Summer standout aims to be latest success story
When the Miami Heat used its final roster spot to add center Omer Yurtseven to its developmental program in the final days of last regular season, the move didn’t get much attention.
The start of the postseason was approaching, the Heat was still jockeying for playoff positioning and Yurtseven had yet to play in an NBA game. Even the Heat’s coaching staff had little time to work with Yurtseven when he initially signed with the team.
“When we first got him, it was different because we were in the playoffs,” Heat assistant coach Malik Allen recalled. “So other than watching his film at [Oklahoma City] when we got him, we still didn’t know a whole lot. We were still learning about him.
“But you could tell just from watching his film and his play, he has good touch in the paint and the skill set is there offensively. So we were just trying to keep working and pushing and driving him to develop that to get ready so once we got to a live game situation, you actually could kind of see what it really looks like.”
The results were eyeopening in summer league last month, as the 23-yearold Yurtseven averaged 22.4 points on 50.6 percent shooting and 8-of-22 (36.4 percent) shooting from three-point range, 11.2 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in the five summer games he played with the Heat.
The 7-footer impressed enough to earn a guaranteed standard NBA contract from the Heat for next season during the first week of summer league action. Yurtseven, who was born in Turkey, is one of 14 players on Miami’s roster with a guaranteed contract for the upcoming season.
“Initially it was just more fuel when they didn’t take the option,”
Center Omer Yurtseven earned a guaranteed contract for next season from the Heat after opening eyes with his impressive summer league play. ‘I’m just excited it’s with the Heat,’ he said.
Yurtseven said, referring to the Heat’s decision to decline the $1.5 million team option in his contract on Aug. 1 to allow him to enter summer league as a free agent before Miami again signed him a few days later. “Then I just had to focus on my game. I knew that if I did my part in terms of showing what I have, showing what I can do and how I can contribute by defending and rebounding and blocking shots at the rim and being an outside threat, I knew that I could get a spot. I just had to believe in that.”
Yurtseven’s standout play last month didn’t just result in a guaranteed contract; it also generated social media buzz and even a few nicknames that made him smile.
“I saw so many. Turk Nowitzki and stuff,” Yurtseven said with a laugh. “I like YurtSZN, so I’m going to stick with that for a while. But the excitement is so special. It’s my first NBA full-season contract and I’m just excited it’s with the Heat.
The Heat fan base is incredible, man. The support that they showed after playing for them and representing the culture the way that I did, the support that they showed was incredible.
“I’m happy to be a part of it and just see all the reactions.”
Why was a big man as skilled as Yurtseven available for the Heat to sign, and where did he come from?
Yurtseven played two seasons at NC State before transferring to Georgetown, and went undrafted in 2020. He averaged 15.5 points while shooting 53.4 percent from the field and 3 of 14 on threes, 9.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.5 blocks in his lone season at Georgetown in 2019-20.
“I thought he was a better player than he played for us,” said Georgetown coach Patrick Ewing, who is in the Basketball Hall of Fame for his playing days as an NBA center. “But we loved having him here. He can score, he can rebound and was an elite rebounder. Just was a joy to coach . ... His ability to score. He can score on the block, he can score at the three-point line like you’re seeing now. He’s very skilled, and I think the more opportunities he gets, the more you’ll be able to see.”
Yurtseven shot just 3 of 14 from three-point range at Georgetown. Ewing said Yurtseven had an outside shot in college, but “just didn’t shoot a lot for us.”
Yurtseven has focused on improving his threepoint shot since leaving college, as he noted when he signed with the Heat in May that he put up 20,000 three-pointers per month for eight straight months from the end of his college season to the 2020 NBA Draft.
“I see it as a big part of my game,” Yurtseven said of the outside shot. “It’s one of the things that I want people to hear or understand whenever they talk about my game. ‘He can stretch the floor. He can shoot the pickand-pop. He’s a shooter.’
“The outside threat has been something that I had to implement because of how the game is evolving. Being able to have an outside shot, it’s really a necessity right now. Developing the mid-post game has also been a big focus. But the inside presence, I think offensively, has always been there.”
Before signing with the Heat late last season, Yurtseven spent time in the G League with the Oklahoma City Blue. He appeared in 14 games with the Blue, averaging 15.2 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.4 blocks and 21.1 minutes while shooting 62.6 percent from the field and 38.1 percent on 1.5 three-point attempts per game.
Yurtseven was used in a backup role last season in the G League, which is where he caught the eye of Heat assistant general manager and vice president of basketball operations Adam Simon.
“Omer is super talented, super skilled and he’s a worker,” said Heat wing Max Strus, who played with Yurtseven during summer league. “... He’s definitely easy to play with. When you got a big that can stretch the floor and shoot like that and also can bang down low and score — he’s got great touch around the rim — it’s obviously great to play with that.”
But dominating summer league and producing in real NBA games are two different things.
With franchise cornerstone Bam Adebayo the
unquestionable starter at center, veteran Dewayne
Dedmon expected to be used as Adebayo’s backup and forwards P.J. Tucker and Markieff Morris also providing experienced frontcourt options, playing time could be scarce for Yurtseven to start the
season, and time in the G League may be the best option for consistent game reps.
However, Yurtseven’s skill set is one that should theoretically fit well alongside Adebayo as frontcourt mates. Yurtseven’s outside shooting allows him to space the floor, and he has the size to develop into an effective rim protector while Adebayo is using his defensive versatility on the perimeter.
“The biggest focus has been on being big inside, and I think that’s the presence that the Heat can use and I can provide,” Yurtseven said. “Being able to do that and guard the pick-and-roll, be the big presence inside and rebounding obviously has been a huge emphasis, as well.
“Also, with my talent and skill set, being able to stretch the floor, being able to post up and use my touch around the rim and also the midrange and step outside, as well. That has been our focus.”
Continuing to improve defensively is the next step for Yurtseven, specifically “defending the rim and pick-and-rolls and just containing the twoman game.”
Physically, Yurtseven said he’s at 252 pounds and 7 percent body fat after entering the Heat’s program in May at 245 pounds and 8 percent body fat.
“That’s a decent amount of muscle that I’ve put on,” he said. “In that way, my body has definitely changed.”
The next regular-season NBA game Yurtseven plays in will be his first. But his work in the Heat’s developmental program and summer league was enough to earn a spot on the roster for next season.
“I think I’m the perfect fit with the big presence inside and also being able to stretch the floor,” Yurtseven said. “It’s an amazing opportunity and I’m so grateful that it’s with the Heat.”