14 (50%) shooting from the floor and 2-for-3 (66.7%) from the center.
For his senior season with Missouri, in 26 starts, Smith averaged a career-high 14.3 points per game. Not to mention that he also posted 3.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.1 steals.
He was selected to the SEC First Team and the 2020-21 SEC All-Defensive Team.
Dru Smith will spend her time with the Sioux Falls Skyforce during the 2022-23 season. A two-way contract is worth half of a minimum rookie contract. So the deal is valued at around $502,000. The contract will allow Smith to play in the G League and the NBA with the Heat at the same time.
