Haywood Highsmith
Haywood Highsmith | |
|---|---|
| Born | Haywood Lee Highsmith Jr. December 9, 1996 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Occupation | Professional basketball player |
| Years active | 2018–present |
| Known for | Playing for the Miami Heat in the NBA |
Haywood Lee Highsmith Jr. (born December 9, 1996) is a professional basketball athlete from the United States currently competing for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Originating from Baltimore, he played collegiate basketball with the Cardinals at Wheeling Jesuit University, where he earned the distinction of NCAA Division II Player of the Year in 2018.
Despite not being selected in the 2018 NBA draft, Highsmith launched his professional journey in 2018 with the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. Toward the end of the 2018–19 campaign, he made his NBA debut with the Blue Coats' NBA affiliate, the Philadelphia 76ers. Following this, he had several periods playing for Delaware, competed internationally with Germany’s Crailsheim Merlins in the Basketball Bundesliga, and is presently a member of the Miami Heat roster.
Early life and college career
Hailing from Baltimore, Highsmith completed his high school education at Archbishop Curley High School in 2014, where he received minimal recruitment attention from NCAA Division I programs.
He then enrolled at Wheeling Jesuit University (now known as Wheeling University) and represented the Wheeling Jesuit Cardinals over four seasons (2014–2018). After earning a starting role late in his freshman year, he posted averages of 14.5 points and 9.4 rebounds as a sophomore, which led to first-team All-Mountain East Conference (MEC) honors. In his junior season, Highsmith improved to 15.3 points and 10.8 rebounds per contest, earning second-team All-MEC recognition. His senior year marked a breakout performance with averages of 22 points and 12.6 rebounds per game, garnering first-team All-MEC accolades along with MEC Player of the Year and MEC tournament MVP titles. On a national scale, he was honored as a first-team Division II All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and was named Division II National Player of the Year by the Conference Commissioner’s Association.
Delaware Blue Coats (2018–2019)
Following his undrafted status in the 2018 NBA draft, Highsmith secured a spot on the Delaware Blue Coats roster via a local tryout for the NBA G League. During his time there, he averaged 13.7 points across 21 games.
Philadelphia 76ers (2019)
On January 8, 2019, Highsmith inked a two-way contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, dividing his playing time between them and their G League affiliate. He made his NBA debut that same day, contributing three points in five minutes during a victory against the Washington Wizards. Over five NBA appearances that season, he averaged 1.8 points and one rebound, while posting averages of 12.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.2 steals across 46 G League games (42 starts).
The 76ers waived him on June 24, 2019.
Return to the Blue Coats (2019–2020)
After an initial agreement with the Phoenix Suns under an Exhibit 10 contract did not materialize, Highsmith signed another Exhibit 10 deal with Philadelphia and rejoined Delaware for the 2019–20 season. On December 31, he recorded 20 points and eight rebounds in a defeat to the Maine Red Claws. For that season, he averaged 10.8 points along with 6.9 rebounds per game.
Crailsheim Merlins (2020–2021)
Highsmith agreed to terms on September 4, 2020, with Germany’s Crailsheim Merlins competing in the Basketball Bundesliga, where he averaged 7.9 points and grabbed 4.4 rebounds per outing.
Third tenure with the Blue Coats (2021)
On July 27, 2021, Highsmith committed to Vanoli Cremona competing in Italy's Lega Basket Serie A (LBA), including an NBA opt-out clause. However, after receiving an Exhibit 10 contract offer from the Philadelphia 76ers, he chose to leave Cremona and return stateside. Subsequently, on September 30, he signed with the 76ers but was waived shortly thereafter.
During his 2021 return to the Blue Coats, Highsmith posted averages of 14.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per contest.
Miami Heat (2021–2022)
On December 30, 2021, Highsmith inked a 10-day hardship exception contract with the Miami Heat.
Fourth period with the Blue Coats (2022)
Highsmith was reacquired by the Delaware Blue Coats on January 9, 2022.
Return to Miami Heat (2022–2025)
Highsmith signed a conventional 10-day contract with the Miami Heat on February 15, 2022, followed by a second 10-day deal ten days later. He then secured a three-year contract with Miami.
On December 20, 2022, he achieved a personal best of 18 points, alongside notable rebounds, assists, and steals during a defeat against the Chicago Bulls. The Heat progressed through the NBA play-in tournament and upset the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in a five-game series. In game five of the Eastern Conference Finals, Highsmith recorded a playoff career-high of 15 points despite the team's loss to the Boston Celtics. Miami overcame Boston in seven games to advance to the 2023 NBA Finals facing off against the Denver Nuggets. In game one of the Finals, he matched his career-high scoring output of 18 points in a loss; Miami eventually fell in five games.
On July 8, 2024, Highsmith re-signed with the Miami Heat.
Regular season
|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 5 || 0 || 8.0 || .400 || .200 || .000 || 1.0 || .4 || .2 || .0 || 1.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Miami | 19 || 1 || 8.6 || .348 || .321 || .400 || 1.4 || .3 || .1 || .2 || 2.3 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Miami | 54 || 11 || 18.0 || .431 || .339 || .464 || 3.5 || .8 || .7 || .3 || 4.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Miami | 66 || 26 || 20.7 || .465 || .396 || .639 || 3.2 || 1.1 || .8 || .5 || 6.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Miami | 74 || 42 || 24.6 || .458 || .382 || .721 || 3.4 || 1.5 || .9 || .5 || 6.5 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 218 || 80 || 20.0 || .449 || .374 || .605 || 3.1 || 1.1 || .7 || .4 || 5.4
Playoffs
|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2022 | style="text-align:left;"| Miami | 8 || 0 || 3.9 || .429 || .600 || — || .6 || .4 || .0 || .0 || 1.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"|2023 | style="text-align:left;"|Miami | 18||0||8.9||.615||.500||.800||1.3||.3||.6||.1||3.3 |- | style="text-align:left;"|2024 | style="text-align:left;"|Miami |5||0||25.1||.357||.188||1.000||2.8||1.6||.2||.2||4.8 |- | style="text-align:left;" |2025
| style="text-align:left;" |Miami |4||0||21.0||.579||.467||||3.3||1.0||.8||.5||7.3
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center" colspan="2"| Career |35||0||11.5||.516||.404||.833||1.6||.6||.4||.1||3.5