A lengthy summer as a free agent ends for Nassir Little after the recent agreement with the Miami Heat. Where the forward will fit into Miami’s rotation is unclear, however, for Little, it’s a chance to continue playing basketball.
Free Agent Nassir Little Off the Market After Miami Signing
The Heat Add Nassir Little
The Miami Heat signed Little to a one-year contract. TNT’s Chris Haynes broke the news himself. Miami has crept through the off-season without hardly a sound. Apart from signing another free agent in Alec Burks much earlier in the summer, the Heat have stayed hidden from pretty much all free agency and trade activities.
As the NBA ramps up for training camps and preseason games beginning soon, Miami has made a late addition in Little, addressing their forward positions. Little has occupied the small forward role for much of his NBA career thus far. The Heat already carries a plethora of small forwards, including Duncan Robinson, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Alec Burks, Nikola Jovic, and Pelle Larsson, Miami’s second round draft selection this year. Where Miami plans to insert Little amongst everyone else—well, we’ll let head coach Erik Spoelstra figure that one out.
With Little’s addition to the roster, Miami still has questions about the organization’s lack of off-season involvement. The Heat were one team expected to make some serious noise. Instead, they turned and did the opposite. Essentially, they are running it back after a lackluster 2023-24 season that ended in a 4-1 first-round series loss to the Boston Celtics is a puzzling turn of events. Still, Miami’s roster is formidable, and the Heat are always a team to not count out.
What Little Brings to Miami
Little had previously worked out for Miami in the off-season, along with Golden State and Boston. Little played 45 games for the Phoenix Suns last season and averaged 10.2 minutes per game. His role was small, and it is safe to speculate that it will look similar in Miami.
However, small role or not, Little does offer a good wing presence, and he has shown he can rebound quite well. His 5.6 average during the 2021-22 season while he was in Portland is his career best. Little may be the type of player who performs better when provided minutes and opportunity. However, minutes may be hard to come by in Miami due to the existing roster, which is why the move on their part is difficult to understand.
What could bode well for Little is if Miami suffers multiple and significant injuries to his position counterparts. Miami has dealt with injuries consistently in recent years, so perhaps Pat Riley was only in search of depth insurance in case the team loses an important piece.
A Healthy Roster, Good to Go
Heading into training camp, Miami’s roster is at full strength and health, which must be comforting news. Most recently, it was reported that Robinson has fully recovered from a back problem. Formerly injured players Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier are also back healthy. If the team—the whole team—can simply remain healthy from beginning to end, the Heat have a roster worthy of competing in the playoffs. As for Nassir Little, he just joined the band.
