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Photo: Miami HEAT/YouTubeDavion Mitchell says Miami Heat president Pat Riley made it clear that improving his conditioning and reducing his body fat must be a priority heading into the 2026-27 season.
Mitchell revealed that Riley and head coach Erik Spoelstra did not focus on basketball during his end-of-season exit meeting after the Heat’s 2025-26 campaign. Instead, their message centered on his physical conditioning.
“Pat and Spo 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,’” Mitchell said on the Deuce & Mo Podcast.
“This is Heat culture to the T… We understand the situation but this year, we’ve got to get you back down.”
Davion Mitchell says Pat Riley told him he must reduce his body fat this season after failing his conditioning test last year:
“Pat and Spo 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… pic.twitter.com/sPvSjPMNWG
Mitchell’s comments come after he established himself as Miami’s starting point guard during the 2025-26 season. He started all 70 games he played, averaging 9.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 6.5 assists in 28.6 minutes per game.
The 28-year-old also shot a career-best 49.0% from the field and made 39.5% of his three-point attempts, while averaging 1.0 steal per game. His 6.5 assists were easily a career high.
Mitchell joined the Heat during the 2024-25 season after beginning the campaign with the Toronto Raptors. Miami acquired him at the trade deadline, and he averaged 10.3 points and 5.3 assists in 30 games for the team.
That late-season stretch helped Mitchell earn a larger role in Miami’s backcourt. The Heat subsequently relied on him throughout the 2025-26 campaign, when the team finished 44-38 but missed the playoffs for the first time in seven seasons.
The offseason brought a major change to Miami’s roster as the Heat acquired Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis from the Milwaukee Bucks in a blockbuster trade. Miami also added Klay Thompson, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Nick Richards while retaining Andrew Wiggins and several other rotation pieces.
Mitchell is projected to remain the starting point guard alongside Wiggins, Thompson or Hardaway Jr., Giannis and Bam Adebayo.
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