Heat’s Tim Hardaway Jr. leaning into ‘familiarity and comfortability’ of Miami: ‘It’s surreal’

Miami Heat admin October 10, 2026 0 Comments

Heat’s Tim Hardaway Jr. leaning into ‘familiarity and comfortability’ of Miami: ‘It’s surreal’

Guard Tim Hardaway Jr. always dreamed of returning home to Miami to play for the Heat at some point in his NBA career. But as Hardaway Jr.’s career went on, he wondered if his dream would ever become a reality.

“I’m not going to lie to you,” Hardaway Jr. said. “When you’re going into your prime, and then you’re on the back end of your prime, and you’re starting to go down, and you’re starting to wonder like, could it ever happen?”

It finally happened this past summer, with Hardaway Jr. joining the Heat in free agency on a one-year contract worth $6.5 million after spending the first 13 seasons of his NBA career elsewhere. Not only does Hardaway Jr. return to the city where he spent most his childhood, but he also joins a Heat organization that his father, Tim Hardaway Sr., in tandem with Alonzo Mourning helped lift to then-unprecedented franchise heights in the late 1990s.

“For it to actually come into play and the opportunity to present itself, I told people before that it was a no-brainer for me,” Hardaway Jr., 34, said. “I’ve always wanted to come back and play for an organization that my dad helped build with Zo and all those guys in the ‘90s. And I just wanted to put my stamp on it as well.”

While Hardaway Sr. is one of six players in franchise history who have their jersey retired by the Heat and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as past of the 2022 class, Hardaway Jr. has never made an NBA All-Star Game. But Hardaway Jr. has earned a reputation as one of the best three-point shooters in the league.

Hardaway Jr. is coming off a strong season, too, averaging 13.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game while shooting 44.7% from the field and 40.7% on 6.9 three-point attempts per game in 80 appearances (six starts) last regular season with the Denver Nuggets. That was good enough for him to finish third in the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year voting.

Hardaway Jr. has shot 37.8% on seven three-point attempts per game across the last four regular seasons.

And through the Heat’s first two exhibition games this preseason, Hardaway Jr. has shot 5 of 9 (55.6%) from three-point range in the bench role that he’s expected to be used in at the start of the regular season. He has also drawn two charges this preseason.

“Competitive spirit,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the similarities he’s noticed between Hardaway Jr. and Hardaway Sr. “Timmy has got an edge to him, which is unique for a shooter. He’s vocal. He’s edgy. He gets passionate about competition. Of course, they’re different players. What’s really surreal is if you’re not looking and you hear Timmy talk, you think it’s Sr. He raises his voice and he’s saying something, you do a double-take. They sound exactly the same.”

Many of the faces who were around for Hardaway Sr.’s Heat tenure are still around for Hardaway Jr.’s Heat tenure. From Heat president Pat Riley to Spoelstra to general manager Andy Elisburg to owner Micky Arison, there are plenty of familiar faces for Hardaway Jr.

Hardaway Jr. even remembers playing with Micky’s son, Nick Arison, when they were growing up. Nick is now the Heat’s chief executive officer.

“It is surreal, man. It’s surreal,” Hardaway Jr. said before the Heat played its third of five preseason games on Saturday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Kaseya Center. “You got Andy still here that’s been with Pat all this time. I mean, Zo is in the building, Bob McAdoo. I mean, I remember Bob McAdoo. I was helping rebound with Bob when my dad was playing. So I mean, it’s like Tony Fiorentino, Micky Arison, Nick Arison. I was playing with Nick back in the family room when the game was going on. No one leaves here. They really take pride in keeping their close ones close. So I’m just very grateful.”

Grateful to finally be home after playing for five different NBA teams prior to joining the Heat this offseason. Hardaway Jr. played for the New York Knicks, Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons and Nuggets before signing with the Heat.

“It’s awesome,” Hardaway Jr. said. “I don’t have to pack up a lot of my stuff anymore to go back to my respected city that I would have to play for. I get to sleep in my own bed. I don’t have to worry about getting my dogs acclimated to the new kennels and all that stuff in new cities. And it’s familiar faces that I’ve seen since my dad got traded here. So for the most part, that’s what matters most to me. Familiarity and comfortability.”

Extended time in Miami also means more opportunities for Hardaway Jr. to visit his favorite childhood restaurants. He listed Hungry Bear Sub Shop and Chicken Kitchen as two food spots that he’s looking forward to visiting in the coming weeks.

“You got so many spots all over the place. I’m happy,” Hardaway Jr. said. “I’m excited to try new and different things. I haven’t been here since I was in high school.”

Hardaway Jr. represented his high school before Thursday’s exhibition, wearing a Palmetto High School shirt to the game. Those high school days remind him of the pick-up basketball games he played around Miami growing up at different parks like Suniland Park and Ron Ehmann Park.

“I’m back where my roots are,” Hardaway Jr. said of being around those spots again. “And when I do have the opportunity to, I do drive past them. And it does bring back memories, a lot of memories. So it’s very, very healthy to see.”