in the 125-124 loss<\/a>.<\/p>\n\u201cIt\u2019s been a matter of him keeping up with the speed of the game,\u201d Spoelstra said. \u201cWhen he gets quick and gets up and down, he\u2019s really worked at it. His conditioning is great, but it\u2019s the synapse change of getting onto the next possession.\u201d<\/p>\n
Goldin is well aware of the stakes of the moment. Should the Heat choose to retain veteran center Nick Richards on their standard roster \u2014 he has an opening-night guarantee \u2014 then having an additional big man such as Goldin on a two-way contract might not be viewed as necessary.<\/p>\n
At the moment, the Heat have all three of their allowable two-way spots filled, when counting Goldin, undrafted University of Miami guard Tre Donaldson and forward Keshad Johnson, who previously had been on a standard deal. If Goldin is not retained, it would open the door for the Heat to elevate one of their tryout players or sign a two-way player from another team at the NBA\u2019s Oct. 19 roster cutdown deadline.<\/p>\n
Two-way players earn half the NBA veteran minimum salary and are eligible to be on the active roster for up to 50 games, ineligible for the playoffs. Goldin last season appeared in nine games for the Heat and 24 for the Heat\u2019s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.<\/p>\n
Goldin said he entered his second NBA preseason with a greater sense of clarity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think this year gives me a lot more just because now I understand how everything works inside and what\u2019s the expectations, how it\u2019s supposed to look,\u201d he said. \u201cSo I think just taking a lot of mental stress off is very helpful.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you know everything, when you know the system, how it\u2019s supposed to play, it\u2019s way less talking, way more reps. And it\u2019s something that we, as basketball players, we always chase, we chase reps.\u201d<\/p>\n
And, now, Goldin recognizes it also has to be about chasing shots on the defensive end.<\/p>\n
\u201cI try to take pride as a rim protector,\u201d he said. \u201cI know sometimes it doesn\u2019t look like it, but I do contest everything. As a center, as a five, you have to contest everything, even if it\u2019s a little bit dangerous. That\u2019s what we\u2019re here for.\u201d<\/p>\n
What he accepts that he can\u2019t afford is to be viewed as a lumbering big man, not with the Heat about pace and not plodding.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomething that I always can improve is footwork, just being a little bit faster,\u201d he acknowledged. \u201cObviously with today\u2019s game, everybody is talking about pace, how fast they want to run. So it\u2019s something that I\u2019m trying to improve.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, in his own way, it has been an offseason about being off to the races.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to run,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to spend a lot of time in the weight room. You\u2019ve got to spend a lot of time on the court, and it\u2019s just about time.\u201d<\/p>\n
With time possibly growing short, as roster decisions loom ahead of the Heat\u2019s Oct. 21 regular-season opener against the visiting Timberwolves.<\/p>\n
But what can\u2019t be lost, teammate Nikola Jovic said, is the journey just to get to this point, Goldin having moved from Russia to a prep academy in Connecticut as a teenager and then on to collegiate seasons at Texas Tech, FAU and Michigan, with limited ability to recharge back home.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s been through a lot in college situations where he can\u2019t go back home and stuff like that,\u201d Jovic said, with the Heat next turning their attention to Wednesday night\u2019s exhibition against the Brooklyn Nets at Kaseya Center. \u201cI always felt like trying to help him as much as I can. It\u2019s great seeing him do good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Heat two-way contracts over the years:<\/p>\n
Current: Vlad Goldin, Tre Donaldson, Keshad Johnson.<\/p>\n
2025-26: Goldin, Jahmir Young, Trevor Keels, Myron Gardner<\/p>\n
2024-25: Johnson, Josh Christopher, Dru Smith, Isaiah Stevens.<\/p>\n
2023-24: Jamal Cain, RJ Hampton, Alondes Williams, Cole Swider.<\/p>\n
2022-23: Javonte Smart, Mychal Mulder, Orlando Robinson, Cain.<\/p>\n
2021-22: Marcus Garrett, Caleb Martin, Kyle Guy, Smart, Mulder.<\/p>\n
2020-21: Gabe Vincent, Max Strus.<\/p>\n
2019-20: Chris Silva, Daryl Macon, Vincent, Kyle Alexander.<\/p>\n
2018-19: Duncan Robinson, Yante Maten.<\/p>\n
2017-18: Derrick Walton Jr., Matt Williams Jr., Derrick Jones Jr.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MIAMI \u2014 Yes, perspective is paramount during this portion of the NBA calendar. So the 18 points and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":425592,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[114,123,125,2490,124,2295,110],"class_list":["post-425591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-latest-headlines","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-heat","tag-miami-news","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=425591"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425591\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/425592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=425591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=425591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=425591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}