Dru Smith, competing for roster spot, explains why he keeps coming back to Heat

For some players, it takes one training camp and preseason to earn an NBA roster spot. For guard Dru Smith, he’s hoping the third time is the charm.

Smith is a familiar face, taking part in his third consecutive training camp and preseason with the Miami Heat this year. He’s currently occupying one of the Heat’s three two-way contract slots, but the goal is to make the Heat convert his two-way deal to a standard contract through his play this preseason.

“I think it’s just, one, their developmental program, and two, just the way that they go at things,” Smith said of why he keeps returning to the Heat after being waived by the organization multiple times in the last two seasons. “I think that they give you real opportunities no matter what your name is, no matter where you came from. I think that they truly evaluate talent and evaluate how you affect winning. If you’re doing that in a positive way, then you’re going to get a chance to play.”

Smith, 25, first arrived to the Heat after going undrafted in 2021 out of Missouri. After spending a chunk of his first season in the Heat’s player development program in the G League, Smith began last season on a two-way deal with the Heat and then signed a two-way contract with the Brooklyn Nets in January before eventually returning to a two-way deal with the Heat this past summer.

But Smith is hoping to earn a standard contract for the first time in his NBA career this time around, as two-way deals have proven to only be a temporary solution for him. Two-way contracts, which pay half the NBA rookie minimum and do not count toward the salary cap or luxury tax, allow for players to be on their NBA team’s active list for as many as 50 regular-season games with other game action having to come in the G League.

“I think I feel more comfortable just within our offense, in general,” Smith said when asked how he’s better this season. “Just getting us into things that we need to get guys the ball in spots that they want to have the ball in and just understanding where that ball needs to go. When to try to make plays to get other guys involved. I think I just have a little bit better understanding of that.”

With the Heat playing its third of five preseason games on Sunday night against the Memphis Grizzlies at Kaseya Center, Smith has struggled to produce efficient results so far. He has averaged 7.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, three assists and two steals per game while shooting just 5 of 16 (31.3 percent) from the field and 0 of 3 on threes in the Heat’s first two preseason games, and was ruled out for Sunday’s contest because of a hamstring injury.

Smith, who is working to prove he can be a reliable point guard option for the Heat, also has six assists to eight turnovers in the first two preseason contests.

But Smith has impressed Heat coaches behind the scenes in practices since the start of training camp.

“He really developed this grit and fortitude that we like and think is necessary,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said recently of Smith. “Each year that he’s come back to us, he’s come back better from all the experiences. Usually most guys, they’re too discouraged or they get upset at being transitioned several times and they just move on right at the point of finding success.

“But guys like Duncan [Robinson] or Rodney McGruder or guys that have stayed the course get exponentially better. Because of those experiences, it makes them unique. They just have this toughness and ability to compete and stay the course. He came across like a veteran in our training camp, which was fun to see.”

How does Smith, who is listed at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, describe himself as a point guard?

“I would definitely say pass first, more defensive minded,” Smith said. “Just going to try to make solid plays and make the right plays, get other guys involved. But also, be aggressive when that time comes and not pass anything up.”

With the Heat waiving Drew Peterson and Alondes Williams on Saturday from their tryout contracts, Smith is one of six players on the Heat’s current 19-man preseason roster still competing for the 14th spot on the regular-season roster. Fellow Heat two-way contract players Jamal Cain and R.J. Hampton, and Exhibit 10 tryout contract players Justin Champagnie, Cheick Diallo and Cole Swider are the others.

Among the Heat’s options with Smith by the Oct. 23 NBA regular-season roster deadline are keeping him on a two-way contract, converting his two-way deal to a standard contract to fill one of the vacant spots on its standard roster, or releasing him to make room for another developmental prospect.

One thing working in Smith’s favor: He plays a position of need for the Heat, with Kyle Lowry currently the only true point guard on the Heat’s standard regular-season roster.

“I think, obviously, all of us guys who are fighting for that last stop are just fighting to have an impact on this team, in general,” Smith said. “So I think I definitely see a role there. Just got to continue to try to do the right things.

“I’m just really grateful and really appreciative of the opportunities that I’ve been able to have, the chances that I have in front of me right now. After that, it’s in my hands but also it’s out of my hands. Whatever they decide to do, that’s what they decide to do. So I just have to go out there and try to play the best basketball that I can and let the rest fall where it may.”

INJURY REPORT

The Heat ruled out Hampton (right hip muscle strain), Smith (right hamstring strain), Caleb Martin (left knee tendinosis), Nikola Jovic (right knee contusion), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (left groin strain), Josh Richardson (left foot discomfort) and Jimmy Butler (dental procedure) for Sunday’s preseason game against the Grizzlies.

Spoelstra labeled all of the team’s injured players as day-to-day, with the Heat opening the regular season on Oct. 25 against the Detroit Pistons in Miami.