Heat’s Mitchell reveals being ‘messed up,’ his weight loss and Riley’s message

Heat point guard Davion Mitchell has seemingly been anywhere and everywhere this summer, always in perpetual motion, burning calories, running down basketball courts and city streets.

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His social media followers have seen him working out in Greece with Giannis Antetokounmpo, exercising in Spain, hooping with teammates in Los Angeles and Las Vegas and Miami.

Personal motivation is a big part of this, as Mitchell enters the second season of a two-year, $24 million contract. But there’s more to it than that.

After failing the Heat’s preseason conditioning test last year, Mitchell revealed this week that team president Pat Riley told him, in May, that he needs to reduce his body fat this season.

“The crazy thing,” Mitchell said on the “Deuce and Mo” podcast, “is him and Spo [Erik Spoelstra] didn’t say anything about basketball at the end of the year, when you have your exit meeting, there was no basketball [talk]. It was ‘get your weight down. Be in shape. That’s all we want.’ This is Heat culture to the T.”

According to Mitchell, Riley told him bluntly: “We understand the situation but this year, we’ve got to get you back down.”

Mitchell listened; he said he has lost “a lot” of weight.

The Heat’s conditioning test is considered among the most daunting in the league.

With most teams, “you have to run up the court three times” in one minute, Mitchell said. “Miami does it five times. It’s one of the hardest things I’ve done in my life. You’ve got to run it in one minute and you only have a two-minute break. You have to do it five times.

“When I ran last year, I didn’t even pass. I wasn’t even there [training at Kaseya Center in the weeks prior]. I just had a kid. I just had my daughter, and I literally had to get on a red eye and go to the gym. It was tough last year.”

Mitchell further elaborated during his appearance on the Sacramento-based podcast.

“The beginning of the year last year, I was going through a lot mentally,” he said. “Having a kid. Honestly, I didn’t feel I was in the best shape at the beginning of the year last year. Spo understood that and respected everything I do. He knows how I work hard.

“It was a time that I was so messed up in the summertime, there were times in camp I didn’t feel like myself. I was super quiet, not even myself.

“I respected [Spoelstra] because he put me out there and made me grow as a player. He really believed in me. I was going through so much mentally, it was hard to have confidence in everything I was doing. It wasn’t basketball; it was life. People don’t understand we’re still human.”

Mitchell suggested he’s in a better place. No Heat player has offered a more revealing public window into his offseason than Mitchell — to the point that some on social media have asked if he’s working himself too hard.

That’s not a concern for the Heat.

“This season is going to be so much different,” he said. “Mentally, I’m so much sharper. Physically I’m so much sharper. This summer, I’ve lost a lot of weight. I’m playing basketball every week. Mentally, I’m way more prepared than last year. And last year, I did a solid job for what I was going through. This year will be completely different, with Giannis and all the people we added.”

Speaking of his interactions with Antetokounmpo — including his visit to Greece for a basketball and bonding session — Mitchell said: “You can see why he became MVP. The mentality is so different. All he wants to do is win. Even going to dinner with him and having a conversation with him, it’s winning about everything, not just basketball — life in general. Everything he’s trying to be the best he can be at. When you have someone on your team [like that], it’s hard to even lose. When you have so many people with a mentality like that, it’s going to be fun.”

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Mitchell also spoke of the tantalizing defensive possibilities with a roster featuring Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins and himself.

“People knew where to put Bam because they know how good he is defensively,” Mitchell said. “But now they have [to deal with] Giannis too? Where are they going to put him? I can pick somebody out of bounds, and if they blow by me, I know someone will have my back.

“They want to win Defensive Player of the Year too just as much as we do. We have this competitive spirit, where, ‘I’m trying to win Defensive Player of the Year’ and ‘I’m trying to win Defensive Player of the Year.’

“We have three, really four [great defenders], with Wiggs. There are some matchups he guards the best player. Sometimes I do. I’ve got shifty, quicker guys. He’s got guys who are much taller, get to their spots. The defense is going to be amazing. I can’t wait.”

▪ Asked about Riley, Mitchell said: “At the end of the year, you go to Pat Riley’s office and talk to him. Every single time, going there, I feel like my heart started pumping fast. I don’t know why.

“But when I get in there and talk to him, he’s actually one of the coolest guys ever. He will talk about anything with you. That’s what I love about it.”

Heat odds

FanDuel gives Antetokounmpo the fifth-best odds (and best odds of any Eastern Conference player) to be named first-team All-NBA. Only Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, Victor Wenbanyama and Luka Doncic have shorter odds.

In odds for regular-season MVP, Antetokounmpo is fifth at plus-1000. Adebayo is tied for 30th at plus 75,000.

In odds for Defensive Player of Year, Adebayo has the fifth shortest odds at plus-4000, while Antetokounmpo is tied for 12th at plus-10,000.

In odds for Sixth Man of the Year, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Bobby Portis are tied for 18th at plus-4000, while Pelle Larsson is 37th at plus-7500.

In odds for Most Improved Player, Larsson and Davion Mitchell are tied for 20th at plus-4000, with Nikola Jovic tied for 33rd at plus-7000.

Powell’s thoughts

Though the Heat never made him an offer this offseason, Norman Powell was complimentary of the front office’s moves in a recent interview.

“Any time you get a generational talent like that, it automatically puts you into contention,” Powell said of Antetokounmpo in a conversation with streamer Mikyle Rafiq. “So it’s all about the team they have around him. And how they mesh and come together. I mean, they got some dawgs. “Shoutout my man D-Mitch, ‘Off Night’, and Bam.

“They’re going to be good. I’m excited to see how it all comes together. They signed Klay. So that’s a good pickup for them. They made some good moves, man.”

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Powell signed a two-year, $45 million contract with the Chicago Bulls in July.

This story was originally published September 18, 2026 at 11:30 AM.