Former Syracuse basketball wing Nate Kingz, who came on strong in the second half of the 2025-26 season, is headed to the Sunshine State, sort of.
Dushawn London, a national analyst with 247Sports, reported via his X page on Thursday afternoon that Kingz has signed an NBA Summer League deal with the Miami Heat. A huge congrats to Nate!
Syracuse guard Nate Kingz has signed a Summer League deal with the Miami Heat, source tells @247Sports pic.twitter.com/Tv23oOB8XX
— Dushawn London (@DushawnLondon1) June 25, 2026
The 2026 NBA Summer League, according to this press release, will take place from July 9 to July 19 in Las Vegas. Other former Orange players, including center William Kyle III, are also expected to suit up in the 2026 NBA Summer League.
In the 2025-26 regular season, Miami went 43-39 overall and fell in an NBA play-in game to the Charlotte Hornets. Earlier this week, ESPN first reported that the Heat was expected to land two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo in a blockbuster trade with the Milwaukee Bucks, a program that he won a world title with in 2021.
Former Syracuse basketball player Nate Kingz will play in the 2026 NBA Summer League.
In April, the 6-foot-5, 190-pound Kingz, who hails from Salem, Ore., entered the transfer portal. There were reports indicating that he was potentially trying to get a waiver from the NCAA to play another season, since not all his terms in college had been at the Division I level. He had competed for Oregon State before joining SU.
Although known for his 3-point shooting, early on in the 2025-26 season, Kingz struggled from the perimeter, but he eventually heated up from downtown and put forth some big-time performances in the latter half of this past campaign.
In 2025-26, Syracuse basketball went 15-17 overall, its second straight losing stanza. SU officials parted ways with head coach Adrian Autry and hired another former Orange player, legendary guard Gerry McNamara, as the squad's next head coach.
Last season, Kingz averaged 31.3 minutes, 12.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game while making 49.3 percent from the field, 36.7 percent from 3-point land and 61.9 percent from the free-throw line.
It remains to be seen if Kingz can make the Miami Heat roster, or another NBA team's roster. However, he's a solid shooter from beyond the arc, rebounds well for a wing player and is an underrated athlete as he carves out space in the lane to score in the paint. Nate can have a successful pro career, and 'Cuse Nation wishes him well.
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