WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. _ Former University of Miami Hurricanes players have sprung up on the Heat roster from time to time, with James Jones achieving the most traction and Tim James and Robert Hite making brief cameos.
Davon Reed hopes to become a Hurricane-to-Heat success story, though his path to sticking with the franchise likely would be via a two-way contract, at least for now.
With the Miami Heat barely below its $138.9 million hard cap, there isn't room for a 15th player, barring a trade or the highly unlikely release of Kendrick Nunn.
That means Reed likely is competing with forwards Chris Silva, Kyle Alexander and guards Mychal Mulder, Jeremiah Martin and Daryl Macon for the Heat's two two-way contracts. Miami could use one of those two-way deals on a player from another team.
But Reed is unique among those six for two reasons: He's the only true swingman with the size (6-6) to play either shooting guard or small forward. He's also the only one who has played for an NBA team on a standard contract, with 21 games for Phoenix two seasons ago.
None of the other five has played in the NBA (beyond summer league) except Macon, who appeared in eight games with the Dallas Mavericks last season while on a two-way deal.
After averaging 14.9 points and 4.8 rebounds as a senior at UM, Reed was drafted 32nd by the Suns in 2017 but averaged just 3.0 points in limited opportunities as a rookie and was waived last October, replaced by veteran Jamal Crawford.
He spent last season on a two-way contract with the Pacers, averaging 1.2 points in very limited playing time over 10 games with Indiana.
He said a few NBA teams called him this summer but "after graduating from UM, this is somewhere I wanted to be. I match this Heat culture. This is somewhere I can find my footing."
He said Indiana coach Nate McMillan conveyed "that he feels like I'm an NBA player but I need an opportunity. I shoot threes at a high clip and defend at multiple positions. I'm a dog. I got game. I can play and be a stopper."
Though he noted the "goal" is a standard contract, he's "open" to another two-way deal, which entails a player spending most of the season in the G-League (as Reed did last year with the Pacers organization) but as many as 45 days with the NBA team until the G-League season is over in late March, when a two-way player can join the NBA team for the duration of the season.
"He's a Miami Heat guy," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We've been tracking him for a while. When he first came in this summer and introduced himself to me, I asked if he was kidding. 'Davon, we know quite well who you are. We tried to get you a couple summers ago.'"
Reed said Spoelstra and UM coach Jim Larranaga are similar in that "both are mild mannered and will respect you as a person."
Despite being drafted by the Heat 25th overall in 1999, James played in only four games for the Heat, while Hite appeared in 12.
Jones is the Heat's most accomplished Hurricanes alum, having appeared in 266 games over six seasons, including Miami's two championship teams in the Big Three era.
