The Miami Heat dropped their fourth straight preseason game Sunday night, falling to the Orlando Magic. Miami trailed by just seven points at halftime, but Orlando pulled away in the third quarter to win by 16.
Despite the loss, second-year forward Kel’el Ware shined for Miami. Ware led the team in scoring with 24 points on better than 50% shooting from the field in 25 minutes. He also grabbed 10 rebounds to record a double-double and added two steals in another impressive performance.
Free agent signing Precious Achiuwa contributed across the board, finishing with seven points, eight rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in limited minutes.
Ware, who finished sixth in Rookie of the Year voting last season, has become one of Miami’s most promising young players. The 2024 No. 15 overall pick appeared in 64 games as a rookie, averaging 9.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. He earned a starting role late in the season, starting 36 contests and averaging 22.2 minutes per game.
Heading into the 2025-26 season, the Heat expect Ware’s minutes and production to increase as he continues to develop alongside veterans like Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro.
Miami finished as the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference last year, securing a Play-In Tournament berth. With internal growth and key offseason additions, the Heat hope to avoid the Play-In this time around and secure a top-six seed.
Miami will conclude its preseason schedule with two more games before opening the regular season Oct. 22 in Orlando.
