11:11 pm: Young is indeed being promoted to a two-way deal, sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).
10:44 pm: The Heat have waived big man Precious Achiuwa ahead of the regular season, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link).
Miami has also released Ethan Thompson, Dain Dainja, and Bez Mbeng, Chiang adds.
All four players were signed to non-guaranteed contracts for training camp, so the Heat won’t carry any money on their books by cutting them loose.
A 6’8″ forward/center, Achiuwa has spent the past five years in the NBA after being selected 20th overall by Miami in the 2020 draft. The 26-year-old has appeared in 320 regular season games with the Heat, Raptors and Knicks over that span, with career averages of 7.6 points and 5.7 rebounds in 20.0 minutes per contest.
It’s unclear where Achiuwa will land next after he was unable to find a new team for most of the offseason — he didn’t sign with the Heat until late September.
Thompson, Dainja and Mbeng were on Exhibit 10 deals with Miami are now eligible for bonuses worth up to $85,300 as long as they spend at least 60 days with the team’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
By process of elimination, it appears that guard Jahmir Young will fill the Heat’s third and final two-way spot, as Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel tweets. The Heat can simply convert Young’s Exhibit 10 deal to a two-way pact.
A 6’1″ point guard who went undrafted out of Maryland in 2024, Young opened his first professional season with the Grand Rapids Gold, before signing a two-way deal with Chicago in February and finishing the year with the Bulls.
Although he logged just 30 total minutes in six games at the NBA level, but starred in the NBAGL, averaging 21.7 points, 7.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game in 43 total outings for the Nuggets’ and Bulls’ affiliates. The 24-year-old was named to the G League’s All-Rookie team and finished third in Rookie of the Year voting.