The Miami Heat have announced that they have signed former first-round pick Josh Christopher to a two-way contract which in turn meant that they waived Zyon Pullin. Christopher impressed during the Heat's Summer League stint and was even awarded Summer League Final MVP where he led the team with 24 points, making six out of 10 attempts from deep, to win the title.
As a whole, Christopher averaged 19.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and two steals per game while shooting 54.1 percent from the field and 52.5 percent from three-point range during his time in the Summer League. The 22-year old is a former first-round pick as said before where he was taken with the 24th overall pick in 2021 by the Houston Rockets, but couldn't find his footing in the league until landing with Miami where he even said that he believes “Heat Culture just brought the best out of me.”
“I’ve been able to play basketball for a long time,” Christopher said according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “But I think this Heat culture thing just brought the best out of me. I don’t think I’ve had a series of games better than this in my life, honestly.”
Christopher putting in the “unseen hours” to stand out with Heat
Christopher now joins other Summer League standout in Keshad Johnson and Dru Smith as the three players on two-way contracts at the current moment. Heat Summer League head coach Dan Bisaccio credits Christopher's success to the “unseen hours” he puts in to better his craft which resulted in impressive performances in Las Vegas.
“This is a microcosm of all the work that he’s done behind the scenes,” Bisaccio said. “A lot of that is what they call those unseen hours that you do either in the gym alone late at night or you’re working with a strength coach.”
Christopher adapting to what the Heat need him to be
The Arizona State product could be of great use for the Heat if he further develops into a player that is a knockdown scorer and even improve on the defensive end, which he even mentioned as being a focus. He has also been a better shooter from deep which Miami embraces as Bisaccio doubled down by saying that he has a “willingness to just do whatever is necessary.”
“He showed up in May with a willingness to just do whatever is necessary,” Bisaccio said via The Miami Herald. “So obviously he had some opportunities, he was drafted in the first round. From there, unfortunately, he goes to the G League and we were very fortunate to pick him up. As soon as he showed up to Sioux Falls with [coach Kasib Powell], he said: ‘What can I do to get better? How can I impact the game?’
“So I give him a lot of credit,” Bisaccio continued. “He could have easily said, ‘Well, I’m a first-round draft pick. I should be doing this or this. Maybe this didn’t work out and it’s not my fault.’ He had that willingness to grow and get better, and we’re going to continue to challenge him.”
Other Heat Summer League standouts without contract
As for Pullin, he was signed to a two-way contract right after the conclusion of the NBA Draft an undrafted free agent coming out of the University of Florida. He would average 5.3 points, 1.0 rebound, 1.7 assists and 0.2 steals per game in the six games he played Las Vegas.
The Heat also have other standouts that are not signed in such familiar faces as Alondes Williams and Cole Swider as their fates are not yet sealed with the team. In any sense, Miami is looking to improve after finishing with the eighth seed for the second straight season and having a quick stint in the NBA Playoffs.
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