Nic Claxton #33 of the Brooklyn Nets goes to the basket as Kel'El Ware #7 of the Miami Heat defends during the first half at Barclays Center on December 18, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Sarah Stier Getty Images
The Miami Heat used a double-big starting lineup anchored by centers Bam Adebayo and Kel’el Ware in Thursday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. But it’s what Ware did while Adebayo was on the bench that turned into the story.
With Adebayo forced to the bench after picking up his fifth foul with 7:20 left in the fourth quarter, Ware stepped into a bigger role and helped the Heat hold on for a much-needed 106-95 win against the Nets on Thursday night to snap its five-game losing skid and begin a three-game trip. It marked the Heat’s first win since Dec. 1.
With Adebayo spending the rest of the game on the bench, Ware totaled 10 points on 2-of-3 shooting from the field, 1-of-1 shooting from three-point range and 5-of-6 shooting from the foul line and three rebounds during the final 7:20 of the contest. The Heat turned a two-point lead into an 11-point win during that stretch.
“I was going to bring Bam back. But once we got it to double digits, then I thought we were going to be able to pull away,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, with the team quickly moving on to a Friday matchup against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden (7 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Sun) to complete the road back-to-back set. “We were never able to get it to 15, but I thought Kel’el was playing well. And Bam felt that it was good, too, for Kel’el to have that opportunity to finish a game where there’s a little bit of context to it. So I think that’s all really important for his growth and improvement.”
Ware downplayed his close to Thursday’s win as the Heat’s lone big man on the court, noting that he already played extended minutes without Adebayo when Adebayo missed six straight games in November because of a sprained toe.
“I don’t really feel like it was that much of a big step-up,” Ware, 21, said of playing as a closer without Adebayo by his side on Thursday in Brooklyn. “He had an absence in the season already, so I feel like I had to step up that way. So I just kind of just treated it the same way.”
Ware, who is in his second season after being named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team last season, ended up finishing Thursday’s win with an impressive stat line of 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field, 1-of-2 shooting on threes and 5-of-6 shooting from the foul line, 12 rebounds and a season-high four blocks in 30 minutes. He also posted a plus/minus of plus-5.
“There was an attention to detail, a competitive spirit tonight,” Spoelstra said of Ware. “Sometimes with that group, that’s what it has to be. If we play bigger, sometimes it’s just getting your head under the rim and being in position to have those putbacks and lobs. ... He’s gotten a lot better getting into open spaces, making those extra efforts on the glass, and then being more detailed and consistent with his effort in pick-and-roll basketball, which obviously is a big thing in this league. But everybody was encouraged by the game that he had tonight.”
Miami Heat center Kel'el Ware (7) looks on in the first half of his NBA game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Kaseya Center on Nov. 12, 2025, in Miami. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com
Adebayo was certainly encouraged.
“Man, there have been a lot of ups and downs for Kel’el throughout the year,” Adebayo said. “So it’s good for him to get this game under his belt. Obviously, guys get healthy, he goes to the bench, he starts, he goes to the bench, he starts. That can bother somebody’s mental. So it’s good for him to get out there and obviously see the ball go through the rim and impact winning.’
Adebayo is the center who’s a fixture in the Heat’s starting lineup as a three-time NBA All-Star. Ware is a second-year center who continues to toggle between the bench and the starting lineup depending on the Heat’s injury situation.
But on Thursday, Ware was the one who closed the game and helped the Heat escape with the win. It represented a step in the right direction.
“I feel like I played good,” Ware said after Thursday’s victory over the Nets. “I feel like I did good to close out that win. Like I said, we’ve been through this through the season for a longer stretch of games. So I feel like it wasn’t that big of a thing I did.”
INJURY REPORT
The Heat remains without Tyler Herro (right big toe contusion), Nikola Jovic (right elbow contusion/laceration), Pelle Larsson (left ankle sprain), Terry Rozier (not with team) and Jahmir Youg (G League) on Friday against the Celtics.
The Heat also listed Andrew Wiggins (lower back pain) as questionable and Davion Mitchell (left ankle sprain) as probable on the second night of the back-to-back after both played in Thursday’s win in Brooklyn.
The Celtics ruled out Ron Harper Jr. (G League), Max Shulga (G League), Jayson Tatum (Achilles repair) and Amari Williams (G League) against the Heat. The rest of Boston’s roster is expected to be available to play on Friday.