Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat notes in week four of the season

Despite the Heat’s inconsistent 4-6 start, the team is much better than what it is showing. The latest loss in Detroit for the Emirates Cup match went down to the end of overtime, and uncommonly, coach Erik Spoelstra’s mental lapse- calling a timeout when none were available- sank his team.

That night, Tyler Herro became the first Heat player to connect on 10 trifectas in multiple games. The only other past and present Heatles to record it once were Brian Shaw, Mario Chalmers and Duncan Robinson.

Through 10 outings, here’s how the Heat rank in important categories:

-25th in rebounding percentage (48.4).

-23rd in paint scoring (45).

-12th in fastbreak points (16.4).

– 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.94).

-28th in second-chance points (10.6)

-10th in points off turnovers (18.8).

-20th in opponent 3-point percentage (36.5).

Regarding the rebounding, second chance points and point-of-attack protection, the Heat must reclaim its identity as the self-anointed, “Hardest working. Best conditioned. Most professional. Unselfish. Toughest. Meanest. Nastiest team in the NBA.”

There is optimism for a turnaround if Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler pick up their play. The former’s accuracy has plummeted after a shift in offense- fewer middies and more threes. And for whatever reason, he is not comfortable in his sweet spot- the paint non restricted area.

The latter hasn’t returned from time off with a sprained ankle, but he was not pressuring backline defenses as he used to. If motivated Butler shows up full-time, plowing his way to the line, swarming passing lanes plus ball handlers, a good chunk of the Heat’s problems will evaporate.

Once Butler returns, Haywood Highsmith, Duncan Robinson, Herro and Adebayo should start with him. Terry Rozier has not played well enough to keep going with the initial rotation, and the cohesion isn’t always there. Perhaps he can find his groove, producing points in a hurry off the bench. In this scenario, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kevin Love must step up for the front-court reserves.

When the team wanted Damian Lillard, it envisioned a player who could take a lot of offensive pressure away from Butler and Adebayo. Herro is not quite at Lillard’s level, but he can take on more offensive responsibilities now that he’s taken a leap. Of all guards in the east who have played at least 10 games, Herro is seventh in effective field goal percentage (64.3) and eighth in true shooting percentage (66.8).

Herro’s time of possession and usage have not increased from last season and his playmaking is sharper than ever. Consider this: the only players this season besides Herro to log at least 45 3-pointers and 50 assists are Jayson Tatum, Derrick White and LaMelo Ball. Notably, Herro is the most accurate of the group from 3-point range, making 47.9% of his 9.6 tries nightly.

If this play continues for Herro- 24.9 points, 5.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game- he will have a real case to make his first All-Star team.

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