Mario Chalmers looks back at 10-day with Heat and ahead at opportunity with Skyforce

Mario Chalmers’ next basketball opportunity is coming with the Miami Heat. Not in the NBA, but with the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

The Skyforce announced on Friday that it acquired the G League rights to Chalmers. The move comes after Chalmers signed a 10-day contract with the Heat on Dec. 31 as a COVID-19 replacement, but he didn’t get to play in a game before the deal expired this past Sunday.

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The Heat, which improved to 27-15 after Friday’s 124-118 win over the Atlanta Hawks at FTX Arena, approached Chalmers about the opportunity in recent days when his 10-day contract expired. Chalmers, 35, remains eligible to sign with any NBA team.

“My guess is it’s something that they had in the works for me after my 10-day was up,” Chalmers said to the Miami Herald, with the Heat set to complete its home back-to-back set on Saturday against the Philadelphia 76ers (8 p.m., Bally Sports Sun). “I never heard anything about it. They just called me the day after my 10-day and told me they were going to pick me up for the Skyforce. They know I want to keep playing, everybody knows I want to keep playing. So I guess this is the best route for me.”

Chalmers, who spent the first seven-plus seasons of his NBA career with the Heat, participated in his first practice with the Skyforce on Friday and is expected to be available to play in this weekend’s games against the Memphis Hustle.

“Just being here on Day 1, it does feel like the Heat organization,” Chalmers said of his first impression of the Skyforce. “They do everything just like the Heat, which is expected. So it’s another way for me to be a vet leader at this stage and also be able to show that I can still play. The way I look at it is that it’s a little bit of the best of both worlds for me.”

Chalmers last played in an NBA game on April 11, 2018 as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies. He tore his right Achilles tendon in March 2016 and it derailed his career, as he needed four additional surgeries because of issues stemming from the injury.

When Chalmers signed a 10-day deal with the Heat last month, he hoped that his first NBA action in nearly four years was coming. But he never was called into a game.

“I thought I would play,” Chalmers said. “Of course, I’m a little disappointed because everybody knows that once you work that hard to get back, you want to play. You want to show NBA teams, you want to show everybody that you’ve been working hard and that you can still play this game and compete at a high level. So in that regard with the competitive nature of it, I definitely wanted to play. But I understand what’s going on with the Heat, I understand what’s going on with the team and they’re on a real mission right now to get to the Finals. I just wanted to be a part of that and not be a disruption.”

Chalmers still looks back at his second stint with the Heat as a “great experience,” albeit a short one.

“Just trying to figure out how to work my way back to even be able to get a 10-day from an Achilles tear,” said Chalmers, who won two NBA championships as the Heat’s starting point guard in 2012 and 2013 during the Big 3 era. “It took me almost two years to come back. My thing is just being grateful for the opportunity. I’ve dealt with a lot these last four years within the basketball world. Just appreciating the little things.”

During his 10 days with the Heat, Chalmers recalls a few conversations with 21-year-old guard Tyler Herro on the team plane.

“He was just asking how it was back in the old days,” Chalmers said. “Things are just so much different. There’s a little bit more freedom within the Heat than what we had back in the day. But that’s just the evolution of basketball, the evolution of people, the evolution of minds.”

A lot has changed since Chalmers last played in the NBA. Between then and now, he has played in Italy, Greece, Puerto Rico, the halfcourt three-on-three Big 3 league and the G League this season.

One thing that hasn’t changed is Chalmers’ desire to return to the NBA.

“Hopefully another 10-day comes out of it and I get signed for the rest of the year,” he said of his goal with the Skyforce. “If that doesn’t happen, I’m staying here for the rest of the year. The goal for every year, especially my goal, is to win a championship. To be able to do that no matter what level it’s on, it’s just a great opportunity. What I’m so happy about is just being able to play in the [United] States and not overseas.”

CALEB’S IMPACT

According to NBA tracking stats, Heat two-way contract wing Caleb Martin spent 33 possessions as the primary defender on Hawks star guard Trae Young over the previous two games.

Young totaled just four points on four made free throws during those possessions. He shot 0 of 4 from the field, including 0 of 3 from three-point range against Martin.

“Caleb is special, he’s very special,” Heat wing Max Strus said. “He’s so gritty on defense. He just wants to make an impact on the game and he does every single time. He constantly is a pest on guys and pressures 94 feet. We love having him out there and he just changes the game for us.”

Heat star Jimmy Butler praised Martin’s defense following Friday’s win: “I told Caleb he should start in my place if he’s going to guard like that, seriously. Because they had me chasing that little dude [Young] around. It’s not an easy job to do. So I think if you talk to Spo, I think Spo might start him over me.”

INJURY REPORT

The Heat will be without Bam Adebayo (thumb surgery), Marcus Garrett (wrist sprain), Kyle Guy (ineligible to play), Markieff Morris (return to competition reconditioning, whiplash), KZ Okpala (wrist sprain), Victor Oladipo (knee injury recovery) and Chris Silva (ineligible to play) for Saturday’s game.

The 76ers ruled out Danny Green (right hip pain), Shake Milton (back contusion), Ben Simmons (personal reasons), Jaden Springer (G League assignment) and Matisse Thybulle (shoulder soreness) for Saturday’s game in Miami. The 76ers are also playing on the second night of a back-to-back after defeating the Boston Celtics 111-99 on Friday in Philadelphia.