No Draft Lottery miracle for Miami: Heat gets No. 13 pick in 2026 NBA Draft
The Heat didn’t defy the odds. Instead, Miami ended up right where the odds predicted.
The second envelope opened by NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum revealed the Heat logo just minutes into Sunday afternoon’s ABC broadcast from Chicago, which is also the site of this week’s NBA Draft Combine. This was the expected result, as Miami entered the NBA Draft Lottery as the 13th seed and came out of it with the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
The top four picks in this year’s NBA Draft belong to: 1. Washington Wizards, 2. Utah Jazz, 3. Memphis Grizzlies and 4. Chicago Bulls. The Wizards, which are in the Heat’s division, can now add a top draft prospect to a core that already features Anthony Davis and Trae Young.
The two-day NBA Draft will take place on June 23 (first round) and 24 (second round) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
As the 13th lottery seed, the Heat entered with a 92.9% chance of coming away with the No. 13 selection.
The Heat had just a 1% chance at the top overall pick. The Heat also had a 1.1% chance at the No. 2 pick, a 1.3% chance at the No. 3 pick and a 1.4% chance at the No. 4 pick.
While the Heat didn’t jump into the top four, it also didn’t drop to No. 14. The Heat had a 2.3% chance of falling to the 14th overall pick if the Charlotte Hornets (the No. 14 lottery seed) climbed into the top four.
Former Heat center and current Heat vice president of player programs Alonzo Mourning represented the organization on stage at the lottery for the fourth consecutive time as the picks were unveiled to the public, while assistant general manager Adam Simon represented the organization behind the scenes as the actual lottery was conducted.
Sunday marked the Heat’s 12th appearance in the Draft Lottery, and it has never moved higher than its projected position. Miami has now stayed at its projected position six times and dropped from its projected position six times.
While top prospects like Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, BYU forward AJ Dybantsa, Duke forward/center Cameron Boozer, North Carolina forward/center Caleb Wilson and Arkansas guard Darius Acuff will surely be off the board before the Heat picks at No. 13 barring something unforeseen, the Heat will try to get another quality player with its late lottery pick. The Heat came away with one-time NBA All-Star guard Tyler Herro (13th overall pick in 2019) and three-time NBA All-Star center Bam Adebayo (14th overall pick in 2017) with its last two lottery selections.
Who could be available for the Heat at No. 13? ESPN rates these prospects as the ninth through 18th best draft-eligible players: No. 9 Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr., No. 10 Arizona guard Brayden Burries, No. 11 Mexican forward Karim Lopez, No. 12 Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg, No. 13 Florida forward Thomas Haugh (but he has opted to return to college), No. 14 Michigan center Aday Mara, No. 15 Washington forward Hannes Steinbach, No. 16 Alabama guard Labaron Philon Jr., No. 17 Houston forward Chris Cenac Jr. and No. 18 UConn guard Braylon Mullins.
Over the last decade, the No. 13 pick in the draft has proven there is potential to find productive players at that spot. The last 10 players who have been taken at No. 13 in the NBA Draft are Derik Queen in 2025, Devin Carter in 2024, Gradey Dick in 2023, Jalen Duren in 2022, Chris Duarte in 2021, Kira Lewis Jr. in 2020, Herro in 2019, Jerome Robinson in 2018, Donovan Mitchell in 2017 and Georgios Papagiannis in 2017.
In addition, Devin Booker was taken with the No. 13 pick in 2015 and Basketball Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant was selected with the No. 13 pick in the 1996 draft.
But with the Heat expected to again pursue a trade for Milwaukee Bucks two-time NBA MVP and nine-time All-NBA forward Giannis Antetokounmpo this offseason, there’s a possibility that Miami may not keep the player it picks in the first round of this year’s draft.
Technically, the Heat isn’t eligible to trade its 2026 first-round pick because NBA rules prevent teams from being without a first-round selection in two consecutive years. But the Heat could pick a player on behalf of another team in the first round of this year’s draft as part of a prearranged trade.
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam suggested recently that the Bucks would like to make a decision on Antetokounmpo’s future with the organization by the NBA Draft
“I just think before the draft is a natural time,” Haslam said to reporters in Milwaukee. “Because if Giannis does play somewhere else, we’ve got to have a lot of assets. We will do what’s best for Giannis and what’s best for the organization. We don’t know whether Giannis will stay with us or not.”
The Heat, which was among the teams that aggressively pursued Antetokounmpo in February ahead of the NBA’s trade deadline, would be able to include three first-round picks in a trade offer to the Bucks for Antetokounmpo if a deal is agreed to before the draft.
The Heat would be able to use its first-round selection in this year’s draft to make a pick for the Bucks, and could also include its 2030 and 2032 first-round picks as part of the trade package for Antetokounmpo. NBA teams are only allowed to trade picks up to seven drafts into the future.
The Heat’s 2027, 2028 and 2029 picks aren’t currently eligible to be dealt because of NBA rules, with Miami still owing the Charlotte its 2027 first-round pick if it’s not a top-14 selection as part of the Terry Rozier trade in January 2024. If the Heat’s 2027 first-round pick is a top-14 selection, then Charlotte would receive Miami’s 2028 first-round pick regardless of where it falls in the first round.
The Heat also has a second-round pick in this year’s draft, which comes at No. 41 overall. This is the pick the Heat received from the Hornets to resolve a dispute over Rozier being under NBA and federal investigation over alleged gambling when Charlotte traded him to Miami.
The Heat already opened last season with six of its own first-round draft pick on its roster: Adebayo (lottery pick in 2017), Herro (lottery pick in 2019), Nikola Jovic (2022), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (2023), Kel’el Ware (2024) and Kasparas Jakucionis (2025). That ties the 1992-93 Heat team for the most on any opening night roster in franchise history.
Whether the Heat adds to that young core with this year’s first-round pick in June or includes that selection as part of a trade to acquire Antetokounmpo or another All-Star talent this offseason remains to be seen. But Sunday’s lottery provided some clarity for the Heat, which now knows it holds the No. 13 overall pick in this year’s draft.
This story was originally published May 10, 2026 at 3:17 PM.
