The Miami Heat’s offseason has been nothing short of captivating. From the Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis trade to promising free agent acquisitions, to the Heat’s young stars showing out on the international stage, there is plenty of excitement to carry into the 2026-27 season.
The Heat’s short and long-term trajectory changed when Antetokounmpo arrived. Miami mortgaged the majority of its resources to land the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player in hopes of building a contender.
Miami’s rise to championship status can be greatly accelerated if young stars like Nikola Jovic and Pelle Larsson take the leap that many fans are hoping for. This summer, both stars, ages 23 and 25, respectively, have been focal points for their respective national teams.
Rising Miami Heat Star Gathering Momentum as a Long-Term Building Block
If there is one player outside of the two main stars whom fans are anticipating a leap from, it is rising guard Pelle Larsson. After a strong second season in the NBA, Larsson is another Heat player in line for a payday.
Heat insider Ethan Skolnick believes Larsson is in line to earn a four-year, $70 million contract extension.
“When the Heat like a player and trust his work ethic, they generally don’t wait until the player reaches restricted free agency; they come to an agreement on an extension well prior,” Skolnick told Sports Illusrated’s OnSI. “Sometimes they act too soon (see Nikola Jovic, though he may be salvageable this season as his new four-year deal kicks in), but most of the time, it’s a wise decision. With Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kel’el Ware all gone to Milwaukee, none getting an extension with Miami, it clears a path for Larsson, whom the Heat like a lot, with good reason. He’s the ideal fit for the current build, probably opening as the sixth man but closing a lot of close games. So my expectation is that Heat find a comfortable number for the former second-pick; 4 years at $70 million (a bit higher than Jovic) sounds about right, and would make the contract tradeable if necessary. But the Heat likely won’t want to move Larsson anywhere.”
Playing for Sweden in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers this summer, Larsson looked like a superstar in four games, registering 26 points while shooting 42.9 percent from the field. With Larrson being on the Heat’s few remaining young players after the Antetokounmpo trade, his summer performance has only helped show that he has what it takes to be a long-term building block around Antetokounmpo.
Putting Expectations in Perspective
Last season, Larsson averaged 11.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game while shooting a tick below 50 percent from the field. Those numbers are quite the improvement from his rookie season, where he recorded just 4.6 points and a little more than one rebound and one assist per game.
While Larsson’s jump in Year 2 was impressive, the Heat has already experienced once that handing a extending a young player’s contract sooner may not always be the best step, as has been the case with Jovic, though that’s not to conclude that Miami view the Jovic’s contract extension ahead of last season as a misstep.
“It will be fascinating with how the Heat approach this, considering Pelle Larsson will have a $3.1 million cap hold next summer as a potential restricted free agent, likely to receive far, far, far more than that in 2027-28 at the start of an extension,” Heat reporter Ira Winderman wrote recently. “So do you keep your cap sheet a bit cleaner by deferring that contract decision, or do you lock him up before he can hit restricted free agency? While some contend the Heat acted with too much haste in extending Nikola Jovic, there seems to be enough there with Pelle to avoid the risk of dealing with free agency.”
Larrson and Jovic make up the litte remaining of the Heat’s young core. Both are expected to take another step forward next season.
Miami Heat Expected to Sign Exciting Young Star to $70M Deal Around Giannis