MIAMI – As fans are still in disbelief over the Miami Heat's win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in overtime on Monday night, 140-138, there were many contributing factors to the victory, such as the outing from Kel'el Ware. After the Heat's Andrew Wiggins had a buzzer-beating dunk to win the game, head coach Erik Spoelstra made a big claim about the young center.

On Monday night, Ware would score 14 points on shooting seven of 14 from the field, but the eye-opening statistic was the whopping 20 rebounds he recorded, which is a career-high. The performance is an impressive one since Ware struggled against the frontcourt duo of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley in the playoffs last season, but stood his ground on Monday, even having seven of the rebounds being on the offensive glass.

This prompted Spoelstra to say that it was “the best game he's played in a Miami Heat uniform,” as Ware recorded a +6 on the floor.

“That’s the best game he’s played in a Miami Heat uniform,” Spoelstra said. “I don’t care what the stats are. I know he had 20 rebounds. But those efforts on the glass were incredible. And he was reliable defensively. He was with it. He was in the right spots. Mobley made a couple great shots, but Kel’el was there. He was there, doing the right thing.”

Ware took past troubles as “motivation” which led to the performance on Monday night.

“Just remembering what happened last year, I just took it as motivation through the summer and for this season to battle, do my job and get rebounds,” Ware said.

Erik Spoelstra on Kel'el Ware's development with the Heat

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Miami Heat center Kel'el Ware (7) brings the ball up the court against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first quarter at Kaseya Center.
Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

With the Heat's captain Bam Adebayo still out with a toe injury, there's no denying that Ware's involvement is even more crucial to the team, with Monday's performance showing that. However, it wasn't always rainbows and sunshine for Ware as he's been challenged by the team on multiple occasions this summer and the season.

Spoelstra would say to ClutchPoints that young player development in the NBA is “not linear,” but Ware has been “diligent” throughout it all.

“He had a really good summer of development, but he started out summer league kind of slow, then finished with two really strong games,” Spoelstra said. “His last game was the most impactful game that led to a win against Boston. And then it was kind of uneven in the preseason and at the start of the season. “But he’s been diligent. He shows up every day with a mindset to get better.”

“He and [Heat assistant coach Malik Allen] have a beautiful working relationship,” Spoelstra continued. “They spend so much time together. And when you’re dealing with young players, you just have to embrace that unknown, embrace the possibilities, and understand that it’s not always just going to be a rocket ship, straightforward. So we want to be patient, but you also want to be impatient through the process. So it’s a fine balance.”

Ware would say after the game that it ‘feels good' seeing the coaches happy about his performance, especially since they have been harping about his ability on the glass. The 13th overall pick from the 2024 NBA Draft looks to keep it going on Wednesday in a rematch against the Cavs.