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Heat extend two-way qualifying offer to Goldin, bypass similar move with Keels
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- Heat extend two-way qualifying offer to Goldin, bypass similar move with Keels
MIAMI — The Miami Heat have created a pathway for former Florida Atlantic University center Vlad Goldin to return on a two-way contract, while bypassing a similar opportunity with guard Trevor Keels.
Both Goldin and Keels finished this past season on Heat two-way deals.
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Goldin now is assured of at least a two-way salary from the Heat for 2026-27, which is half the NBA minimum standard salary, after the team extended a two-way qualifying offer ahead of Monday's deadline.
While the move means Goldin cannot accept a 2026-27 two-way contract from another team, it does not preclude him from signing a standard contract with another team. The Heat also have the right to withdraw the two-way offer by July 13 if Goldin does not sign it in the interim.
Goldin, a member of FAU's Final Four team in 2023, was added by the Heat immediately after going undrafted out of Michigan in 2025 . He was limited to nine Heat appearances for 24 total minutes last season as a rookie, otherwise spending time with the G League Sioux Falls Skyforce as part of his two-way contract.
Players under two-way contracts are allowed to be on the NBA active list for a maximum of 50 of the 82 regular-season games, ineligible for the playoffs.
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Keels, who was signed to a two-way deal late last season after breakout 3-point shooting with the Skyforce, becomes an unrestricted free agent, eligible to sign any type of contract elsewhere in the league, with the Heat without the right to retain him by matching such offers.
Goldin now is expected to continue on with the Heat's summer-league roster, which begins play Friday in San Francisco, with Keels still eligible to play for the Heat's summer team, as well.
Keels, a second-round pick out of Duke by the New York Knicks in 2022, previously played for the Knicks and the Knicks' G League affiliate. He appeared in eight games for a total of 15 minutes last season for the Heat, with the bulk of his time otherwise with the Skyforce.
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Teams are allowed to carry a maximum of three two-way players at any given time. Until Goldin signs his qualifying offer, he will not count against that Heat total.
Currently, the lone player under a Heat two-way contract is undrafted University of Miami guard Tre Donaldson, who signed such an agreement after the conclusion of Wednesday's second round of the NBA draft.
Two-way contracts can be swapped out at any time, with such salaries not counting against the NBA salary cap, luxury tax or tax aprons.
While two-way players are eligible for up to 50 NBA games, teams that work below the 15-player NBA standard roster limit are limited to 90 such combined NBA active game nights for their two-way players. The Heat are expected to operate with 14 players under standard deals at the start of next season due to their hard-capped position against the first tax apron in the wake of the Giannis Antetokounmpo acquisition .
