Andrew Wiggins introduced by Heat ahead of Monday’s debut: ‘It’s time for a new chapter’
The day after Jimmy Butler made his Golden State Warriors debut on Saturday night, Andrew Wiggins went through his first practice with the Miami Heat on Sunday.
But a few hours before Wiggins’ first practice with his new team Sunday, the Heat held an introductory press conference for the three players it acquired in the Butler trade.
As part of a big five-team deal ahead of this past Thursday’s trade deadline, the Heat acquired Wiggins, Kyle Anderson and a top-10 protected 2025 first-round pick from the Warriors and Davion Mitchell from the Toronto Raptors in return for Butler.
“I just want to welcome Kyle, Wiggs and Davion to the Heat,” Heat president Pat Riley said to begin Sunday morning’s press conference in the Kaseya Center interview room. “... They are now officially part of what we do believe in, which is our culture here with the Heat. And we believe they are perfect players to be part of that. I think they’ll show it.”
Anderson, Mitchell and Wiggins were all introduced by the Heat in Sunday’s press conference. But the 29-year-old Wiggins is the centerpiece of the trade package that the Heat accepted in the Butler deal.
Wiggins, the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, was voted into the 2022 All-Star Game as a starter. He logged the second-most minutes for the Warriors during the 2022 playoff run that ended in an NBA championship.
“You see the trade rumors and stuff like that,” said Wiggins, who celebrated the birth of a child recently and is now being faced with a midseason move to the East Coast. “But it’s the NBA. You don’t really think it’s going to happen until it happens. Once I got the news, it’s time for a new chapter.
“It’s hard. But that’s the NBA, transitioning midseason. That’s the NBA. It’s a business. But I’m here. I’m looking forward to it. I’m excited. I think we can do something special here.”
Wiggins averaged 17.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 37.9 percent on 5.8 three-point attempts per game in 43 appearances (all starts) for the Warriors this season before being traded to the Heat. The expectation is he will join Miami’s starting lineup upon his arrival as a complementary piece around the Heat’s leading duo of Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro.
As a quality two-way player who has the skill set to fit in most lineups, it’s obvious how Wiggins can help the Heat.
Wiggins’ transition to the Heat’s offense, led by Herro and Adebayo, will be helped by the fact that there are some similarities to the way the Warriors ran things around Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.
Wiggins has been an efficient outside shooter this season, making 40.2 percent of his catch-and-shoot threes. He has also proven to be effective with the ball in his hands, producing points on 67.6 percent of his drives to the basket, which ranks 26th among the 113 players who entered Sunday averaging at least six drives to the basket per game this season.
“Just being able to play with any style on the court,” Wiggins said. “Golden State had a unique style, especially playing with Steph and Draymond. There are similarities with Tyler and Bam. So, looking forward to getting out there, being one of the older guys and just getting it started with them.”
On defense, Wiggins’ length (stands 6-foot-7 with a 7-foot wingspan) paired with his athleticism makes him a solid and versatile on-ball defender. He arrives to the Heat with an estimated defensive plus/minus (estimated impact on defense per 100 possessions) that ranks in the 75th percentile in the NBA.
“I feel like I fit in pretty good,” Wiggins said when asked about the Heat’s multidimensional defensive scheme. “You know, I think of myself as a versatile defender, can guard multiple positions. So, I think I’ll fit in.”
Butler was impressive in his Warriors debut, finishing with 25 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field and 11-of-13 shooting from the foul line, two rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block in 29 minutes in a 132-111 win over the Bulls in Chicago on Saturday night.
“I knew I was going somewhere, whether they were sending me to a Flamengo town in Brazil, I knew I was going somewhere,” Butler said after his first game with the Warriors, when asked if he ever considered the possibility of the Heat not finding a trade for him ahead of the deadline.
“But I’m glad that it is here, I’m grateful to be able to play basketball for a top organization like this one. So I want to put everything behind me and focus on the now and move forward. But like I’ve been saying, I got nothing bad to say about them. I’m grateful for my time there.”
The ending to Wiggins’ time with the Warriors wasn’t ugly like the messy finish to Butler’s Heat tenure. Wiggins wasn’t suspended three times like Butler and he didn’t ask for a trade like Butler.
But Wiggins is also ready to move forward after spending parts of six seasons with the Warriors.
“They’re a winning organization,” Wiggins said of the Heat. “They do things right. They do it the right way. And when you come here, you’ve just got to be ready to work. I feel like with hard work comes winning, comes success, and that’s part of the Heat culture.”
Wiggins, Mitchell and Anderson are expected to be available to make their Heat debuts in Monday’s matchup against the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics at Kaseya Center (7:30 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Sun). The Heat stands at 25-25 after 50 games this season.
It will mark Wiggins’ first game with his third NBA team. Wiggins, who is in the middle of his 11th NBA season, is looking forward to it.
“Every chapter I had — Minnesota and Golden State – you just learn from experiences,” said Wiggins, who is under contract through the 2026-27 season. “I had great experiences in both places on and off the court. I expect the same thing here. Just learning, just growing with these guys and experiencing different things to help me in the future.”
This story was originally published February 9, 2025 at 10:28 AM.
