![\"Ryan](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/GettyImages-2267725486.jpg\" "\\"Ryan")
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Ryan Conwell #3 of the Louisville Cardinals looks on against the Michigan State Spartans during the first half in the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at KeyBank Center on March 21, 2026 in Buffalo, New York.<\/p>\n
Gregory Shamus<\/p>\n
Getty Images<\/p>\n
When Mami Heat brass met before the start of the second round on Wednesday, they made a short list of draft prospects still available who stood out above the rest.<\/p>\n
The question was: Would any of those second-round targets still be available when it was the Heat\u2019s turn to make a selection at No. 41 overall?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe met today, went through the players that we wanted to focus on in the second round,\u201d Heat vice president of basketball operations and assistant general manager Adam Simon said late Wednesday night during a postdraft Zoom call. \u201cWe had them in a group of about seven players that we really were hoping that we could get at 41.\u201d<\/p>\n
Louisville three-point shooting guard Ryan Conwell was one of the seven players on the Heat\u2019s list.<\/p>\n
So when Conwell was still available at No. 37 \u2014 four picks before the Heat\u2019s selection at No. 41 \u2014 Miami didn\u2019t take any chances. The Heat dealt the 41st overall selection and cash to the Oklahoma City Thunder to take Conwell with the 37th overall pick in the second round on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce there was an opportunity to move up a couple spots, we took advantage of that opportunity,\u201d Simon said. \u201cOwnership gave us the opportunity to move up, so we appreciate them doing that. And we were able to make the trade with Oklahoma City.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the Heat\u2019s first-round selection at No. 13 overall on Tuesday going to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of the trade that sent two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and veteran forward Bobby Portis to Miami, Conwell ended up being the Heat\u2019s only draft pick this year.<\/p>\n
But the Heat believes it made the most of its lone selection. The Heat is prioritizing three-point shooting as it fills out its roster around its new leading duo of three-time NBA All-Star center Bam Adebayo and Antetokounmpo, and three-point shooting is Conwell\u2019s top NBA skill.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, clearly we\u2019re trying to identify players that have a shooting skill, and he certainly does,\u201d said Simon, with the Heat and Bucks not yet allowed to comment on the Antetokounmpo trade until it can become official on July 6. \u201cHe\u2019s projected overall as a 37% shooter, which would have been in the top percentile of 650 players that we had studied. And his athleticism is off the charts. He\u2019s a competitor, he\u2019s a gym rat, he\u2019s the type of player I know our coaches are going to love, and he\u2019s a great teammate. I think he\u2019ll slot in perfectly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conwell, who turned 22 on June 15, believes he\u2019ll fit in perfectly with the Heat, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think my personality fits the culture of the team and I\u2019ll fit right in with the other guys on the team,\u201d Conwell said during a Zoom call with South Florida reporters on Wednesday. \u201cJust my willingness to learn and grow each and every single day. And then I would say just my ability to space the floor, my shooting ability, being able to plug and place me anywhere on the floor and me just always having that gravity of just drawing some attention. And then just my competitiveness, just on both ends of the floor, just being a dog and just giving all I got defensively and offensively.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conwell (6-foot-2 and 215 pounds) averaged 18.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 40.8% from the field, 34.5% on threes and 83.2% from the foul line as a senior at Louisville last season. He averaged 9.6 three-point attempts per game last season.<\/p>\n
Conwell made 38.4% of his 800-plus three-point attempts during his final three years in college, including 41.1% of his 567 catch-and-shoot threes, according to The Athletic.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis processing is really high,\u201d Simon said of Conwell. \u201cHis ability to learn, his cognition, abilities to see the game, to process the game, to have awareness, he graded out pretty high. That\u2019s important to us. We want players that not only can be coached, but also can recognize and see things on their own. He\u2019s the type of player that\u2019s able to do that.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a scorer. He can shoot. He\u2019s probably more of a scorer than point, but he\u2019s a combo. He understands how to play, and he\u2019s able to see things out there on the court that you don\u2019t have to coach.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Ryan Conwell #3 of the Louisville Cardinals shoots the ball during practice day ahead of the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at KeyBank Center on March 18, 2026 in Buffalo, New York. Ishika Samant Getty Images <\/p>\n
Conwell doesn\u2019t hesitate to put up threes either, taking nearly 10 three-pointers per game last season.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe shoots with confidence. He\u2019s not afraid,\u201d Simon added. \u201cWhat you want from a shooter is someone who might miss some shots, but not afraid to put up the next one. I don\u2019t think he\u2019s the type that worries about missing a few. He\u2019s a confident shooter. He\u2019ll be happy that, I think, coach [Erik Spoelstra] and our staff will give him the platform to be able to put up shots and not worry about missing. But he can get going. I think moving out to the NBA line won\u2019t affect him. I think he\u2019ll be able to get the space and be able to get his shot off in the NBA.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conwell also held his own as a point-of-attack defender at the college level, with the help of his sturdy frame. But he knows defending in the NBA will require continued improvement on that end of the court, especially at 6-foot-2.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would say in terms of my defense, I think it\u2019s gotten progressively better every single year,\u201d said Conwell, who was among the prospects who worked out for the Heat at Kaseya Center during the pre-draft process. \u201cJust with the coaches I\u2019ve been able to play with and the positions I\u2019ve been placed in. Especially at Louisville, just making that big jump, picking up full court, just being a dog, being scrappy, getting through screens, just everything like that. I\u2019m always willing just to get better, especially on that end, every single day.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it\u2019s something that I\u2019m continuing to get better at. I think that I am a good defender. But obviously playing in the NBA, it\u2019s the elite of the elite. And it\u2019s something that I have to continue to keep growing at and really compete at, which I will.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conwell, who watched the draft from his hometown of Indianapolis, began his college career at South Florida before transferring to Indiana State for his sophomore season and Xavier for his junior season, and then closing his college career at Louisville. The driving force behind four different schools in four years for Conwell were coaching changes after each season.<\/p>\n
Conwell believes his winding college journey will help him during his NBA journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely just learned a lot just from all the coaches in terms of just how to come to work every single day, just how to be able to play with a lot of different players, show my versatility, and then also just finding joy just in the process,\u201d Conwell said. \u201cKnowing that everything is not going to always go your way, but just trusting in the Lord\u2019s timing and trusting in the work you put in the gym every single day. Things may happen, changes may happen. But as long as you stay true to who you are, and you continue to work as hard as you can, I\u2019m a firm believer that it\u2019ll all work out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among the NBA players who Conwell likes to study are guards Jrue Holiday, Ajay Mitchell, Jalen Brunson, Stephen Curry and Devin Booker.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe kid likes to work,\u201d Simon said. \u201cHe likes to play. He likes to be in the gym. He likes to be a good teammate. I think he\u2019s got a great base, and I think he\u2019s going to want what we\u2019re going to offer him in a development program, and hopefully he\u2019ll be able to contribute to us in short time here.\u201d<\/p>\n
While second-round picks can be signed to two-way contracts or standard contracts, the Heat plans to invest a standard deal on Conwell and make him a part of its 15-man standard roster. The financial details of that standard deal are still being negotiated, but the investment in Conwell and his NBA potential is real.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s 22 years old,\u201d Simon said. \u201cThere\u2019s still growth, there\u2019s still upside. He\u2019s a worker, he\u2019s the kind of player we want to develop and work with. We think there\u2019s a lot more room for him to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n
After Spoelstra and Heat president Pat Riley called Conwell to welcome him to Miami shortly after taking in the second round of the draft, Conwell made clear he\u2019s well aware of the Heat\u2019s highly-regarded player development program that he\u2019s entering. From Duncan Robinson to Max Strus to Gabe Vincent, the Heat has had success in developing overlooked three-point shooters in recent years.<\/p>\n
That development process will begin in a few days when the Heat begins summer league practices on Tuesday in San Francisco.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I\u2019m going to a great organization that will place me in the right positions to just progressively get better every single day,\u201d Conwell said. \u201cThat\u2019s something I\u2019m willing to work toward and do. So I\u2019m super grateful. I\u2019m super thankful to be able to go to such a great organization as this. I truly think it\u2019ll be a two-way street, and we\u2019ll both buy in to make me the best player I can be.\u201d<\/p>\n
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