{"id":160284,"date":"2025-09-25T08:59:25","date_gmt":"2025-09-25T12:59:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=160284"},"modified":"2025-09-25T08:59:25","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T12:59:25","slug":"heat-bring-back-precious-achiuwa-to-address-glaring-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/09\/25\/heat-bring-back-precious-achiuwa-to-address-glaring-issue\/","title":{"rendered":"Heat Bring Back Former First-Round Pick To Address Glaring Issue"},"content":{"rendered":"

MIAMI \u2014 The Heat<\/a> have turned to a familiar face to address their most obvious weakness. The Heat are bringing back power forward\/center Precious Achiuwa<\/a> on a veteran minimum, non-guaranteed deal, according to Shams Charania.<\/p>\n

Heat Bring Back Former First-Round Pick Precious Achiuwa To Address Glaring Issue<\/h2>\n
\"Precious
May 19, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks forward Precious Achiuwa (5) warms up before game seven of the second round of the 2024 NBA playoffs against the Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The agreement adds much-needed depth to a rotation that previously featured only Bam Adebayo,<\/a> rookie Kel\u2019el Ware<\/a>, Nikola Jovi\u0107<\/a>, and two-way player Vlad Goldin<\/a>. For a team that often looked undersized, the move fills a pressing gap.<\/p>\n

Cap Implications And Roster Flexibility<\/h3>\n

The reunion does not come without financial consequence. Miami had carefully maneuvered under the luxury tax earlier this summer, trading Haywood Highsmith<\/a> to Brooklyn in a salary-clearing deal.<\/a> Now, by adding Achiuwa, the Heat move back above the tax line. His $2.3 million contract counts toward both cap and tax calculations. Still, Miami has until season\u2019s end to find a path back under the threshold if needed. The Heat currently sit at the league maximum of 21 players under contract, meaning another roster move will be required before Achiuwa\u2019s signing is finalized.<\/p>\n

Revisiting Achiuwa\u2019s Journey<\/h3>\n

Precious Achiuwa in a Heat jersey is not new. Miami drafted him 20th overall in 2020 after his lone season at Memphis. He was later packaged with Goran Dragi\u0107<\/a> in the deal that brought Kyle Lowry<\/a> to South Florida. Lowry himself was shipped to Charlotte last January in the trade for Terry Rozier<\/a>, completing a winding transaction tree. Since leaving Miami, Achiuwa has played for both Toronto and New York. The Knicks acquired him in the blockbuster OG Anunoby<\/a> trade but declined to retain him this summer.<\/p>\n

Achiuwa\u2019s Role And Recent Production<\/h3>\n

At 6-foot-8 and 243 pounds, Achiuwa has often played as an undersized center. With the Knicks<\/a> last season, he appeared in 57 games, starting 10. He averaged 6.6 points and 5.6 rebounds in 20.5 minutes per game. He also logged postseason minutes, making eight playoff appearances. His production was steady but not enough to secure a new deal in New York, where Mitchell Robinson\u2019s<\/a> return reduced his opportunities.<\/p>\n

What It Means For Miami<\/h3>\n

Regarding Precious Achiuwa\u2019s reunion with the Heat, expectations are straightforward. He is not guaranteed a roster spot, but his skill set fits an immediate need. Miami values defensive versatility and rebounding, two areas where Achiuwa has shown flashes. With Adebayo as the lone proven big man, the Heat could benefit from Achiuwa\u2019s energy and physicality. His signing also reflects how difficult the market has been for role players in an era of tax aprons and hard cap restrictions.<\/p>\n

A Necessary Gamble<\/h3>\n

The Heat rarely leave their roster thin for long. While Achiuwa may not shift Miami\u2019s championship ceiling, his presence gives the team insurance. The cost is minimal and the upside worthwhile. Miami has plugged a glaring hole with a familiar piece, even if the final roster math remains unsettled.<\/p>\n

Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MIAMI \u2014 The Heat have turned to a familiar face to address their most obvious weakness. The Heat are bringing back power forward\/center Precious Achiuwa on a veteran minimum, non-guaranteed deal, according to Shams Charania. Heat Bring Back Former First-Round Pick Precious Achiuwa To Address Glaring Issue The agreement adds much-needed depth to a rotation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5018,"featured_media":155166,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1608,16,3],"tags":[50251,4557,3148],"class_list":["post-160284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-basketball","category-heat","category-news","tag-nba-contract","tag-nba-offseason","tag-precious-achiuwa"],"modified_by":"Frederick Okocha","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5018"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=160284"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":160285,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160284\/revisions\/160285"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/155166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=160284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=160284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=160284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}