Where did Haywood Highsmith go to college?

Haywood Highsmith is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Highsmith plays as both a small forward and power forward position for the Heat.

Highsmith was born on December 23, 1996 in Baltimore, Maryland. He attended and graduated from Archbishop Curley High School in Baltimore in 2014, where one of his classmates was NFL wide receiver Deonte Harris who currently plays for the Buffalo Bills.

Haywood Highsmith College Career

After graduating from Archbishop Curley High School, Haywood Highsmith attended Wheeling Jesuit University (now known as Wheeling University) from 2014-2018 and played college basketball for the Wheeling Jesuit Cardinals.

He was a starter in all four seasons at Wheeling and had an impressive college career. As a sophomore in 2015-2016, Highsmith averaged 14.5 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. During his junior season in 2016-2017, he elevated his game even further, putting up 15.3 points and 10.8 rebounds per contest, earning second-team All-MEC honors.

Highsmith's success peaked in his senior season in 2017-2018 when he was named the Mountain East Conference (MEC) Player of the Year after averaging 22 points and 12.6 rebounds per game. He was also voted first-team All-MEC, named the MEC Tournament MVP, and received National Player of the Year accolades.

Haywood Highsmith Draft and NBA Career

Despite his standout college career, Haywood Highsmith went undrafted in the 2018 NBA Draft. However, he signed with the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League after the draft. Highsmith played for the Blue Coats during the 2018-2019 season.

In 2019, Highsmith signed a two-way contract with parent team the Philadelphia 76ers. He returned to the Blue Coats for the 2019-20 season after playing just games with the 76ers. In 2021, the Miami Heat signed Highsmith to a 10-day contract before he went back to play for the Blue Coats again, his fourth stint with Delaware.

Finally in 2022, the Miami Heat signed Highsmith to a three-year contract. In his first full season with the Heat in 2022-2023, he averaged 4.4 points and 3.5 rebounds while playing 54 games, mostly in a bench role.

Now in his third season on the Heat roster, Highsmith has carved out an important role as a versatile, defense-oriented bench player, relied upon for his energy, and ability to guard multiple positions, despite not filling up the stat sheet on a regular basis.