Miami Heat dropped their third pre-season game after falling to the San Antonio Spurs. It’s not really a loss though as Kel’el Ware showed the ability to response to a challenge.
The sophomore center was previously challenged by his coach Erik Spoelstra for having double double stats that don’t impact their game. He posted 18 points and 13 rebounds in loss to the Milwaukee Bucks but the coach thought he only affected the game for three minutes.
“There was a three-minute segment where he actually impacted the game,” Spoelstra said.
“The rest of it has to impact the game. I’m not looking at the stat line. I think everybody is looking at the wrong thing. It’s got to impact the game. … And that’s part of the maturation for a young player.”
Ware responded through his game from that challenge with his performance against the Spurs. He scored a game high 29 points and was very efficient by converting 12 of his 19 attempts at the basket. He is aware of Spoelstra’s challenge and used it as a motivation.
“I always take anything that Spo says as motivation, I take it and I try to impact it into my game, and I try to play as hard as I can, I was still getting my legs back in front of me from training camp,” Ware told reporters after the game.
Kel’el Ware put together a dominant preseason performance with 29 points and 12 rebounds against the Spurs.
Ware even had some sequences where he got the best of Victor Wembanyama.
The Heat are preparing for Ware to start alongside Bam Adebayo in Year 2.pic.twitter.com/ciSzgj7k1C
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) October 9, 2025
Erik Spoelstra impressed by Kel’el Ware’s response
The way Ware responded is something every coach would love to see. Spoelstra praised his sophomore center and specified what he did correctly.
“His pick-and-roll coverages were really good,” Spoelstra said.
“He was protecting the basket, was closing out when he needed to, rebounded the ball very well, and he was playing with force…And he also made some plays where he got in the paint and spread it out. So that’s definitely progress.”
Ware is being viewed as a project for the Heat after a great freshman year. He is not expected to be a starter but Spoelstra challenges him night in and night out as he will play a critical role for the team’s attempt to get back up.
The Heat are still veteran-ladened led by by Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Andrew Wiggins, and Norman Powell.
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