MIAMI — A compact schedule that includes just a four-day training camp ahead of the exhibition opener has the Miami Heat deferring their annual intrasquad scrimmage until later in the preseason.
The Heat announced Tuesday that their annual Red, White & Pink Game, an open intrasquad scrimmage benefiting cancer care and research at Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute, will be held Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m. at Kaseya Center.
An event often held ahead of the preseason or even during training camp this year will come after five of the Heat’s six exhibitions.
Tickets for the event are on sale now at HEAT.com/RedWhitePink, at $10 each, with a limit of eight per transaction. There also will be $5 parking available at the arena garage.
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The event annually features Heat players, coaches and staffers mixing with those suffering from breast cancer and cancer survivors.
The Heat will hold their annual media day Sept. 29 at Kaseya Center, followed by training camp Sept. 30-Oct. 3 at Florida Atlantic University, with those sessions closed to the public.
The Heat then will play an Oct. 4 exhibition against the Orlando Magic in Puerto Rico, followed by home 7;30 p.m. exhibitions on Oct. 6 and Oct. 8 against the Milwaukee Bucks and San Antonio Spurs, respectively. Those games will be followed by Oct. 12-13 road exhibitions in Orlando and Atlanta.
From there, the Heat will hold their scrimmage Oct. 15, with their preseason schedule concluding Oct. 17 at 8 p.m. against the visiting Memphis Grizzlies.
The Heat open the franchise’s 38th season on Oct. 22 in Orlando, with their regular-season home opener on Oct. 26 against the New York Knicks.
Tickets for the preseason and regular season already are on sale.
Serbian study
Thriving with the Serbian national team at EuroBasket, Heat forward Nikola Jovic spoke in Latvia about the ongoing opportunity alongside three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, as well as his connection to Heat 2025 first-round pick Kasparas Jakucionis.
In an interview with BasketNews, Jovic said his respect continues to grow for Jokic, the Denver Nuggets center.
“I learned a lot from him, offensively and defensively,” Jovic said. “Playing with him is just easy. He’s the best player in the world. He knows what he’s doing.
“If you’re in the right spot at the right moment, he’ll find you. So it’s easy to play with him. He’s so smart, so talented that it’s really easy to play with him.”
Serbia is 4-0 at EuroBasket, heading into Wednesday’s Group A showdown against 4-0 Turkey, with Jovic averaging 11.8 points per game on .667 shooting from the field and .556 on 3-pointers.
As for the Jakucionis connection, Jovic spoke about Croatian friend Tomislav Ivisic, who played at Illinois alongside the Heat’s Lithuanian selection.
“I know a lot about his game,” Jovic said of Jakucionis, the No. 20 pick in June. “I followed him in college because he played with my really good friend Tomislav Ivisic, and that’s why I watched his game.
“I was really surprised when we drafted him because I really thought he was going to be like a Top 10 pick. But it’s for sure a good pick for us. He’s a great player. I haven’t really talked to him, but I can’t wait to see him play. And I’m sure he’ll be a great piece for us.”
Time and place
As he prepares to stand alongside Micky Arison at Saturday’s Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony, when Arison is enshrined, Heat President Pat Riley said such franchise overseers assuredly have a place in the Springfield, Mass., shrine.
“He is a man who is a legacy owner, and I think the Hall is starting to take a look at these legacy owners, Dr. (Jerry) Buss (Lakers), Jerry Reinsdorf (Bulls), Herb Simon (Pacers),” Riley said. “They’re looking at what these owners have done besides just buy teams.
“Micky’s invested, totally invested, as a single proprietor in Miami and the Heat. And so I think this induction into the Hall of Fame, he is so well worth it and he is really deserving of it.’
